Keep healthy in the beginning of spring, protect the yang energy and focus on "life"

The Beginning of Spring indicates that spring is coming and everything is reviving. We should seize the opportunity to learn more about health preservation. The important thing about health preservation during this period is to focus on "life", follow the solar terms, maintain a happy mood, avoid anger, avoid depression, and eat a light diet.

1. Health preservation in spring should conform to the characteristics of the growth of Yang energy in spring and the beginning of the birth of all things. Pay attention to protecting Yang energy and focus on the word "birth". According to the natural attributes, spring belongs to wood, which corresponds to the liver. (This is the Five Elements Theory, which uses the characteristics of the Five Elements to explain the physiological characteristics of the five internal organs. For example, the liver likes to be regulated and has the function of dispersing and venting, and wood has the characteristic of growth, so the liver belongs to "wood"). The physiological characteristics of the liver are to release and vent, and in terms of will it is anger, and it hates depression and likes to be regulated and vent. In terms of mental health preservation in spring, we should avoid violent anger and even more so depression. We should be open-minded, optimistic, and maintain a good attitude of peace of mind. At the same time, we should make full use of and cherish the time when nature "starts to grow" in spring, when Yang energy rises, all things sprout, and the human body's metabolism is vigorous. Through proper regulation, we can make the spring Yang energy spread and the metabolic function function normally.

2. The climate changes greatly in spring, with sudden changes in temperature. As the pores of the human body begin to become loose, the ability to resist cold is weakened. Therefore, people living in the northern region should not take off their cotton clothes all of a sudden in early spring. The elderly and the weak should be especially cautious when changing clothes and should not reduce the amount of clothing suddenly. "Qian Jin Yao Fang" advocates that in spring, clothes should be "thick on the bottom and thin on the top". "Lao Lao Heng Yan" also says: "In spring, when the body is half frozen, it is better for the lower body to be too warm, and the upper body can be slightly reduced, so as to nourish the Yang vitality." In spring, the human body's qi and blood need to be stretched and unobstructed just like the natural world. This requires us to sleep late and get up early, take off our hats and let our hair down, loosen our clothes, stretch our bodies, participate in more outdoor activities, overcome fatigue and sleepiness, adapt our spirit and emotions to nature, strive for harmony between body and mind, and be full of energy.

3. In terms of diet, we should take into account the birth of Yang energy in spring. It is better to eat spicy and sweet foods that disperse the energy, and avoid sour and astringent foods. "Suwen. Storing Qi and Implementing the Time Theory" says: "The liver governs spring... When the liver is in pain, eat sweet food to relieve it... When the liver wants to disperse, eat spicy food to disperse it, use spicy food to nourish it and sour food to purge it." In the relationship between the five internal organs and the five flavors, sour taste enters the liver and has a restraining nature, which is not conducive to the generation of yang energy and the release of liver qi. Dietary adjustments should cater to the preferences of the internal organs, that is, "going against its nature makes it bitter, and following its nature makes it desirable. Desire is what the spirit of the organ likes, which is tonic. Bitterness is what the spirit of the organ hates, which is purgative." By clarifying this relationship, we can purposefully choose some herbs and foods that can soften and nourish the liver, soothe the liver and regulate qi, such as herbal medicines such as wolfberry, turmeric, salvia miltiorrhiza, and Corydalis, and foods such as jujube, fermented black beans, onions, coriander, peanuts, etc., which are spicy and warm, and can be used to flexibly formulate meals.

4. Another aspect of health care in spring is disease prevention and health care. Especially in early spring, when the weather turns from cold to warm, various pathogenic bacteria and viruses begin to grow and multiply. Warm and hot toxic evils began to become active, and diseases such as influenza, meningitis, measles, scarlet fever, and pneumonia, which are described in modern medicine, also occurred and became prevalent. To avoid the occurrence of spring diseases, the first preventive measures are to eliminate the source of infection; second, open windows frequently to allow indoor air to circulate and keep the air fresh; third, strengthen exercise to improve the body's defense capabilities. In addition, pay attention to the health of your mouth and nose to block the path of warm evil from attacking the lungs first.