In winter, many people are prone to cold hands and feet due to the influence of the climate. Especially for many women who often expose their ankles and waist to maintain a perfect image, it is very harmful to the body if they do not keep warm in winter. Below, I will recommend some food therapies for winter warmth.
【Winter Warmth Food Therapy】
1. Red Date and Longan Congee
Method: Take appropriate amounts of red dates, longan, peanuts, and rice. Wash the ingredients and put them in a pot with water. Boil over high heat and continue to simmer over low heat until the congee becomes thick.
Effect: Especially suitable for people with anemia, sensitivity to cold, and dizziness.
2. Ginseng and Red Date Tea
Method: Take 15 grams of ginseng and 12 grams of red dates. Wash the ingredients and put them in a clay pot with water. Boil over high heat and continue to simmer over low heat for about 40 minutes.
Effect: Tonifies the spleen and lung, moistens the mouth and quenches thirst, calms the mind and enhances intelligence, and replenishes vitality.
3. Gui Date and Black Chicken Soup
Method: Take a black chicken, red dates, longan, and ginger in appropriate amounts. Clean the black chicken and put all ingredients in a clay pot. Boil over high heat, then simmer over low heat for about 1 hour. Season to taste.
Effect: Tonifies the spleen and stomach, nourishes qi and blood, calms the mind and nourishes the liver and kidney. It can be used for all types of deficiency and debility.
【Diet Choices to Ward off Cold in Winter】
1. Brown Sugar Water
In the severe cold winter, emphasizing warm tonics, brown sugar water is the best warm tonic drink. Brown sugar is praised as "chocolate" and its benefits lie in its warming and nourishing effects. It can dispel stagnation, dispel cold, warm the stomach and strengthen the spleen, and relieve pain.
2. Tomatoes
Tomatoes contain rich dietary fiber (which can help the growth of beneficial bacteria in the intestines) and pectin, which can fill your stomach, stimulate the brain's satiety center, and also remove acidic metabolic waste from the intestines, helping your intestines complete detoxification during sleep.
3. Lamb
In winter, lamb is recommended for tonifying yang. Lamb has the effects of strengthening the body, nourishing blood, warming the body, tonifying the kidney and yang, invigorating the muscles, enhancing strength, and resisting wind and cold. It can improve symptoms of physical weakness, insufficient yang, and feeling cold and weak in middle-aged and elderly people.
4. Ginger Tea
The most suitable tea to drink in winter is ginger tea, which has a warming effect on the body and no side effects. In winter, you can also drink red tea, jasmine tea, oolong tea, goji berry tea, and honeysuckle tea. Drinking tea can have antioxidant effects, prevent aging, and have health benefits.
【Tips for Beating the Cold in Winter】
1. Soak Your Feet Before Bed
Cold starts from the feet, so taking care of your feet is important for winter health. Move your feet to promote blood and qi circulation. Soak your feet in water at around 40°C before bed every day to promote the upward movement of yang and smooth the flow of blood and qi throughout the body, which is beneficial for sleep. After soaking, massage the Yongquan acupoint on the left foot with your right hand 36 times, then switch to massage the Yongquan acupoint on the right foot with your left hand 36 times.
2. Dietary Adjustment
In terms of diet, eat more warm tonics such as ginseng, ginger duck, longan, black sesame, sweet soup dumplings, chicken soup, and fish soup. Foods with ginger and spices like onions and garlic also have the same effect.
3. Hand and Foot Massage
In addition to soaking your feet in hot water, you should also massage your hands and feet regularly, especially the soles of your feet. The soles of the feet have many acupoints that are connected to various functions of the body. Regular foot massage can greatly help with cold hands and feet.
4. Chinese Medicine Adjustment
There are many Chinese herbs that can improve and prevent cold hands and feet, such as ginseng, Codonopsis pilosula, Chinese angelica, and Salvia miltiorrhiza. They can be used for making tea, decoction, or cooking and seasoning dishes.
