When it comes to the term "allergy," most people associate it with "innate constitution" or allergic reactions caused by drugs or allergens such as dust mites.
I want to tell you an incredible story.
I know a girl who has the most peculiar allergies I have ever seen. Despite being a Han Chinese, she is allergic to wheat and pork.
Since she was a child, the girl has been allergic to milk, and as a result, she always had eczema on her face. Over the years, as she grew older, her allergies became more severe, and her face would swell up terrifyingly. Because she knew she had allergies since she was young, she avoided eating seafood and drinking milk for these years. So where did the allergens come from? After being examined at a hospital in Beijing, it was found that she was allergic to wheat and pork. Since then, the girl has given up wheat and pork, and her allergies have improved.
So why didn't the girl have allergies to these foods when she was a child?
Firstly, the girl has always had an allergic constitution, which can be seen from her eczema since childhood. Usually, people with allergic constitutions are allergic to many things. When the allergic effects accumulate to a certain degree and the immune system reaches a certain level, the allergies will erupt. Although she could still eat certain foods before, at this point, she could no longer eat them.
Nowadays, many people are prone to allergies, which is closely related to the significant changes in the living environment of modern people. Plants and microorganisms used to be the closest to humans. Now, industrial dust is the closest to humans. The number of microorganisms around us is decreasing, and the fungi that can exercise our immune system from an early age are becoming less and less. As a result, our immune systems become more sensitive, and even slight abnormalities can trigger an "attack," leading to abnormal reactions in the body.
Therefore, experts suggest that if you want your child to not have allergies when they grow up, you can keep small animals at home. Animals carry various bacteria, and after the immune system withstands the stimulation from these bacteria, it will no longer be allergic to things it has never encountered before. In fact, this process of exercising the immune system is also about cultivating temper, as the concept of temper in traditional Chinese medicine includes the immune system. With a strong temper, the immune system functions well, and there will be no infections due to low immunity or allergies due to high immunity. Therefore, allergies are actually a state of temper imbalance.
With the development of the economy and the changes of the times, allergies have become an important issue in people's health. There are more and more allergens, such as wheat, rice, tomatoes, and eggs. Moreover, for people allergic to these foods, even a tiny amount of these substances in their food can cause an allergic reaction.
When allergens enter the body, the immune system sees them as "enemies" and engages in intense "struggles" with them. In fact, the eczema and psoriasis on the face are caused by this "war," which is similar to what traditional Chinese medicine calls "dampness." It is difficult to eliminate and can accumulate in the body, not only showing up on the skin but also affecting the respiratory and immune systems, leading to complicated conditions.
Due to the fact that the "immune complexes" caused by allergies cannot be quickly eliminated, they remain in the body, which is what we refer to as "internal dampness." For example, the eczema on that girl's face conforms to the characteristics of dampness mentioned in traditional Chinese medicine. Therefore, the method of dispelling dampness in traditional Chinese medicine is actually promoting the process of eliminating allergens and immune complexes.
Yam porridge is an excellent dietary option and is very suitable for patients like this. Not only can it help eliminate internal dampness, but it can also tonify the spleen. The relationship between the spleen and the immune system is closely related. Only when the spleen is strong, the immune system functions normally. It can not only improve the body's immunity but also regulate excessive immune reactions.
