Beauty Care According to Traditional Chinese Dietary Therapy
In a work written 2,200 years ago, (Huangdi Nei Jing - The Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic -) one can read:
« Eating too much bitter foods will cause the skin to wither and weaken the hair
Eating too much sweet will result in bone pain and hair loss
Eating too many acidic foods will cause muscles and lips to shrivel
These are the lesions caused by the 5 flavors. »
Beauty Care According to Traditional Chinese Dietary Therapy
What is most frequently seen in today's diet is precisely the excess of sweetness, one of the reasons why the 3 most common reasons for consultation in acupuncture at the clinic concern pain and/or inflammation and more specifically joint problems.
Low back pain, more precisely lumbar pain, followed by epicondylitis, are closely followed by either knee osteoarthritis, cervical pain, or shoulder tendinitis, plantar fasciitis… All "bone pain" conditions. Indeed, according to the Huangdi Nei Jing, excess sweetness in the diet can predispose to these "bone pain" pathologies, or even aggravate them.
The historical obsession with immortality is also the cult of eternal youth, the quest for beauty, both inner and outer. A neutral or corrective diet based on individual constitution would favor the expression of beauty, as well as the maintenance of this radiance over time, despite the normal aging of tissues and vital functions.
A Neutral or Corrective Diet Based on Individual Constitution
Beauty implies that internal organs and tissues function normally. Does this concept exclude beauty from the sick and elderly? Of course not; it means that the aesthetic potential of an individual, regardless of their stage of development, would be achieved through the pursuit of optimal vitality appropriate to their situation.
The skin is the largest and heaviest organ of the human body. Its texture and appearance can provide clues about the internal dynamism of vital functions and a person's general health. It is important to note that a skin problem is not necessarily considered serious. Correct diet is a very important pillar of the 5 branches of Traditional Chinese Medicine to correct skin problems arising from imbalances of internal organs.
If cosmetic acupuncture is used as medical facial or as an alternative to surgical facelifts, which treats wrinkles, fine lines, and expression lines, Traditional Chinese dietary therapy for beauty care places great importance on dietary skin care.
Cosmetic Facial Acupuncture with Red and Infrared Photobiomodulation
The goal of dietary skin care is to protect it by strengthening its resistance to external aggression, while delaying its aging.
According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, the skin is the opening of the lungs (fei), a yin organ that has an interior/exterior relationship with the large intestine (da chang), a yang organ. The skin is an emunctory. This means it must be able to "breathe." It absorbs and eliminates. It is responsible for absorbing light and synthesizing vitamin D in its fatty layer, then eliminating through its pores the secretions, notably from the sweat glands and sebaceous glands. The skin is nourished by bioelectricity - the Qi (pronounced "chee") - and blood.
Thus, one can read in the classical texts of Traditional Chinese Medicine statements such as these, which demonstrate how the skin is truly continuous with the entire organism.
« Abscesses that cause itching are related to the heart »
« The lungs dominate bioelectricity and manifest through body hair and skin »
Tofu is a nutritious functional food of cool nature
For the skin to recover its full glow, internal organs must function normally. It must also be protected from external aggression from prolonged sun exposure, insects, wind, cold, heat, humidity, and dryness. Premature aging comes from either an imbalance of internal organs and/or repeated aggression of skin tissue by the elements. The skin will age more rapidly if bioelectricity is weak, if there is blood congestion - often translated as blood "stasis" - or if there is what is called an imbalance in the relationship between bioelectricity and blood.
The main therapeutic approaches to delay skin aging aim to promote bioelectricity, then nourish and activate blood, as well as balance these two interrelated functions.
Certain foods should therefore be prioritized on the menu in Traditional Chinese dietary therapy for beauty care:
Longans, a fruit that tonifies blood functions
Longans (in the photo, these are the round fruits with brown and scaly skin)
Sea cucumber, also known as "the viagra of the sea," a marine animal that stimulates kidney yang
Rabbit meat, contraindicated during pregnancy, pale-feathered duck meat, squid, tonics of yin
Garden cucumber, a source of nicotinamide mononucleotide, demonstrated to activate cellular metabolism in animals
Carrots, once cultivated as a remedy, then as fodder, and now as health foods
Tofu, even though one should not overindulge due to its cool nature, is a nutritious functional food
Bananas, of cool and damp nature. Caution: limit or avoid in cases of excess mucus
Nuts, including pumpkin seeds, almonds, walnuts
White jelly fungus (tremella), a white mushroom
PEKING DUCK RECIPE - Bei-jing-kao-ya
Ingredients
1 duck
1.5 liters of water
4 tablespoons of honey
4 slices of fresh ginger, peeled, approximately 2.5 cm in diameter and 0.25 cm thick
2 bunches of green onions (scallions) with their green tops, cut into 5 cm pieces
Sauce
1 tablespoon of water
12 bunches of green onions
4 tablespoons of hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon of sesame oil
2 teaspoons of coconut sugar
Preparation
Rinse the duck with cold water and dry it with a clean towel
Tie the neck or wings with a 10 cm string. Hang the duck for 3 hours in a well-ventilated area or 1 hour in front of a fan.
In a wok or large pot, mix 1.5 liters of water, 4 tablespoons of honey, the ginger, the green onion pieces, and bring to a boil over high heat.
Holding the duck by the string, submerge it in the boiling liquid on both sides. Remove the duck and discard the liquid. Hang the duck again with a bowl beneath it to collect the dripping liquid. Plan for 3 to 5 hours for the duck to dry.
To prepare the sauce: mix the hoisin sauce, water, sesame oil, and coconut sugar, stir until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and cook gently uncovered. Pour the sauce into a small bowl and keep at room temperature until mealtime.
To prepare the green onion brushes that will be used to brush sauce onto the meat, cut the 12 green onion stems by making 4 cross-cuts 2.5 cm deep. Repeat at both ends of the stems. Dip the stems in ice water, then refrigerate until the ends curl and frizz into brush shapes.
To cook the duck, preheat the oven to 390°F
Place the duck belly-side up in an oven-safe container and add up to 2.5 cm of water to the bottom. Cook for 1 hour. Then lower the oven temperature to 300°F. Turn the duck breast-side down and cook for another 30 minutes. Then bring the oven back to 390°F, turn the duck back on its back, and roast for another 30 minutes. Place the duck on a clean work surface.
Detach the crispy skin from the breast, sides, and back of the duck. Cut the skin into rectangles and place in a layer on a pre-warmed platter. Detach the wings and thighs, then cut all the meat from the breast and around the bone. Present the meat on another pre-warmed platter.
Peking duck can be presented at the table with 2 platters containing the duck pieces, a 3rd platter containing small warmed crepes, and a plate of green onion brushes in the center of which the sauce bowl is placed.
Each guest takes a small crepe on their plate, takes a green onion brush, dips it in the sauce to coat the crepe. Place a piece of green onion in the crepe, a piece of crispy duck skin, with a piece of tender duck meat. Fold and roll the crepe so you can hold it with your fingers and make it a single bite.
Bon appétit!
REFERENCES
(1) Chinese Cuisine, Emily Hahn, Time inc., 1970
(2) Dietetics of the Four Seasons, Chinese Medicine Dietetics, Chen Jun, Pierre Sterckx, Guang Ming University Press, 2002
(3) Huangdi Nei Jing, The Yellow Emperor's Inner Classic, Classic of Traditional Chinese Medicine, published 2,200 years ago
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