100 Degree Soup

It’s a cool and drizzly day here in Whitehorse, with a few more ahead, it seems, so this is an easier post to write than at the height of our midnight sun Summer!

In Chinese Medicine the health of the digestive system is a key, central facet of our overall health. Symptoms and signs such as nausea, heartburn, gas, bloating, constipation or loose stools, or even just a low appetite in the morning, an inability to eat a larger meal comfortably, or having to visit the bathroom for your bowels more than once daily are all signs that we pay attention to as clues as to where your system is off balance.

Luckily, one very direct way that we can help heal the digestive system is through the diet. There are various aspects of this, but today I’ll talk about temperature.

Our bodies (our Qi, and indeed the nature of ALL life on Earth) are warm in nature. When we are alive, we are warm. When we are not, we are not. The very essence of our life energy is heat, so we want to support that through our diet.

In Chinese Medicine theory, the two major digestive organs are the Spleen and the Stomach. Energetically, the Spleen is like the stove, whose role is to transform the foods we eat into energy and blood and send them to be distributed throughout the body. The Stomach is like the pot, whose role it is to receive the food and break it down mechanically. If we eat cold food and drink cold liquids we are working against our systems. We are putting food in that then must be warmed up to body temperature before we can even start to get energy out of it. It’s like throwing cold water on that stove. Even drinking room temperature drinks, while better than cold, still requires energy to warm. As I often say, “You don’t pee out room temperature urine.” Energy is still wasted!

So, if you want to get the most out of your food, and especially if you have digestive issues, fatigue, or a tendency to catch illnesses, forgo your cold morning smoothie, your ice water with lunch, and your sushi dinner, and choose to conserve your energy, nourish your body, and make yourself some “100 Degree Soup”. (Yes, even in our midnight sun Summer…)

Photo: https://theforkedspoon.com/pho-recipe/