What diet to choose from the perspective of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)? If eczema begins to itch or other skin problems arise, we should stick to the six correct (“digestible”) approaches in our diet. Well, here we go!
1. Breakfast
In the morning, it is essential that we always have breakfast! Ideally, you can have corn or millet porridge with the Beverage of Chinese sages – you can also add cinnamon and fruit according to your taste.
2. Sugar
We are surrounded by it everywhere, and we consume it even if we don't even notice it. It is not only in the classic “confectionery”, but also in bakery products (especially white), in fruit juices, it is also hidden in many other foods. Sugar is particularly harmful by causing moisture and heat in the body. Our body then loses freshness, there are various blockages inside and we gain unhealthy weight. Fortunately, there are already many alternatives to sugar – for example, today we can find barley malt “Sladovit” or “Sladěnka”, rice or maple syrups, high-quality dried fruits, etc. in almost every health food store.
3. Milk
If the milk or dairy products are made of pasteurized cow's milk, it is certainly not advisable to consume them in case of skin problems. Pasteurization prolongs the shelf life of milk, but at the same time it is difficult for our organism to process it (it is not a natural treatment process). Just like with sugar, we have a lot of heat and moisture in our body. Alternatively, however, we can choose sheep or goat milk, or even moderate amount of unpasteurized cow milk (ideally “directly from the farmer”).
“Drink milk – boost calcium!” There might be a paraphrase on one of the many dairy advertising slogans. But our body absorbs animal calcium from pasteurized products with great difficulty. Certainly it is more beneficial for (your) body to consume plant calcium, which is found mainly in green vegetables such as legumes, lettuce, cabbage, etc.
4. Absolutely inappropriate
Certainly we should put black coffee and hot spices like chilli, pepper, cloves and dried ginger on the imaginary blacklist. Likewise, our body may be destroyed by fatty, fried and grilled foods. Alcohol in all its forms also feeds the fire in our already overheated body. Beer (especially unpasteurized) is the least harmful in this respect, wine increases the heat a little bit more, not to mention hard alcohol at all. Other “sinners” are sausages and canned foods and fast foods. Similarly, red meat – such as beef, lamb or game – heats us too much.
Conversely, green tea has appropriate cooling effect, and we can drink it throughout the day, ideally lukewarm. Five Star Drink cleans hot toxins from the blood even better.
5. Reduce consumption
We should also pay special attention to foods that contain gluten and yeast. Moisture and heat in our body will lead to even more abundant fermentation. This is particularly true for bakery goods and pasta. If you already have irresistible appetite for bread, then rather eat rye bread (ideally sourdough bread). Amaranth or corn pasta is definitely better. In the case of skin problems, however, it will certainly be more appropriate to eat whole grain rice or polenta as a side dish.
If you would like to know in detail how not to become obsessed with gluten, read the article here.
There's no need to wrinkle your forehead and tighten your belt too much if you feel that there is almost nothing left from your favourite diet. Food that will surely fill your taste buds and also cleanse your body (skin, pores,…) through is much better. We can absolutely recommend: rabbit and poultry meat, white fish, green vegetables, rice, soy (tofu, tempeh, natto), various legumes etc.
At the same time, we must not forget that it is not only WHAT we eat, but especially the QUALITY OF FOOD. It is better to choose a restaurant where they can assure us about the safe origin of the ingredients. It is ideal to buy food on the market directly from growers (or farmers) or in a good health food store. However, the best thing is to grow your food yourself.
