Distinguish The Types Of Moisture In The Body, And Reveal The Methods For Conditioning The Damp-heat Constitution
The weather has been getting hotter and muggier recently, and many friends around me have begun to complain of feeling unwell. Some people feel that their whole bodies are heavy, as if they were wrapped in a layer of wet cloth; some people have crazy oil on their faces and backs, and breakouts; and some people always have dry mouth and bitter mouth.
After the exchange, many people invariably thought of "heavy moisture". Then, various teas that can remove dampness and water mixed with red beans and barley were arranged and presented.
But do you know that there are many types of moisture, and the conditioning methods of each type are very different. Once the wrong method is used, not only will the expected effect not be produced, but it is very likely to make the moisture more serious.
Moisture is not a “one-size-fits-all” problem, you must first identify your physical condition
Once many people hear the word "moisture", they assume that there is too much water in the body and try their best to "drain it".
This is actually a misunderstanding.
In the theoretical category of traditional Chinese medicine, dampness evil often does not exist alone. It will "collude" with other disease evils to form different syndrome types.
The most common ones are Phlegm and dampness , Damp and hot , Cold and dampness and Phlegm-heat .
This is like a humid condition in a room. There are many reasons. Some reasons are that leaks in water pipes cause moisture (water-dampness). Some reasons are that rainy days increase air humidity, which causes moisture (exogenous dampness). Others are due to the lack of good ventilation in the room and moldy things, which cause moisture (phlegm-dampness, damp-heat).
The reasons are different, and the treatment methods are naturally different.
If you drink herbal tea without thinking and eat barley without thinking, if you have a cold-damp constitution, it will intensify the coldness of the body and make it more difficult to remove the moisture.
Damp-heat constitution: heat-clearing and dampness-reducing should be synchronized
If you often feel bitter and sticky in the mouth, which is particularly noticeable when you get up in the morning. Even if you drink a lot of water, you still cannot quench your thirst. Your face and hair tend to be oily, and you are prone to red and swollen acne. Your urine tends to be yellow in color and has a strong smell. Your stool is sticky and difficult to rinse, and your tongue coating is yellow and greasy.
Men may have a moist scrotum, while women may have yellowish vaginal discharge with a peculiar smell.
These are the more typical Damp and hot Showed.
Just like the hot and humid days in the summer sauna, hot and stuffy, the "heat" and "moisture" of the body are intertwined with each other. Therefore, the key to conditioning lies in the "heat clearing" and "dampness removing" that are grasped with both hands to provide the body with "ventilation and heat dissipation".
You must "keep your mouth shut" when it comes to eating.
Abandon foods that help moisture and heat build up, such as barbecues, hot pots, fried foods, spicy seasonings, sweets, cold drinks, and wine.
You can eat more ingredients with "purifying" properties, such as mung beans, adzuki beans, winter melon, loofah, celery, and bitter melon. Use them to make soup or porridge, and the effect is quite good.
In terms of daily life, you need to avoid staying in a humid and hot environment for too long, and exercise moderately to cause sweating. This is helpful in discharging heat and humidity. However, you should dry off immediately after exercise and do not take a shower immediately.
Phlegm-damp constitution: focus on strengthening the spleen and reducing phlegm
Friends with such characteristics may have a body condition that is on the fatter side, and the most prominent manifestation is that the belly is relatively soft. They often have a feeling of heavy body, which can easily lead to a feeling of sleepiness. The head seems to be wrapped in a piece of cloth and is always in a state of fatigue. In a groggy state, there is always phlegm in the throat. The phlegm that is coughed up is white and thin in texture. The appetite is not good. You will feel full after eating a little. The stomach is prone to bloating. The tongue coating is very thick, showing a white and greasy layer.
The root cause of phlegm and dampness is often that the spleen's transport and transformation function is weakened, just like the conveyor belt of a machine slows down, and the water, dampness and garbage that should be transported cannot be transported out, thus accumulating into "phlegm" and "dampness".
Therefore, the key to regulating the constitution of phlegm-dampness is to strengthen the spleen so that the spleen's transportation and transformation function becomes strong and powerful. At the same time, the "phlegm" that has already formed must be resolved.
In terms of diet, you need to avoid raw and cold foods, sweet and greasy foods, and greasy and heavy foods, because these foods will increase the burden on the spleen and stomach and lead to damp phlegm.
You can often eat some ingredients with spleen-strengthening and dampness-reducing properties, such as ingredients called yam, ingredients called poria, fried barley, white lentils, and tangerine peel.
Drink tangerine peel soaked in water, or add a few slices when stewing soup, which is very helpful for regulating qi and reducing phlegm.
In normal times, you should do more activities, "because kinetic energy generates Yang Qi." When Yang Qi is sufficient, it will help transform water and dampness. However, exercise should not be too strenuous. Mild and long-lasting exercises such as walking, jogging, and Baduanjin are more appropriate.
Cold-damp constitution: warming yang and dispersing cold is the fundamental
This type of guy is most afraid of the cold. His hands and feet are always cold and he wears more clothes than others. He likes to drink hot water and eat food that cannot be cooled. Once he eats it, he is prone to stomachache and diarrhea. His joints (especially knees and shoulders) feel cold, and the pain will be aggravated by cold wind or rainy days. Women may have dysmenorrhea and feel cold in the lower abdomen.
The tongue coating is white and slippery and looks watery.
With a cold-damp constitution, it is as if there is a "cold storage" living inside the body. The yang energy is insufficient, and the cold air causes the water and dampness to be "frozen", and the flow is stagnant and unable to flow smoothly.
Therefore, the key point of conditioning is to warm up the Yang Qi to dispel the cold, activate the heating in the "cold storage", and melt the ice so that moisture can be transported out.
All cold foods should be avoided as much as possible, such as iced drinks, cold dishes, watermelon, crabs and other cold foods.
You can eat more foods with warm properties to warm the spleen and stomach and dissipate cold and dampness, such as ginger, red dates, longan, when stewing mutton, add some white radish to balance the dry mutton, and Sichuan peppercorns, etc.
Drinking a cup of ginger-date tea in the morning is a simple and effective way to warm up the body from the cold.
Burning mugwort and applying moxibustion on acupuncture points such as Guanyuan and Zusanli, or using water boiled with mugwort leaves and Chinese prickly ash to soak your feet, can also be very effective in replenishing the body's yang energy and removing cold and dampness.
Daily avoidance of pitfalls: These habits may worsen moisture
In addition to regulating symptoms, some inconspicuous lifestyle habits may also be the "accomplices" of moisture.
First of all, in the pursuit of coolness, in the summer, you stay in an air-conditioned room for a long time and face the wind blowing, or you take a cold shower immediately after sweating. These situations can easily lead to the invasion of cold and dampness from the outside into the body.
First of all, sitting for long periods of time without moving, for most of the day, causes qi and blood to flow unsmoothly, which in turn slows down metabolism. As a result, moisture becomes more likely to stay in the body.
The third is excessive thinking. Chinese medicine believes that "thinking hurts the spleen." Worrying all day long and thinking too much will affect the function of the spleen, resulting in a decrease in the ability to transport water and dampness.
Ranked fourth is staying up late. Staying up late will deplete the body's yin blood. Staying up late will also deplete the body's yang energy. If this continues for a long time, the body's functions will be disordered and moisture will easily be produced.
Therefore, you must develop a regular schedule and go to bed as much as possible before 11 p.m.; arrange time every day to engage in moderate activities, even if it is just a walk after eating; to keep your mood in a comfortable state, you must also learn to release stress; you must pay attention to keeping warm, especially your abdomen and feet.
These good habits are all creating a "dry" internal environment for the body.
Safety reminder: Don’t take dehumidification for granted
Finally, it must be emphasized that body conditioning is a systematic project, especially when it comes to medication, so care must be taken.
The Chinese patent medicines mentioned above, such as Longdan Xiegan Pills, Erchen Pills, and Fuzi Lizhong Pills, all have clear indications, and their medicinal properties are biased.
If you are unable to accurately determine your physical condition, or if your symptoms are complex, such as a mixture of cold and heat, you should never imitate others’ medication without any clue.
It is more necessary for pregnant women to do this under the guidance of professional doctors or pharmacists, for lactating women, for children, and for people with chronic underlying diseases.
The diet and lifestyle management methods shared in this article are relatively mild and safe and can be used as a reference for daily health care. However, they cannot replace any medical diagnosis and treatment.
If your discomfort persists or worsens, please seek medical advice promptly.
In short, removing dampness is like tidying up and cleaning a room. You must first figure out where the water leakage occurs, the air is not circulating, or the items are moldy. Only then can you take targeted measures based on the specific situation.
Only by clearly distinguishing one's own physical type and adopting appropriate methods can one truly achieve "a thousand colds can be easily removed, a dampness can be easily removed" and the body can be restored to freshness and vitality.
