🌿 Folk Prescriptions

Autumn begins with Start of Autumn and spans six solar terms: Limit of Heat, White Dew, Autumn Equinox, Cold Dew, and Frost Descent. The Autumn Equinox marks a pivotal shift in seasonal climate. The *Inner Canon of Huangdi: Suwen* states: “In the three months of autumn, this is the season of ripening and tranquility. The sky’s energy grows sharp, and the earth’s energy becomes clear.”
With autumn arriving, skies are clear and vast, the earth’s energy purified, cool breezes refreshing, and all things mature—this is the harvest season. Autumn’s climate represents a transitional phase of “declining yang, growing yin.” From Start of Autumn to Limit of Heat, intense autumn sun persists, temperatures remain high, combined with occasional drizzly rain, creating humid and hot conditions—hence the saying “autumn tiger.”
After White Dew, rainfall diminishes, weather turns dry, days are warm and nights cool, with fluctuating temperatures. Carelessness can easily lead to catching colds, and many chronic conditions may flare up—thus known as “Busy Autumn.”
Since the body’s physiological activities align with natural changes, internal yin and yang also shift accordingly. Therefore, autumn health preservation requires harmony in emotional state, diet, daily routines, and physical practices.
Harmonize Emotions, Avoid Melancholy
Upon entering autumn, from the perspective of “harmony between heaven and humanity,” the lungs belong to metal and correspond to autumn. The lungs govern qi and respiration, and in emotion, they relate to sorrow. Those with weak lung qi are particularly sensitive to autumn’s climatic changes. Especially elderly people, witnessing autumn winds, cold rains, falling leaves, and desolate scenes, often feel melancholy, loneliness, and aging—prone to depressive emotions.
Song Dynasty health expert Chen Zhi said: “In autumn, gloomy weather triggers sadness in the elderly. If they appear unhappy, we should divert their attention and occupy their minds, thus forgetting autumn’s sorrow.” Clearly, emotional regulation is paramount in autumn health preservation. As the *Suwen* says: “Keep the mind tranquil, to ease autumn’s severity. Gather and conserve your spirit, to balance autumn’s energy. Do not let your mind wander outward, to keep the lungs clear. This is the response to autumn’s essence, the way to nourish and gather.”
Thus, for middle-aged and elderly people, embracing the philosophy “no attachment to thoughts, no illness arises,” cultivating a mindset of indifference to external joys and sorrows, optimism, openness, tolerance, and serenity, gathering spirit and conserving energy, maintaining inner peace—can mitigate the impact of autumn’s harshness and align with autumn’s tranquil nature. Hence, seniors should go outdoors with friends—climb mountains, gaze afar, admire the vibrant autumn flowers and fiery red leaves—immediately dispelling all sadness and melancholy, restoring youthful vitality and harmonious joy.
“Autumn Cold Training” with Moderation for Strength
China has long held the folk saying: “Warm in spring, cold in autumn—no illnesses arise.” This reflects the traditional wisdom of wearing lighter clothes in autumn to resist cold. But “autumn cold training” must be understood correctly—grasp its scientific essence.
After the Start of Autumn solar term, temperatures gradually drop, and the daily temperature difference increases. After Cold Dew, northern cold air invades frequently, bringing “each autumn rain brings colder weather.”
From a preventive health standpoint, gradually practicing “autumn cold training” strengthens cold resistance, enhances heart-lung function, boosts the body’s ability to adapt to climate changes, and helps prevent respiratory infections.
However, in deep autumn, sudden cold snaps, significant temperature drops, and persistent rainy weather mean wearing only thin clothes and light trousers risks cold exposure, weakening immunity and triggering colds—especially dangerous for middle-aged and elderly people with chronic conditions like bronchitis, asthma, COPD, cardiovascular disease, or diabetes. If they ignore weather changes and fail to keep warm, catching a cold can easily trigger relapse.
Cold stimulation reduces skin vessel elasticity, increases peripheral resistance, activates sympathetic nerves, raises adrenal cortex hormone secretion, causing small arteries to constrict and blood pressure to rise—increasing risk of cerebral hemorrhage. Cold also elevates blood fibrinogen concentration and increases blood viscosity, promoting thrombosis formation—threatening life and health.
Therefore, one must adapt to autumn’s climate changes, adjusting clothing appropriately—“cold training with moderation,” harmonizing with seasonal shifts, is truly wise.