🌿 Folk Prescriptions

"China has over 2,000 years of culinary culture, but people today are increasingly unaware of proper eating habits. Especially individuals aged 30–50 lack awareness of nutritional health." Based on the current hot and humid weather, Professor Wang Yun, a council member of the Chinese Nutrition Society, has tailored nutrition plans for children, white-collar workers, outdoor laborers, and patients with cardiovascular diseases or diabetes.
Children's Diet Emphasizes Visual Appeal
Dietary intake ranking (descending): vegetables, fruits, staple foods, meats (rabbit, fish, chicken), eggs, algae greens: eat seasonal vegetables such as cucumber, winter melon, Chinese cabbage, green peppers, tomatoes; noodles: use molds to shape into fruit or animal forms using whole wheat flour, bean flour, and refined white flour; color recommendations: recommended dishes (main meals): 1. Cucumber, black fungus (or shiitake mushrooms), eggs, carrots stir-fried; 2. Boneless grass carp, black fungus (or shiitake mushrooms), minced pork, tofu, corn kernels, green peas steamed. Tips: Children have weak spleen function and poor detoxification ability for hormones and additives. Avoid foods like leeks, pork, and broad beans. Limit liver consumption for eye health—prefer lamb liver over pig liver.
White-Collar Workers Should Avoid Cold Drinks with Hot Meals
Dietary intake ranking (descending): vegetables, fruits, staple foods (whole grains), legumes, fungi, meats; beverages: fritillary bulb, licorice, chrysanthemum, dried tangerine peel, fresh-squeezed juice, functional health teas; recommended desserts: watermelon, lotus root, mung bean soup, cold jelly frozen at -1°C. Tips: Breakfast is essential—milk, whole grain staples, and eggs should not be skipped. Most white-collar workers sit all day with little exercise, so consume plenty of vegetables and fruits to supplement dietary fiber and enhance bowel function. Avoid combining hot meals with cold drinks. Tips: White-collar women should reduce snacks, especially biscuits and bread, which are nutritionally empty and prone to weight gain. Also, prolonged exposure to air-conditioned environments calls for moderate ginger intake to eliminate damp-heat.
Outdoor Workers Need Salt Supplementation
Dietary intake ranking (descending): staple foods (mixed coarse and fine grains), vegetables, meats, fruits; recommended main meals: 1. Beef, shiitake mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, celery stir-fried or braised; 2. Bitter gourd, lotus root, chicken, black fungus, carrots stir-fried; 3. Garlic chives, golden needle mushrooms, lamb, carrots stir-fried. Tips: Outdoor workers can consume high-calorie foods but avoid high-fat items. Due to excessive sweating in summer, moderate salt replenishment is necessary. Timely hydration is crucial—such as mung bean soup or watermelon—but avoid very cold drinks, which may cause excessive temperature differences between internal and external body, damaging the gastrointestinal tract.
Cardiovascular Patients Should Avoid Spicy Foods
Dietary intake ranking (descending): vegetables, staple foods, eggs, fungi, fruits; greens: chrysanthemum greens, tender chicory, bitter greens; noodles: mix white flour, bean flour, and cornmeal in a 6:2:2 ratio. Tips: Patients with cardiovascular diseases, especially elderly ones, should avoid animal liver and spicy foods. Increase intake of high-quality protein such as fish and soy products. Limit staple food intake per meal to no more than 100g. Follow doctors’ advice regarding diet.
Diabetics Must Beware of "Sugar-Free"
Dietary intake ranking (descending): vegetables, staple foods, meats, eggs, fungi, fruits; recommended main meals: 1. Sliced bitter gourd, lotus root, mushrooms, beef, onions stir-fried; 2. Pumpkin, purple laver, yam, glutinous rice rolled into sushi-style rolls. Tips: Many so-called "sugar-free" foods still contain sugar—total sugar intake must be controlled.
Staple foods should primarily be whole grains such as buckwheat, oats, mung beans; choose lean meats like beef, fish, chicken, rabbit, and game birds; limit fatty cuts such as pork knuckle and fat meat.