Cake, milk tea, barbecue, hot pot, love to eat everything.
Today this gathering, tomorrow that celebration. Always busy at the dining table, it won’t be long before you find your mouth sticky, your stomach bloated, your body tired and unable to muster energy.
This is due to phlegm and dampness in the body, with a large amount of stuff blocking our bodies, the spleen and stomach unable to process, making it easy for phlegm and dampness to occur.
At this time, it is very much needed for tangerine peel to help our body regulate the qi and transform phlegm.
One or two tangerine peels, one or two jin, tangerine peel is a very precious medicinal material that comes from the peel of citrus fruits such as oranges, dried in the sun or dried, with an orange-red color, oily, fragrant, sweet, and a pungent and sweet taste. The longer the tangerine peel is stored, the better.
Tangerine peel not only has high medicinal value, but is also a common health food ingredient used in daily cooking or tea brewing to exert its medicinal effects. Proper use of tangerine peel is very beneficial for maintaining health.
1. It can regulate the body’s qi, the feeling of qi stagnation in the body is familiar to everyone, some qi cannot be properly regulated, causing discomfort in the chest and abdomen; some qi flows in the wrong places, making people unable to stop hiccupping. Tangerine peel is a qi-regulating medicine, able to guide the qi of the internal organs to the right places.
2. It can dry the dampness in the body, for those with heavy dampness, not necessarily overweight but with a large stomach, these are signs of dampness accumulating in the middle jiao of the spleen and stomach. Tangerine peel is a warm food ingredient that can dispel dampness, acting like a desiccant to dry up moisture. Through its qi-regulating ability, it can transform the stagnant fluids in the body into active waters, eliminating the turbid substances in the body.
As one reaches middle age, minor ailments associated with “qi” and “dampness” are common to some extent, such as bloating, phlegm and dampness, spleen-stomach disharmony, etc. Using tangerine peel timely is definitely beneficial, “guiding qi and dispelling dampness can disperse all illnesses.”
However, while tangerine peel is good, it should be used correctly; otherwise, it may harm the body.
Drinking tangerine peel-infused water alone can easily lead to increased weakness.
Tangerine peel has a strong qi-regulating and dampness-drying effect, but it also possesses cooling and astringent properties.
Long-term excessive consumption of tangerine peel-infused water, especially in people with weak constitutions or cold body types, may exacerbate symptoms of qi deficiency or yin deficiency.
In Chinese medicine theory, dietary regulation emphasizes “the taste of herbs and plants,” which means not excessively favoring or consuming excessive amounts of a particular food or medicinal ingredient. Tangerine peel, as a regulating medicinal ingredient, is best suited for use in conjunction with other medicinal ingredients or food ingredients to avoid the adverse effects of a single ingredient being too strong on the body.
When drinking tangerine peel-infused water, it is best to control the amount, not exceeding too much each time, and appropriately match with other food or medicinal ingredients that are suitable for one’s own constitution to achieve better regulatory effects.
Choosing tangerine peel to resolve phlegm depends on the type of phlegm being addressed.
Resolving phlegm is an important concept in the field of Chinese medicine. Different types and stages of phlegm and dampness require different dietary treatments or medications for regulation. According to Chinese medicine theory, the internal dampness in the body is mainly divided into two types: turbid phlegm and clear phlegm.
Turbid phlegm is more common in cases of poor appetite, heavy-headedness, hoarse voice, bitter taste in the mouth, bad breath, loose stools, etc. At this time, it is necessary to use Chinese herbs or foods with a damp-draining and phlegm-dispersing effect such as Atractylodes, tangerine peel, Platycodon root, Pueraria root, etc.
The other type of dampness is clear phlegm, which is characterized by dry mouth and throat, dry cough with no phlegm, commonly seen in cases of lung heat or thick and viscous phlegm. In such cases, one can use dietary treatments with heat-clearing and phlegm-dispersing effects, such as bitter almonds, Scutellaria, Fritillaria, and sugar-fried pear.
In addition to the type of dampness, it is also necessary to choose appropriate Chinese herbs or foods based on the stage of the condition for regulation.
For example, in the early stage of wind-cold invasion, when the phlegm is thick and viscous, one can use ingredients like green onion, ginger, tangerine peel, which can dispel wind-cold, or pair them with a moderate amount of tofu, egg whites or other bland foods to alleviate symptoms.
We need to scientifically regulate according to our own constitution, condition, and the type of dampness when it comes to dampness-related conditions. If dampness is not only limited to the respiratory system but is also accompanied by other symptoms, it is advisable to seek treatment under the guidance of a professional physician.
Using tangerine peel properly is not difficult.
Whether it’s tangerine peel rice porridge or tangerine peel radish and Chinese yam water, they both illustrate the same point: tangerine peel can be used well by paying attention to two things: quantity and compatibility.
For long-term consumption, the quantity should not be too much. Whether making soup or dishes, tea or foot soak, 3-10 grams each time is sufficient, as an excessive amount can deplete qi.
Tangerine peel regulates qi, so pairing it with some qi-tonifying ingredients will balance its effect. As tangerine peel is warm in nature, those with yin deficiency may feel thirsty easily, whereas those with internal heat may choose not to consume it immediately or pair it with some nourishing yin and moistening foods.
After understanding how to use tangerine peel, we can make reasonable food ingredient combinations ourselves.
For example, those who fear cold, do not want to exercise but want to eliminate body impurities and lose weight can choose to drink tangerine peel, apple, and hawthorn water.
Apple, “primarily supplements the middle jiao with deficient qi”, “stews the gum to produce body fluid”.
Hawthorn, “dissipates drink and eliminates food stagnation”.
Although the apple is a fruit, it has a mild taste, suitable for most body constitutions when cooked, and it can supplement qi, nourishing body fluids. When we exercise, soak feet, or consume some dampness-dispelling ingredients, the body’s body fluids and qi are also taken away, leading to a feeling of internal dryness and thirst.
Tangerine peel dispels phlegm and dampness, hawthorn dissolves food stagnation, apple replenishes qi and body fluids, balancing consumption, maintaining sufficient energy in the body. Drinking a little every day can cleanse the intestines, eliminate turbid substances and turbid qi from the body, replenish a clean water source, and bid farewell to a little belly fat.
The method is very simple, one-third tangerine peel, half an apple, 2-4 pieces of dried hawthorn, add some rock sugar according to taste, simmer and drink directly after boiling, the ingredients inside do not need to be consumed.
After a meal or daily consumption of this detoxifying soup, the body will feel warm, less phlegm dampness, lighter body, energetic, and with a rosy complexion.
