The saying goes, “Cold in the ninth winter, hot in the three dog days,” and the hottest period in the dog days is “midsummer.”
This year’s midsummer is the “extended version,” lasting a full 20 days. During midsummer, the weather is hot and muggy, with frequent thunderstorms and high humidity. To stay healthy and avoid illness, it is essential to remember what you can and cannot do.
The hot weather in summer can decrease our appetite and digestion function. Consuming too much greasy food can burden the digestive system, damage the spleen and stomach, worsen dampness, and lead to constipation and bad breath.
Therefore, during the dog days, it’s advisable to eat less fried, grilled, and hotpot foods that are greasy and stimulating.
In the peak of summer, the scorching heat is unbearable, especially during midsummer when temperatures make you doubt life itself.
When it’s unbearably hot, many people opt for a refreshing cold beverage or ice cream to cool down.
While it may provide temporary relief, consuming very cold items can irritate the stomach, leading to abdominal pain and diarrhea, which are detrimental to health.
Moreover, consuming excessively cold foods can damage yang qi, worsen dampness, a root cause of many diseases. If you must indulge, avoid consuming cold foods when sweating profusely, on an empty stomach, or immediately after meals to reduce the potential harm to your body.
In the hot summer weather, the environment is conducive to the growth of bacteria and viruses. Failure to promptly dispose of post-cooking garbage can attract flies, cockroaches, and other pests, contaminating our food.
Hence, vegetables cooked in summer should not be stored overnight; it’s best to cook and eat them the same day. For dishes like cold salads or noodles, if prepared in excess, separate half, cover with cling film, refrigerate, and consume the same day. Freshly cooked food should be consumed on the same day.
Regularly clean the refrigerator in summer and avoid overloading it with food. Wash fruits taken from the refrigerator before consumption again. In short, during the dog days, to stay healthy, avoid eating stale foods.
Don’t take a cold shower immediately after returning home on a hot day to cool off quickly.
In high temperatures, blood vessels expand, pores open up, metabolism accelerates, so sudden exposure to cold water can damage blood vessels. This risk is higher for individuals with underlying conditions like hypertension. Cold showers can lead to accidents and are not recommended.
Cold showers can also exacerbate dampness, leading to fatigue and lethargy. It’s best to opt for a lukewarm shower, with a water temperature of around 35-37°C being ideal.
People sometimes take cold showers when it’s hot, but it’s advised to avoid doing so for the reasons mentioned above.
During the dog days, the sweltering heat makes staying in air-conditioned rooms tempting, but prolonged sitting is detrimental to health, potentially causing leg swelling, lower limb clot formation, and accelerating spinal aging.
Individuals with vascular diseases, in particular, risk increased blood viscosity and clot formation from prolonged sitting.
As the saying goes, “Endure the cold of winter and the heat of dog days;” even in adverse weather, maintaining physical activity is crucial. In hot weather, take short breaks to perform simple stretching exercises at home or work;
If the weather is cooler in the afternoon or evening, consider outdoor activities like jogging, walking, or practicing tai chi.
In summer, sweating more leads to more frequent hair washing. Some people sleep with damp hair, which can cause headaches and colds.
Additionally, exposure to air conditioning can cause dampness to invade the body, leading to increased fatigue the next day. Therefore, after washing your hair in the dog days, even if tired, ensure to dry your hair before sleeping. Individuals with long hair can opt for morning hair washes.
During summer, negligence can worsen bodily dampness. Prolonged indoor stay with air conditioning can block sweat glands, preventing yang qi discharge and trapping dampness in the body, potentially depleting vitality and weakening the immune system.
After returning indoors from outdoor environments, the still-open sweat glands can allow cold air to directly enter the body, causing discomfort and stiffness in the neck and shoulders.
Therefore, in summer, avoid setting the air conditioning temperature too low, around 26°C is optimal. During sleep, cover your feet, abdomen, and shoulders with bedding. Consider wearing loose nightwear and wrap yourself in a shawl during the day.
The dog days mark the peak of yang qi in a year and is a prime time for health preservation. Remembering the principles of “3 no-eats, 4 prohibitions” can boost immunity, ward off various diseases, and promote health and longevity.
