In the middle of summer, the temperature is high and rainy, and a series of subtle changes occur in the body: loss of appetite, bloating, nausea, general fatigue, listlessness, oily skin, love acne...
At this time, you may have become a "wet person".
As the saying goes, moisture is there, a hundred diseases, moisture is removed, and there are no diseases. Moisture is a source of a lot of discomfort and even disease.
In the view of Chinese medicine, ambush is the best time to "dispel dampness". Life Times interviewed TCM experts to tell you how to get rid of moisture from your body.
Experts interviewed
Liu Jian, Chief Physician, Department of Rheumatology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui University of Chinese Medicine
Guo Sheng, Deputy Chief Physician, Department of Tuina Physical Therapy, Dongfang Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine
Dong Feng, deputy chief physician of the Department of Spleen and Gastroenterology, Acupuncture Hospital, Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences
Entering the ambush is the best time to remove dampness
"Wet" is one of the six external diseases of Chinese medicine, wind, cold, heat, humidity, dryness and fire, and it is the most difficult to entangle.
In Chinese medicine, "wet and heavy as wrapped", it means that the body is heavy in moisture and feels wrapped, as awkward as wearing a semi-dry piece of clothing.
Moisture is divided into external and internal humidity:
- External dampness is mainly manifested as skin symptoms, such as acne, neurodermatitis, etc., which are mostly caused by humid climate, wading rain and other invasions of the human body.
- Internal dampness is mostly manifested as impaired spleen and stomach function, loss of appetite, sticky stool, fat and weakness, which is because the spleen and stomach are weak, the spleen loses its luck, and the moisture stops gathering.
There is a saying in Chinese medicine called "a thousand colds are easy to remove, one wet is difficult to go", which means that compared with wind, cold, heat, dryness, and fire, it is more difficult to treat moisture, and its power is manifested in two aspects:
Easy to penetrate
Moisture likes to "commit crimes" with other evil spirits. Wet and cold together, called cold and wet; Together with heat, it is called moist heat; Together with the wind, it is called rheumatism ... It is easy to invade multiple internal organs and cause disease.
Cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases such as hypertension and diabetes, respiratory diseases such as asthma and pulmonary nodules, liver and kidney diseases and even malignant tumors are all related to wet diseases.
Difficult to remove
Wet evil is easy to "make a comeback", and it is difficult to defeat it with the wrong method. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that because of wet viscosity, it is easy to interact with other diseases, making the disease more complicated, protracted and difficult to heal, and the most difficult to entangle.
Modern people's diet prefers fat and thick taste or overeating, does not love exercise, greedy for cold and cold, virtually aggravates the moisture in the body, if you only know to remove dampness without paying attention to changing your lifestyle, it is difficult to cure the root.
Entering the ambush is the best time to remove dampness
At present, it has fallen into ambush, and the traditional Chinese medicine characteristic therapy "winter disease and summer treatment" launched by major Chinese medicine hospitals is actually "wet".
In summer, the human body's qi, blood and yang qi are relatively vigorous, in line with the Chinese medicine principle of "healthy qi is stored in the inside, evil cannot be done", and the "strong fire" in the body can be used to drive away wet evil, which can be said to be the best time to dispel dampness.
Blind dampness removal can damage health
The causes of moisture are complex, and blind conditioning by oneself not only cannot remove dampness, but may also bury new "scourge" for the body.
Yellow tongue, loss of appetite, unformed stool, etc. are manifestations of heavy moisture in the body? Not necessarily, because these symptoms are not unique to "wet".
Traditional Chinese medicine reminds that it is not necessary to blindly remove dampness. Moisture is not a single symptom, and should be judged comprehensively based on the overall situation. If the cause is not found correctly, the wrong conditioning method is used, but it is harmful to the human body and "lays mines" for the body.
Under normal circumstances, moisture lurking in different places will have corresponding manifestations, mainly the following 5 categories:
- The upper disturbance will make the head drowsy and unconscious, and the feeling of heavy head and body weight like a bundle will appear;
- Accumulated in medium focus (including spleen, stomach, liver, gallbladder and other internal organs), loss of appetite, bloating, nausea and vomiting, etc. may occur;
- Accumulation in the lower scorch (including kidney, large intestine, small intestine, bladder), can lead to sticky stool, turbid or dripping urine, etc.;
- If the meridians are blocked, there will be swelling, pain, edema and other manifestations of the lower back and limbs;
- If it hurts yang, it can make people's limbs weak, drowsiness, cold intolerance and so on.
How can "wet people" drain moisture
To prevent moisture from attacking, the human body must keep the external moisture out, and also need to prevent the moisture from generating from within. Daily dehumidification can be done by several things:
01
Eat a light and moderate diet
When cooking daily, green onions and ginger are often added to dishes to reduce the cold properties of other foods. Winter melon peel, poria, tangerine peel, red dates, etc. are all good "warm" ingredients for strengthening the spleen, suitable for most people.
You can also eat foods that clear heat, dissolve moisture, and strengthen the spleen, such as peaches, watermelons, eggplants, tomatoes and other seasonal fruits and vegetables.
Don't eat too much raw and cold food at once, don't overeat, and stay away from foods that are too greasy.
02
Sweating with frequent exercise
Jogging, swimming, walking, etc. all help to activate qi and blood, increase water metabolism, and accelerate the excretion of moisture.
However, it should be reminded that if the weather is hot, you should avoid excessive exercise or sweating, choose a cool time in the morning and evening, and pay attention to timely hydration.
03
Keep away from humid environments
Dry your hair thoroughly after bathing and washing your hair, and do not fall asleep directly when your hair is still wet. Change clothes and shoes in time after rain.
Also pay attention to keeping the room dry; If the outside humidity is also heavy, turn on the fan, air conditioner, etc. to keep the air circulating.
04
Do not keep the room temperature too low
If the indoor temperature is too low, the pores of the body will automatically close, sweat will not come out, moisture will not be dispersed, and it can only accumulate in the body. Usually, the temperature difference between indoor and outdoor should not be too large, and when the humidity is heavy, it is best to turn on the dehumidification function.
05
Go to bed early at night
From the perspective of Chinese medicine, staying up late and not sleeping enough can lead to spleen deficiency, which in turn causes moisture stagnation. It is recommended to go to bed before 11 pm every night to ensure 6~8 hours of sleep.
06
Often do "drainage" action
Recommend a set of simple methods to teach you to use the "moisture drain" of the human body:
- Hands on the heavenly three jiao
Stand with your legs shoulder-width apart, arms hanging down, palms close to your legs. Slowly raise your hands from your side to the top of your head, cross your fingers, turn your palms up, as if holding an object up, while tiptoeing your heels.
Turn your hands palms down, slowly press along the front of the body to the lower abdomen, and the heels fall with the trend to restore. Do the above action 10 times.
- Pinch the Tianshu Acupoint and the Great Heng Acupoint
The fingers of both hands are facing the navel, use the base of the palm and the remaining four fingers to squeeze the fat layer under the Tianshu point and the large horizontal point, squeeze hard, and insist on 5~10 seconds after feeling unbearable pain.
Relax for 3 seconds and repeat the squeeze for 3 minutes at a time, before and after meals.
- Tap Yinling Spring and Chengshan Cave
Both acupuncture points are in the calf area, tap for 3~5 minutes each time, and do it 3 times a day. ▲
Editor of this issue: Wang Xiaoqing
Copyright statement: This article is the original of "Life Times", unauthorized reproduction is refused.