What are the dietary requirements for the elderly in spring?

　　Spring is the most active period for our human body’s physiological functions and metabolism, so let’s follow the footsteps of spring and start our spring health regimen! First of all, traditional Chinese medicine health science believes that the human body must obey the laws of the ebb and flow of yin and yang in the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn and winter, and adapt to the climate changes of cold, hot, and cool throughout the year in order to maintain good health. healthy ,longevity. As one of the important components, diet and health care must determine different dietary principles and requirements based on the climate characteristics of different seasons and the physiological characteristics of the human body.

　　Principle 1: Choose staple foods with higher calories in early spring, and pay attention to supplementing enough protein.

　　In early spring, the temperature is still relatively cold, and the human body needs to consume a certain amount of energy to maintain its function of keeping out the cold.

　　Therefore, the nutritional structure during early spring should be mainly high-calorie. In addition to cereals, soybeans, sesames, peanuts, walnuts and other foods should also be used to replenish energy substances in time.

　　In addition, the stimulation of cold can accelerate the decomposition of proteins in the body, leading to a decrease in the body's resistance and disease. Therefore, it is also necessary to supplement high-quality protein foods during early spring, such as egg , fish, shrimp, beef, chicken, rabbit meat and soy products, etc. The above foods are rich in methionine, and methionine has the function of enhancing the body's cold resistance.

　　Principle 2: Appropriately increase the proportion of fruits and vegetables in the diet to absorb sufficient vitamins and inorganic salts.

　　Spring is the season when the climate changes from cold to warm. The temperature changes greatly. Microorganisms such as bacteria and viruses begin to reappear and become more active. They can easily invade the human body and cause diseases, such as angular stomatitis, glossitis, night blindness and certain diseases that are common in spring. skin disease etc. Most of these are caused by nutritional deficiencies caused by eating less fresh fruits and vegetables. Therefore, the proportion of fruits and vegetables in the diet should be appropriately increased to absorb sufficient vitamins and inorganic salts.

　　Fresh vegetables such as cabbage, rape, bell peppers, tomatoes, and fruits such as citrus and lemons are rich in vitamin C and have antiviral effects; yellow-green vegetables such as carrots and amaranth are rich in vitamin A, which can protect and enhance the function of upper respiratory tract mucosa and respiratory organ epithelial cells, and can enhance resistance to various pathogenic factors; foods rich in vitamin E should also be consumed to improve the body's immune function and enhance the body's disease resistance. Such foods include sesame seeds, green cabbage, cauliflower, etc.

　　In addition, from the perspective of scientific diet, the relative proportion of protein, carbohydrate, fat and other nutrient intakes should also be emphasized in spring to enhance resistance, prevent overeating, and avoid causing liver dysfunction and abnormal bile secretion.

　　Principle 3: Eat a light diet and avoid greasy, cold, and irritating foods.

　　Spring should change from the thick and thick flavor of winter to warm and bland food. In terms of animal food, you should eat less fatty meat and other high-fat foods, because eating greasy food can easily lead to a feeling of fullness and fatigue in the human body. Food should be warm and avoid cold food. People with cold stomach can often eat some ginger to dispel cold and warm the stomach.

　　Principle 4: The spring diet should reduce acidity and increase sweetness to nourish the spleen.

　　Sun Simiao, a famous doctor in the Tang Dynasty, said: "In spring, it is better to reduce acidity and increase sweetness to nourish the spleen. ”It means that when spring comes, people should eat less sour food and more sweet food. The advantage of this is that it can replenish the spleen and stomach of the human body.

　　Spring is the time for liver qi. According to the five elements theory of traditional Chinese medicine, the liver belongs to wood and the spleen belongs to earth. Earth and wood are in conflict with each other. That is, a strong liver can damage the spleen and affect the digestive function of the spleen. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the five flavors enter the five internal organs, sourness enters the liver, and sweetness enters the spleen. Therefore, eating more sour foods will enhance the function of the liver and make the already overactive liver qi more active, which will harm the spleen and stomach qi.

　　In view of this, for spring dietary maintenance, it is advisable to choose sweet and warm foods, avoid sour and astringent foods, and mainly tonify the spleen, so you can eat more jujubes, yams, crispy rice, etc.

　　Principle 5: Money can’t buy spring, it’s the right time to eliminate cellulite and detoxify.

　　Throughout the winter, most people are in a state of hibernation: they live in seclusion, exercise less, and prefer foods rich in fat and flavor. After the winter, a large amount of fat and toxins accumulate in the body. There is an old saying: "A thousand dollars can't buy spring," which means that "spring is the right time to eliminate cellulite and detoxify."

　　It is worth noting here that don’t blindly believe in folk detoxification drugs. In fact, simple apples and fresh milk have very good detoxification effects.

　　Try drinking a glass of fresh milk and eating an apple in the morning. Mild and beneficial, it also has a detoxifying effect. Other fruits, such as strawberries, cherries, Grape It also has good detoxification effects. There is also kelp and mung bean soup, because the colloid component in kelp can promote the discharge of toxic substances in the body. Mung beans are cold in nature and can clear away heat and detoxify. Therefore, if you drink this soup, toxins will naturally be excreted with the bowels.

　　Principle 6: Take appropriate dietary supplements according to your individual constitution and condition.

　　Motherland’s medical science proposes that “health maintenance in spring requires dietary supplements.” However, it is necessary to choose a balanced and tonic diet according to the characteristics of the human body's yang energy gradually growing in spring, so as not to be counterproductive. The following types of people are most suitable to take supplements in spring: elderly People with premature aging; suffering from various chronic diseases sexually transmitted diseases And those who are thin; those who have backache, dizziness, sallow complexion, and listlessness; the climate changes greatly in spring, and it is easy to relapse after catching cold cold person; there used to be in spring asthma Those who have a history of attacks but are not currently having them; those who have low-grade fever in summer.

　　Anyone who falls into the above situation can use the spring season to choose appropriate dietary supplements to prevent and treat diseases according to their personal constitution and condition. The details are as follows:

　　1. People with weak and cold constitution can eat more warm foods such as walnuts and wolfberries;

　　2. Those with severe moisture should eat foods that turn moisture into food, such as dried lotus leaves, lotus seeds, etc.

　　3. If the elderly have internal heat due to yin deficiency, they can use clearing and tonic methods first. Such foods include pears, lotus roots, shepherd's purse, lilies, soft-shell turtles, snails, etc. This kind of food has a cooling nature and has the effect of clearing away heat and dispelling fire after eating, which can help improve poor physical fitness.

　　4. The supplements for the elderly who are sick or recovering after illness should generally be based on cool, plain, fresh, delicious, and easy-to-digest foods. Rice porridge, barley porridge, red bean porridge, lotus seed porridge, green vegetable puree, meat floss, etc. can be used. Avoid eating foods that are too sweet, fried, raw or cold, and that are not easily digested to avoid damaging gastrointestinal function.

　　5. For children and the elderly, you can also boil some orange peels, radish, pears or water chestnuts as tea to drink, which can regulate qi and resolve phlegm, clear away heat and moisturize the lungs, and protect the respiratory tract.