味
Wèi Flavor
Flavors
The five principle flavors are pungent, sweet, sour, bitter, salty.
There are another two which are often discussed, tasteless
and astringent, however since sweet and tasteless usually coexist,
and since sour and astringent herbs have the same effects, they are grouped
together.
The effects of flavors are very real and they help to explain the medicinal properties of most foods. Different flavours and different compositions show different pharmacological and therapeutic actions, while drugs of the same taste usually have similarities in effect and even in composition. In addition, each flavor corresponds to an organ. However, Chinese medical theory also dictates that each of the five principal organs (Liver, Heart, Spleen, Lung, Kidneys) also governs the nutrition of certain tissues, so one can say that the flavors affect the entire body. The sour flavor has a special effect on the liver, bitter on the heart, sweet on the spleen, acrid on the lung, and salty on the kidneys. A moderate quantity of a flavor balances and nourishes its associated organ. The lack of a flavor in the diet therefore results in the malnutrition of its corresponding organ, as well as the body tissues that depend on that organ. On the other hand, an excess of that same flavor will injure the organ, hinder its proper functioning, and cause various problems in the body. A balance of the flavors is therefore fundamental to the balance of the body. This is why it is essential to eat a variety of foods, and to avoid a diet that revolves around the same flavors.
The Difference between the Flavor and the Taste
of a Food
Each food can have one or more flavors, but they are not always
the ones that we sense when we taste it. For example, even if a food doesn't
taste sour, it can still be described as having a sour flavor. This signifies
that it acts particularly at the energetic level of the liver (the liver being
associated with the sour flavor), or that it has an astringent action in the
body (the action of the sour flavor). We see here that the flavor of a food
describes its underlying characteristics and not it's taste.
The process of assigning a flavor works something like this: At the beginning,
some foods with obvious flavors are found to act on some internal organs and
peform specific actions in the human body. The basic relationships between flavors
and internal organs and the actions are studied and analyzed by inductive reasoning.
As time goes on, other foods whose flavors are more difficult to determine may
be found capable of acting upon some internal organs and performing some specific
actions. The flavors of such foods are deduced on the basis of their organic
effects and specific actions[4].
辛 Xīn The Pungent
Flavor
Disperses and induces sweating (acts primarily on the
energy of the lung, defensive energy, and the surface of the body).
Promote energy circulation (energy, blood, fluids… internal stagnations).
Moistens (including the kidneys, as a result of stimulating the source of fluids).
Nourishes the lungs and its connections: large intestine, nose, skin and hair.
Examples- Green onion- leaf and white head, chive, chive root, chive
seed, clove, parsely, and coriander, black pepper, castor bean, cherry seed,
cinnamon bark, cinamon twig, Chinese parsley, cottonseed, dillseeeds, fennel,
garlic, ginger- dried or fresh, grapefruit peel, green pepper, kohlrabi, kumquat,
leaf mustard, leek, marjoram, nutmeg, peppermint, radish and radish leaf, red
pepper, rice bran, rosemary, soybean oil, spearmint, star anise, sweet basil,
taro, tobacco, white pepper, wine.
Slightly pungent- Asparagus, caraway.
甘 Gān The Sweet Flavor
The sugar that we are going to study below is characterized as having a sweet
flavor. It nourishes, tonifies, and moistens. This flavor acts as a general
fortifier. It promotes the production of energy, blood, and fluids. Most grains
and legumes are sweet, which is why they make up the base of most traditional
diets. Milk and many fruits are also sweet; they moisten the body and alleviate
thirst.
The sweet flavor also relieves tension. In times of emotional stress, the foods that one has a tendency to crave are sugary foods. The sweet flavor also soothes spasms and relieves pain, like sugar cane does in the case of abdominal pain and menstrual cramps. It is necessary here to clarify the relationship between the "sweet flavor" and the "sweet taste". One can say that the sweet taste is an extremely concentrated sweet flavor. Sugar is characterized by a very intense sweet flavor.
Nourishes, supplements (Qi, blood, Yin, Yang)
Relaxes spasms and tension ("antispasmodic"). Slow down acute symptoms
Harmonizes the effects of the other flavors
Nourishes the spleen and its connections: stomach, mouth, muscles and lips.
Sweetness and Pathologies
Neutralize the toxic effect of other foods.
According to Chinese medicine, the spleen and stomach, two major organs of
digestion, are associated with the sweet flavor. This is why consuming too many
sweet foods (and of course very sweet things like sugar cane and beets) weakens
digestive function, and the flesh becomes over-nourished. This phenomenon is
observed in the case of people who are overweight or obese. An excess of sugar
can also be the origin of intestinal problems, rhinitis, sinusitis, hypoglycemia,
hypercholesterolemia, etc. In addition, the ancient Chinese medical texts say
that it can cause negative effects on the bones, hair, muscles…
Examples- Abalone, apple, apricot, apricot seeds, bamboo shoots, banana, barley,
bean curd, beef, beetroots, back fungus, black sesame seeds, black soybean,
brown sugar, cabbage-Chinese, carp- common carp, gold carp, grass carp, carrot,
castor bean, celery, cherry, chestnut, chicken, chicken egg- yolk and white,
Chinese wax gourd, cinnamon bark, cinnamon, twig, clam- fresh water, coconut,coffee,
common button mushroom, corn, corn silk, crab apple, cucumber, red and black
date, dry mandarin orange peel, duck, eel, eel blood, eggplant, fig, ginseng,
grape, grapefruit, grapefruit peel, guava, guava leaf, hawthorn fruits, honey,
horse bean hyacinth bean, Job's tears, kidney bean, kohlrabi, kumquat, lettuce,
licorice, lily flower, litchi, longan, longevity fruit, loquat, lotus- fruit
and seed, malt, maltose, mandarin orange, mango, milk- cow's and human, mung
bean, muskmelon, mutton, pork, potato, pumpkin, radish, raspberry, red small
bean or adzuki bean, rice bran, rice-polished, saffron, sesame oil, shiitake
mushroom, shrimp, soybean oil, spearmint, spinach, squash, star anise, star
fruit, strawberry, string bean, sugar cane, sunflower seed, sweet rice, sweet
potato, sword bean, tangerine-orange, taro, tomato, walnut, water chestnut,
watermelon, wheat, wheat bran, white fungus, white sugar, wine yellow soybean.
酸 Suān The Sour Flavor
Retains and collects (prevents the abnormal leakage of energy
or substances (sweat, sperm, fluids, stool, urine, blood, etc.). Sour foods
are often used to help stop diarrhea, incessant sweating, leucorrhea, hemorrhaging,
and incessant cough, especially when these issues are caused by a vacuity of
the body).
Generates fluids (treats thirst, especially when combined with the sweet flavor).
Nourishes the liver and its connections such as gallbladder, eyes, nails, tendons.
Sour foods can obstruct the movements, and are useful therefore, in checking
diarrhea and excessive perspiration.
Examples- Apple, apricot, crab apple, grape, grapefruit, hawthorn fruits, jumquat,
litchi, loquat, mandarin, mango, olive, peach, pineapple, plum, raspberry, small
red or adzuki bean, star fruit or carambola, strawberry, tangerine, tomato,
vinegar.
Extremely sour- Lemon, pear, sour plum
苦 Kǔ The Bitter Flavor
Drains downward, descends excess energy, pathogenic factors, and heat. Induce
diarrhea.
Drains fire (a method for eliminating heat). Heat in Chinese medicine is often
a physiological or pathological hyperactivity that can cause redness, inflammation
of the eyes, mouth ulcers, cutaneous eruptions, constipation with dry stools,
cystitis, thirst, dark scanty urine, insomnia, vexation, irritability, and the
tendency to anger easily.
Dries Dampness (cold or heat). Dries body fluids.
Nourishes the heart and its connections: small intestine, tongue, vessels and
complexion.
Examples- Hops, lettuce, radish leaf and vinegar (sour and bitter). Apricot
seed, asparagus, bitter gourd, wild cucmber, celery, cherry seed, coffee, grapefruit
peel, kohlrabi, lotus pluule, seagrass, wine.
Slightly bitter- Ginseng, pumpkin.
咸 Xián The Salty Flavor
Softens hardness and breaks up accumulations. It softens abnormally hard masses,
such as cysts, nodules, goiters, and lipomas. One example is the ability of
certain algaes to help treat goiter. Treat hardening of muscles or glands.
Descends, purges downward. For example, salt water has an interesting action
in the case of constipation, because it softens the stool and promotes evacuation
by descending downward.
Nourishes the kidneys and their connections: bladder, ears, bones and hair
Examples- Salt, kelp and seaweed, abalone, barley, chive seeds, clam- sea, fresh
water, river clamshell, sea clamshell, crab, cuttlebone, cuttlefish, duck, eel
blood, ham, kelp, milk-human, oyster, oyster shell, pork, salt, seagrass. All
shells are curshed into powder before using them. .
Light flavor
In addition, some foods have a light flavor or little taste.
These foods normally have two flavor classifications. Cucumber, for example,
has sweet and light flavors. Foods with a light flavor promote urination and
may be used as diuretics. Job's tears is one of the outstanding example.
Examples- Job's tears, kidney bean, sunflower seed, white fungus, Chinese wax
gourd.
The Middle Path
Very often in Chinese culture, people and phenomena are looked at in relation to a state of balance. This state of balance is also called the "middle path." Excess consumption of cane sugar can therefore cause numerous problems. At the same time, it has beneficial effects in nutritional and therapeutic programs. Therefore, with appropriate use, sugar can be an ally instead of an enemy[4,5,6].
Various flavours have different effects on circulation
Pungent herbs have a taste associated with diaphoretic action.
Difficult to describe, though Horseradish, Curries and spicy foods all have
it.
The Sweet flavour has the effect of of tonifying Spleen/Stomach
and helping the concentration/projection of energy. Too much sweetness heats
up the Middle Jiao causing illnesses like diabetes.
The Sour flavour has the effect of withdrawing energy to the
center- or astringing energy. This helps the Liver in particular because the
Liver lifts energy to the spirit residing the Heart in the Nourishing (SHENG)
cycle. This is moving energy towards the center.
Bitter herbs have the effect of providing a confronting taste
which the Spirit repels from. A person feels has the feeling of I don't want
to be here, I'm too vulnerable. This helps the Heart in particular as it helps
energy to be lifted to the Heart in the Nourishing cycle, and since the Heart
floats at the top of this cycle it helps nourish the Heart. Another way of looking
at this is that it helps break attachments so the Spirit can be uplifted.
Salty flavour tonifies the Kidney- Too much salt offends (injures)
the Heart in the KE cycle. Cold is detrimental to the Kidney and this is why
salt blocks are given to animals to help them through the winter. Salt stimulates
the Kidneys (storehouse of energy) and draws some energy into circulation. This
is why a dose of salt has been used to help stop asthma and lower pain.