Cool as a Cucumber

As the summer months approach, it's the perfect time to introduce some cool, yin foods into your diet. Chinese nutrition classifies food according to its energetic qualities of temperature, taste, and ability to moisten and strengthen the body. Food with cool and cold properties can clear heat, reduce toxins, and generate body fluids.

In a hot environment, your body rids itself of excess heat by increasing blood flow to the skin, sweating and breathing out warmed air. These mechanisms can sometimes be overwhelmed, however, leading to heat-related symptoms.

Heat exhaustion is a condition in which the body's heat-regulating system fails, due to prolonged exposure to high temperatures, excessive production of heat or, commonly, a combination of the two. The body is unable to lose heat adequately in order to return to its normal temperature.

One way to naturally cool down your body is to incorporate energetically cooling foods into your daily regime; an easy and delicious way is by drinking Cucumber Water.

The phrase "cool as a cucumber" is not without merit. This vegetable's high water content gives it a very unique moist and cooling taste.

For the summer months, I like to peel a cucumber and then place it in a pitcher of water over night. The next day I have cucumber water all ready to take to the park or beach. Another cooling food/herb is mint. Mint can be placed in the cucumber water to enhance the fresh taste of the water but to also add to the cucumber waters cooling effect on the body.

To read more about the energetics of foods please click here.

posted by Sharon A. Wyse, L.Ac.