HAPPY MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL, SEPT 22

Tomorrow, Sept 22, will be the Chinese Mid-autumn Festival. According to Chinese culture, on 15^th of the Eight Month of the Lunar Calendar, the moon will be the fullest, and it is time for families to gather, lovers to send blessings to each other, and time to celebrate for the year’s harvest.

Moon cakes, a moon-shaped treat made with all sorts of fillings such as nuts, meat, dried fruits, is the main theme for mid-autumn. It symbolizes unity of families or companies, and harvest that is given by God (the Up Sky). To go with moon cakes, people drink laurel wine, have jasmine tea, tie guanyin( Iron Guan Yin Buddha), and Longjing(Dragon Well).

Mid-autumn is official holiday in China, it announces both the official and natural change of the season, so “how to take care of your health” in autumn is the major topic on all TVs and newspapers.

Traditional Chinese Medicine regards Mid-autumn as the turning point from yang(summer) to yin,(starting tomorrow). Drinking tea has become more favorable for people to balance yin and yang inside the human body. In the summertime, people have stored too much yang and drinking tea(yin) at mid-autumn can help bring back yin energy. Once yin and yang are balanced, you have achieved great health.

But if you have already had too much yin in your body, please avoid drinking too much tea. A few sips will be fine, and too much will affect your health. People having stomach or kidney problems should avoid tea, especially green tea or iced tea. Please note that drinks such as coffee and coke belong to yang. If your body is already loaded with yang, you must avoid drinking coffee or coke. To give you a general idea, see the following:

Food of yin: duck, fish, cucumber, lettuce, green tea, etc.

Food of Yang: beef, cheese, goat meat, garlic, onion, coffee, etc.

A lot of food is neutral, such as: pork, potato, etc.

Note: salt belongs to “fire” and it is yang. Do not eat to much salt. Beef is already yang enough, adding salt is like putting oil on fire for your body.

If you eat beef & cheese daily, you must avoid drinking too much coffee. Too much yang will bring damage to heart, liver, and kidneys. It will also cause damages to your memory and intelligence.  You will feel hot and sweaty even the room temperature is only 68 degrees (kidney deficiency). Too much yang is also the cause for hypertension.

If you cannot live without beef and cheese, then green tea is the best solution to bring back the yin in your body. Also, on Mid-autumn, the moon is full and it is the best time to absorb yin energy from it. The power of full moon will activate your channels and it is the best time to do some yoga, have some massage, or a spa.

Tomorrow is the festival, and Palace Herbal Spa would like to ask you to have a get-together for your family at our spa, and we would also like to send blessings to you all. We wish you great health and a wonderful harvest for the year of the tiger for your family and business.

Thanks for choosing Palace Herbal Spa as your “Palace”

May Wang, HHP