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The Tao of Health
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Fall Health Tips
Seasonal health tips for Fall - the 'Metal' season.
How To Protect and Strengthen Your Lungs In Autumn
Dancing gold
The forest rustles
Alive with surrendering leaves
— Lao Xian
Fall has begun. This is the time of year when the Lungs and immune system are working hard to help your body adapt to the changing weather.
Working together, your body’s organs are a networked system that receives, transforms and transmits energy. A balanced system is a healthy system, and in Autumn, you want to make sure that your Lungs get tuned-up.
Lungs Are Most Sensitive In Autumn
The Lungs are the focal point of your body’s energy network in Autumn. Now is the time to do some very simple things that will protect your Lungs from the forces that cause cold and flu, and prepare them to deal with the dampness and cold that comes with Autumn and Winter.
Five Ways To PROTECT Your Lungs
- Use a scarf or collar to cover the front and back of your neck when you go outside.
- Avoid drafts and wind.
- Wear a dust mask, or other cover, when working around dust, spores or other airborne contaminants.
- Use Chinese medical herb formulas, or other internal protection, to guard against colds, flu and other contagious illnesses.
- Be mindful of any intuitive insights you may have regarding your health.
Five Ways To STRENGTHEN Your Lungs
- Eat foods that nourish the Lungs. These include: daikon radish, lotus root, maiitake mushrooms, and Chinese herb formulas.
- Get enough sleep.
- Reduce and keep stress low. (Easier said than done ... but doable.)
- Pace yourself. Make sure to save some of your energy).
- Begin developing—or maintain—an inner practice like meditation or deep breathing to help your body relax and rejuvenate.
So, as the days continue to shorten and the nights get longer, remember to slow down to match the deepening of the seasonal energy.
Conserve and enjoy!
Winter Solstice Retreat: Following Your Energy Inward
It’s early Autumn in the northern hemisphere, and for those of us who live here, the energy of Nature - which includes us - is moving down into the roots of our plant friends.
‘Stepping back’ makes room for something beneficial to come forward.
At the same time it’s causing us to move inward, deeper into ourselves, as we’re gradually reminded of the need to protect our body from declining temperatures, and as we begin responding to the increasing darkness, quiet, and stillness.
Be In Sync With the Season
This is a very interesting time of year from an emotional point of view. While most of us get excited and uplifted as the holidays approach — beginning with the harvest celebrations and on through to the new year — there also tends to be a bit of melancholy with the passing of the carefreeness of Summer.
No need to lament though, because each season offers pleasures and opportunities when we know how to be in sync with the seasonal energy — what Oriental Medicine calls ‘Chi’ or ‘life force.’
Looking at the mountain… / looking at the sea… / autumn evening — Issa
Looking Forward to Stepping Back
At BIOM we enjoy Autumn: the fresh smell of misted forest, the bright warmth of the woodstove, and preparing for our annual Winter Solstice Retreat.
So what’s the process of getting ready for a Winter Solstice Retreat?
We begin by ‘grounding out’; becoming more aware of what Nature is doing. Observing the leaves falling, watching the animals, feeling the changing temperature with our skin, sensing the seasonal scents in the air … paying more attention to what’s happening around us.
Each season offers pleasures and opportunities when we know how to be in sync with the seasonal energy.
Observe Nature and express how you feel as a result. We use haiku because of its meaningful simplicity; its ability to capture emotion and reflect it back again in ripples of deeper emotion and experience.
If haiku is not for you, consider writing another kind of poem, keep a journal, draw a picture, sing, or play music. Start getting more in touch with how you feel and what you think about. Watch the leaves fall, do Chi Kung … be here now.
You’re Invited
Like any event you look forward to there’s some planning and discussion that goes along with it. We’ll be doing ours here in the Teahouse and the BIOM newsletter. And we invite you to join us in planning a Winter Solstice Retreat of your own.
Related Links
Seasonal Retreats at BIOM
Winter Retreat at BIOM
Reflecting On A Winter Solstice Retreat
Tassajara Journey & Retreat
Staying Healthy In Autumn
Seasons change, and your body and mental outlook change with them in predictable ways. Oriental medicine combines knowledge of seasonal characteristics with your unique health situation to balance your energy (chi) to help you adapt and thrive during the cool, crisp months of autumn.
In this episode of ‘Seasonal Health Tips,’ Kitty talks about how the Metal element of Autumn affects your health, and how to stay healthy during this season of cooler days and longer nights. (To get the most out of what Kitty has to say, open the 5 Element Theory chart in a new window while listening.)
(Length 07:39, Size 8.8 MB)
The Metal Element
Every season is associated with one of the Five Elements, and for autumn, the element is Metal—the energetic force that governs the health and functionality of your Lungs and Large Intestine.
According to Taoist 5 Element Theory, the Lungs are the primary influence affecting the immune system. So during autumn, it’s important to eat food that builds the overall health of the Lungs to strengthen your immune system now, and in preparation for winter.
Autumn Health Problems
Because the Lungs are most sensitive during autumn, this is a time to focus on preventing or responding to colds, coughs, sore throat, and the like. And for people already predisposed to lung problems, such as bronchitis, pneumonia, and emphysema, autumn is the time to take precautions to minimize your vulnerability as we advance towards winter.
Avoid Drafts and Breezes. Temperatures are dropping, evenings are getting cooler, and in some places breezes are picking up as seasonal winds begin to blow. During this time, you need to be mindful of breezes that make you feel chilly. To avoid getting sick, keep your neck, wrists, and ankles from being exposed to wind and drafts. This is a likely way for an illness to start.
Be Aware of Dryness. During autumn, slowly increasing wind and cold begins to create dryness in the air, which affects your skin and Lungs. The effects of the natural tendency toward dryness in autumn are magnified as you begin to turn on the heat—at home, at work, and in the car—to take the chill out of the air.
Your skin and Lungs don’t like dryness, so it’s important to drink enough fluids to make sure they don’t get dried out.
Eat Less Spicy Food. Because the Lungs are especially sensitive during the autumn months, it’s a good idea to minimize the amount of spicy food you eat, to avoid irritating them. As a result, your Lungs will be less vulnerable to pathogens.
Autumn Health Tips
It’s important to pay attention to how you feel. As soon as you feel a “cold” coming on, it’s time to take preventive action by enjoying one of these nourishing, natural home brews.
Scallion Broth
This simple broth will help you sweat lightly, and is an excellent remedy for preventing and getting rid of colds:
- Take one scallion, and chop it up.
- Boil in water for 5 to 10 minutes. (Keep the lid on the pot to prevent vapor from escaping.)
- Flavor with tamari.
- Sip it slowly, bundle up, then lie down, or go to sleep.
Ginger Tea
If scallion broth doesn’t suit your culinary fancy, try ginger tea:
- Put a couple of slices of fresh ginger in one and one-half cups of water.
- Boil for 5 to 10 minutes. (Time it based on how strong you like your ginger tea.)
- Keep the lid on the pot to prevent vapor from escaping.
- Add a little honey and lemon.
- Sip it slowly, bundle up, then lie down, or go to sleep.
Scallion broth is the more effective of the two remedies, but if for some reason it doesn’t appeal to you, ginger tea is a good alternative
Balance is Key
Strive to balance your diet so that it includes some vegetables, some fruit, some grain, and a handful of moderately spicy foods.
Get Help If You Need It
If you experience any lung-related, or other symptoms that don’t clear up quickly, call BIOM for an appointment to get a prescribed formula of medical herbs to help alleviate your symptoms and address the problem—before it becomes more advanced.