With only one more week left in October, we have come to the last solar term for Autumn! Like the name of this solar term has hinted, frost will begin to form and it is the transitioning period from the season of Autumn to Winter. As the temperature starts to drop even more, it’s even easier to induce respiratory problems. Therefore, it’s important to keep warm and use this time to nourish our body so it is prepared for the Winter.
How to Maintain -- Keeping a smooth respiratory system
“Frost” indicates the solidifying of Yin energy. It is more likely to have symptoms of dry mouth, dry skin, constipation, chest stuffiness, and shortness of breath during this time period.
Keeping a smooth respiratory system is imperative because the body needs enough oxygen circulating at all times. In our modern society, many people are suffering from chronic nasal inflammations (often due to nasal congestion or inflammation of the respiratory tract) which leads to insufficient oxygen intake and exchange.
In the past two solar terms, we’ve introduced the Lung and Large Intestine Meridian. During this solar term, it is suggested to continue massaging along these two meridians. Taking the time to be even more conscious of your breathing is something that can not only help calm the mind but exercise the lungs to improve oxygen intake into the body.
Diet
Based on the Five Element theory, First Frost belongs to the Earth element, which is linked to both the Spleen and Stomach organs. This means, during the First Frost, we can double the effect on the Spleen and the Stomach with just half the amount of effect. So this is a great time to take care of these two organs. What good news! By paying attention to these two organs, we can lay a strong foundation for our body and be better prepared for Winter. However, it is recommended to go with light and balanced tonifying methods to avoid causing excessive burden on the Spleen and Stomach.
One can choose ingredients that contain gelatin and are rich in high quality protein such as: mushroom, chinese yam, sesame, white fungus, soybean, yam, white radish, lily, chestnut, and pumpkin. Fruits such as persimmon, pear, and apple are also good choices.
As for herbal tea, you can combine huang qi (astragalus), dang sheng, dang gui, goji berry and brew with hot water.
We would like to introduce a sweet soup for this solar term that’s quite well known in the Asian Culture - Lily White Fugus Soup
**Simple cooking - Lily White Fugus Soup**
Ingredients (4 servings):
- 5 cups of water
- ½ cup millet
- ¼ cup barley
- 5~7 jujube (can unpit it first)
- ⅔ lily
- 1 full white fungus
- ½~1 tablespoon goji berry
- sugar (can be replaced with honey, cassava syrup, or other natural sweeteners/sugars)
Directions:
- Lightly rinse the millet, barley and goji berries with water and set them aside to dry
- Soak the white fungus, lily and barley in water for approximately 2 hours prior to cooking (if you’re using fresh lilies, then they’ll not require soaking).
- Cut with scissors or hand shred the white fungus into bit-sized pieces
- Place the barley and millet into the bot with 5 cups of water and cook with high heat until boiled and then turn to medium heat
- When it’s halfway cooked (about 40 minutes), put in the white fungus and the jujube
- Turn to low heat to simmer for 30 minutes
- Add the lilies and simmer for another 10 minutes
- Add the goji berries when heat is turned off
- Finally, add sugar according to preference (Sweetner can be added to the whole pot or to your own, personal serving)
Lifestyle
It’s often mentioned how important it is to have good quality sleep and keep up a habit of exercising. But, above all else, it is most important to have a joyful heart (Proverbs 17:22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones).
Due to the dryness and the drop in temperature of Autumn, it’s easy to have respiratory issues and more likely to catch a cold or the flu if not careful. Today we would like to introduce to you two acupressure points that can be useful for these cold symptoms:
LI 20 Ying Xiang (In the nasolabial groove, level with the midpoint of the lateral border of the ala nasi). massaging/stimulating this point can relieve nose discomfort.
GB 20 Feng Chi (In a depression between the upper portion of the sternocleidomastoid muscle and the trapezius). massaging/stimulating this point can improve neck stiffness and head pain/heaviness.
Essential Oil Blend
Nasal Care Blend
Essential oil formula for nasal care
- Niaouli (Nerolidol) (10 drops)
- Moroccan Blue Tansy (1 drop)
- Cinnamon leaves (1 drop)
- Thyme ct. Linalol (10 drops)
- Cold Pressed Lime (3 drops)
- St. John's Wort Oil (10ml)
- Cold pressed sesame oil (20ml)
- Sea buckthorn oil (1 drop)
Put a drop or two of the blend onto a Q-tip and move in a circular motion in the nostrils. You can also use a dropper, tilt your head back, and put a drop directly into the nasal cavity.
Note: If this solution causes a stinging sensation, you can dilute it with a carrier oil.
You can also apply some of this solution on the throat, chest, back, and the foot reflexive areas to promote better respiration.
I personally like to use the doTERRA blend BREATHE as well -- it can be added in a diffuser, applied on the chest. It can also be applied to the palm to rub then place your hands over your nose to inhale.
After applying the blend, you can also massage the acupressure point LI 20 for additional stimulation to help with any nasal discomfort.
Flu Buster Blend
- Spike lavender (15 drops)
- Ravensara (5 drops)
- Monarde (8 drops)
- Thyme ct. Linalol (5 drops)
- Thyme ct. Thymol (2 drops)
- Cold Pressed Lime (3 drops)
- Lemon (3 drops)
You can diffuse this blend or add a few drops into a cup of hot water to inhale. Or you can apply the Flu Buster Blend to GB 20 before massaging.
doTERRA’s ON GUARD blend is a great protective blend to use throughout the year, especially in the Autumn/Winter season to keep the immune system up and keep the cold and flu away.
Though it may still be quite warm during the day time, there’s definitely a greater temperature difference between the mornings and evenings. Therefore, be sure to stay warm, especially around the neck and chest areas to prevent excessive exposure to the cold air. Finally, keep in mind that the air is still dry so it’s still important to stay hydrated to continue keeping the organs moist.
Well, this sums up the Autumn season! Until next time, we will move into the first solar term of Winter~ ^^
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Once again I would like to thank Yu Wei Huang L.Ac for designing the character for Cold Dew (Han Lu) and providing all of the great suggestions for this time period.
The essential oil blends are based off of the book "Four Seasons of Aromatherapy" by Elizabeth S.
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霜降是秋天的最後一個節氣，也是季節即將轉入冬季的一個過渡時期。此時氣溫偏低，容易誘發呼吸道疾病，因此我們更需要做好保暖，為即將到來的寒冬做好準備。另外，霜降也是一個進補身體的好時機喔。
霜降的養生重點：健脾養胃，益肺潤燥
可以吃／喝什麼？
霜降在五行中屬土，是屬於脾胃的節氣，所以在此時進補身體反而事半功倍，為過冬打下良好的基礎。然而我們應以平補、淡補為原則，避免造成腸胃負擔。在飲食上我們一樣可以選擇富含膠質及優質蛋白的食物，比如香菇、山藥、芝麻、銀耳、黃豆、地瓜、白蘿蔔、百合、栗子、南瓜；搭配水果像是柿子、水梨和蘋果等。中藥茶飲可以黃耆、黨蔘、當歸、枸杞以熱水沖泡服用。
禁忌：過飢或過飽；辛辣、重鹹油膩以及生冷的食品
節氣食譜－百合銀耳養生甜湯（4人份）
材料：
小米 1/2杯
薏仁 1/4杯
去籽紅棗 5~7顆
百合 2/3杯
銀耳 1朵
枸杞 1/2匙
糖 適量
- 將小米、紅棗、枸杞稍微過水洗淨
- 銀耳、百合及薏仁在使用前需泡水約2小時（若使用的是新鮮百合則不用泡水）
- 將泡發好的銀耳撕成適當大小
- 薏仁和小米放入鍋中加入5杯水以大火煮滾後轉中火燉煮，在薏仁、小米快熟成時加入銀耳、紅棗轉小火悶煮約30分鐘，加入百合再悶10分鐘
- 最後加入枸杞和糖，糖分比例可依照個人喜好調整
生活習慣
保持良好的運動習慣和充足的睡眠是養生的不二法門，最重要的是保持心情的愉悅。秋天由於空氣乾燥加上氣溫降低，特別容易出現鼻部不適等呼吸道問題，一不小心還可能著涼感冒。我們可以多按摩在鼻翼兩邊的迎香穴（位在鼻翼外緣中點與鼻唇溝的連線處，按壓會有痠脹感），可以緩解鼻子的不適感；按壓風池穴（位在后頸部與髮際線連接的凹陷處，兩筋外側）則可以改善感冒受風後出現的頭部脹痛及頸部僵硬。另外在這裡推薦兩個精油配方讓大家參考。
芳療
鼻腔保養精油配方（成人使用濃度4%）
- 綠花白千層/橙花叔醇 (10 滴)
- 摩洛哥藍艾菊 (1 滴)
- 肉桂葉 (1 滴)
- 沉香醇百里香 (10 滴)
- 冷壓萊姆 (3 滴)
- 聖約翰草油 (10ml)
- 冷壓芝麻油 (20ml)
- 沙棘油 (1 滴)
滴一兩滴在棉花棒上，然後輕輕的塗抹鼻腔。 您也可以使用滴管，向後傾斜頭，然後直接滴入鼻腔。
*注意：如果有刺痛感，則可以用冷壓植物油稀釋。
您也可以在喉嚨，胸部，背部和足部反射區域上應用某些解決方案，以促進更好的呼吸。
我個人也很喜歡用多特瑞的【順暢呼吸複方】
塗抹玩後，您還可以按迎香穴來進一步刺激，以緩解鼻部不適。
流感剋星精油配方
- 穗花薰衣草 (15 滴)
- 桉油樟/羅文沙葉 (5 滴)
- 蜂香薄荷 (8 滴)
- 沉香醇百里香 (5 滴)
- 百里酚百里香 (2 滴)
- 冷壓萊姆 (3 滴)
- 檸檬 (3 滴)
您可以將此配方用在擴香儀器裡，也可以在熱水中加入幾滴並做呼吸。 或者，您也可以在按摩前將配方先塗抹在風池穴上。
我個人也很喜歡用多特瑞的【保衛複方】
希望大家都能健康愉快的度過每一天！
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