Your shopping cart is empty!
FREE SHIPPING OVER 35€
WELCOME COUPON €5 "CIAO5"
It is a lifestyle that allows us to live in harmony with nature, starting from a healthy, balanced diet based on organic, seasonal, unprocessed products, without chemicals, preservatives, colorings. Macrobiotics, literally "long life", was conceived, in the post-war period, by the Japanese Georges Ohsawa who was inspired by the ancient Eastern Taoist medicine. According to this philosophy, foods belong to two main groups: Yin and Yang, which are also the two cosmic principles. By choosing foods appropriately, it would be possible to achieve a state of harmony of body and mind that improves overall quality of life. Based on this concept, macrobiotics involves basing our diet on non-industrially refined grains, preferably whole, seasonal vegetables, a small portion of legumes (one or two tablespoons), seasonal fruits [these, among other things, are exactly the recommendations of the WCRF-World Cancer Research Fund- for a healthy lifestyle]. Seasonality is therefore one of the fundamental aspects to create harmony with nature: it starts from the assumption that Nature offers us, when we need it, what we need and where we need it; therefore, eating out-of-season products means introducing energies into our body that are not suitable for the period, creating the conditions to generate imbalance and predispose us to illness. Health, in fact, is nothing but an energetic, dynamic balance, in continuous transformation. Life itself is a continuous movement of transformation of two energies: that of night and day, darkness and light, feminine and masculine, cooling and heating, passive and active. Or, as the Orientals called them: Yin and Yang, the two forces with which energy manifests and with which we can perceive it. These two forces can slowly, day after day, be discovered, known, and we can become aware of their qualities through our primary functions: breathing (exhalation-inspiration) and heartbeat (diastole-systole). Yin energy (expansive) refreshes and relaxes. If extreme, it cools us and if this were to happen, too much cold could weaken our vital energy. Yang energy (contractive) warms, activates, gives strength. If extreme, it warms us excessively and creates excessive contraction, favoring accumulations, tensions, and rigidity. Even foods are classified based on these two energetic qualities, from extremely Yin foods (such as sugar, drugs, alcohol, chemicals) to extremely Yang foods (such as salt, cold cuts, eggs, aged cheeses). Therefore, it is advisable to find a balance and try to consume foods that are positioned in the center of the two energies such as: whole unrefined grains (such as whole rice, buckwheat, millet, barley, corn, rye, oats, rye), some vegetables, such as carrots, turnips, cabbages, onions, roots, and seaweed. Vegetables should constitute a quarter of the diet, but asparagus, fennel, spinach, eggplants, tomatoes, potatoes, and zucchini should be avoided. Meat (with the exception of game, poultry, fish, and shellfish), cold cuts, eggs, dairy products, butter, and margarine should be avoided. Also, canned or frozen foods, refined flour and rice, foods with additives; sweeteners and saccharin are prohibited. No chocolate, coffee, vinegar, tropical fruits and juices, soda drinks, and alcoholic beverages.
All this also applies to beverages and especially to teas. Let's discover together which are the cooling teas and useful in this period! According to traditional Chinese medicine, body heat and inflammation can cause discomfort to the throat and lungs. Too much heat can cause dry skin, eyes, and acne. In the worst case, it can cause cough with white or yellow phlegm, runny nose, fever, or even constipation. The positive thing is that cooling teas can neutralize heat, even if you prepare a hot cup. The degree of "cooling" of teas mainly depends on the amount of oxidation that the leaves have undergone. Green teas are minimally oxidized and are generally considered the freshest. Japanese teas in particular are the best to drink in summer. The processing of their leaves makes them the freshest teas:
Black teas, on the other hand, have undergone more oxidation and are therefore considered "warming". Between these two types are the oolong teas that are semi-oxidized. In general, green teas and slightly oxidized oolongs, such as Tie Guan Yin, can be considered as 'cooling' drinks and are suitable for people experiencing some type of inflammation. This condition seems to be more common during the summer and it is therefore essential to consume these types of teas to address this issue. On the contrary, dark oolongs (like Da hong pao) and black teas are, as we said, considered "warming". They are therefore useful in times when we have cold feet and hands or, in general, a low level of energy.
Come to Terza Luna - or visit our online tea shop - to discover the many types of tea that can help rebalance your Yin and Yang!
