Category: Traditional Chinese Medicine

The Beauty of Bitters

10/10/2024

Do you eat your bitters? Bitter foods offer a multitude of health benefits, such as improving digestion, enhancing liver detoxification, and clearing up your skin when hormonal issues lie at the root of issues like acne. But did you know bitters can also improve your mood, clearing feelings of depressed malaise and calming the fires of impatience and anger?

In Chinese medicine and in Ayurveda, the hallmark of a balanced meal is the inclusion of all of the flavours. By including all of the flavours in a meal, you’re probably going to feel very satisfied. And satisfaction is a crucial element of enjoyable, intuitive eating.

One of these flavours is bitter, a very important taste that many of us are missing on our plates.

Throughout Spring and Summer in my Southeast Queensland neighbourhood, edible weeds pop up everywhere including in my own my backyard.

Under the kids’ trampoline out of the lawnmower’s reach, I find dandelion greens, sow thistle, sheep sorrel, and wild carrot, among other largely unknown yet freely available sources of nutrition (always correctly identify plants before eating them, come to one of my Herb Walks to help you with this!). At the farmer’s market I uncover a similar array: mustard greens, endive, chicory, kale, parsley, rocket.

11 Essential tips for Autumn health

27/4/2023

Constipation, colds and flu start to rear their heads in autumn as we transition into the colder months. Here are 11 tips to help you move through the season with strength and grace.

Updated April 2023. Originally published in Living Now magazine, 2016.

At this time of year, as the sap of the trees and flowers returns to their root systems, we too are preparing to turn inward. In virtually every ancient medicine system, this season of harvest was seen as the time of the year to pull inward and gather together on all levels; a time to plan for the approaching darkness and stillness of winter.

In TCM (traditional Chinese medicine), autumn is associated with wind and dryness. It’s also the season associated with the lungs and large intestine, which are responsible for releasing carbon dioxide and food wastes, respectively. It follows that the energy of both these organs is ‘letting go’. Elimination problems like chronic constipation can be exacerbated at this time of year. Emotionally, it’s the time of year to look at things we are hanging onto that are no longer serving us, and to let them go for good.

The Magic & Medicine of Mugwort

29/10/2019

Mugwort. Surprisingly cheeky and brazen, like the very old withered little bent over woman who suddenly reaches up to you and plants a big juicy smacker of a kiss on your cheek. She has the vitality of somebody a quarter of her age. Wise and direct, yet joyful. She's soft without molly-coddling. She delivers her message swiftly, with mirror-like clarity yet without judgement or harshness.

Mugwort is like the grandmother you always wanted, which might be why she is often referred to by herbalists as cronewort after the wise elder archetype. Like a patient grandparent who has been ignored and not visited for far too long, she welcomes you with zeal and open, forgiving arms, eager to distil her timeless wisdom to anyone willing to listen.

Perhaps this is why she is also known as the herb for new initiates to the plant spirit path. She is so easy to talk to. She welcomes you with open, soft, silvery hands. All you have to do is open up the conversation by saying "hello". And when you do, she will gently invite you in to realms of deeper perception, where a new way of communing with plants and integrating the healing process is possible.

In my communications with her I'm always amazed at how quick and clear she is in her conversing. She is so chatty (at least, relative to other plants I've spoken with) that I often doubt myself - "did she really just say that?" - although that is becoming less of an issue with time. More about that soon.

Mugwort's genus name Artemisia hints at the moon goddess that it it's namesake. Every image I've seen of the greek goddess Artemis (or Diana, her Roman equivalent) depicts her as huntress and protector of the wild creatures of the forest. She doesn't kill indiscriminately; she brings death only when it is timely and appropriate. And she also brings life, as is evident in her traditional use by herbal midwives in labour and birth.

Edit on 14 June 2020: Since writing this article I've learnt more about mugwort and the many different species growing around the Sunshine Coast Hinterlands, where I live. I believe one of the species naturalised to this area (and pictured below) may be Chinese mugwort (Artemisia verlotiorum) which is more aromatic than common mugwort (A. vulgaris) and grows 1-3 m high.

Herbs for Handling Stress

15/10/2019

Forget asbestos, Roundup on our vegetables, and mercury fillings: by the year 2020 the most threatening health hazard known to humans is predicted to be stress. Already a major cause of disease, chronic stress sets off a cascade of long-term chemical changes that can spell disease and inflammation for your body, and disintegration of the spirit.

So what’s a human living in the 21st century to do? Aside from lifestyle interventions – such as healthy diet, regular movement, strong social support networks, mind-body practices, and adequate rest – there are certain herbs that can help us to manage the high levels of stress we inevitably face in this day and age.

Rather than indiscriminately throwing a bunch of herbal powders and potions down the hatch and hoping for the best, it is important to know about the three stages of stress adaptation your body experiences as different herbs are most effective at different stages.

Calling out BS in the Mama, Yoga & Wellness Spaces

15/10/2018

I recently had the pleasure of chatting with Fiona Sutherland, host of the Mindful Dietitian Podcast and founder of the The Mindful Dietitian, which provides non-diet and body inclusive training for professionals and groups in Melbourne, worldwide, and online.

She’s not only a highly skilled dietitian trained in eating disorders, body image, mindfulness-based practices and HAES, but she’s dedicated to sharing her expertise and light-hearted but deep wisdom with other health professionals and groups. Her questions made it clear that she’s well-versed in podcasting and, being a dietitian, yoga teacher and mother of two herself, she's also very familiar with the overlap between the motherhood, yoga and "wellness" spheres!

I was especially humbled to hear that she’s read several of my articles and totally rates them! Wow. I can’t think of a better compliment.

If you want to hear us wax lyrical about motherhood, yoga culture and the BS inherent in the "wellness" spaces (including hear me share about my recent experiences as a new mum of two), tune into Episode 36 of the Mindful Dietitian Podcast.

Listen here or search iTunes for the Mindful Dietitian Podcast (Episode 36).

Here’s an overview of our interview:

The pressures on women to be the "perfect" mother, and how we get sucked in through patriarchal systems
On being a working mum, mum guilt, and inadequacy in motherhood
Earth Mothers VS Creative Rainbow Mothers
Nurturing our children, ourselves AND our projects
Breaking away from diet culture messages in the yoga and wellness spheres
The Sexy Successful Spiritual Woman - what is it, and why it hurts us
How diet culture infiltrates the way health professionals and yoga teachers market their services
Ayurveda and Chinese medicine - separating the wisdom from diet culture dross by first getting into your body and learning to eat intuitively
And so much more!

Did you enjoy this interview?

Tell me about it in the comments below! Also, feel free to share any questions you have about yoga, motherhood and wellness in the comments, so I can address them in future blog posts/interviews.

Until next week,
Casey

Spring energetics - moving from darkness into light

12/10/2018

Wild edibles have been popping up everywhere in our hood - check out these bitter dandelion greens. Perfect with some sour lemon juice, olive oil and salt for a simple spring salad.

Spring is here, and although I LOVE it, the transition has been rough...

Winter just isn't my thing (as nice as all those warm cups of chai tea are!) Spring is my favourite season of the year - and not just because it's my birthday season. As the weather started warming up, our little family enjoyed daily expeditions to a local mulberry tree. It seemed our hands and faces were perpetually stained purple, and life was sweet.

Then we had a car crash.

And it was as if our whole world was turned upside down.

Someone rear ended us on the highway. Miraculously no one was hurt, but it shook us all up. Since then, my family and I have encountered battle after battle. Physical, emotional, mental, you name it.

It started with that car crash involving all of us (such a scary experience with babies in the back). Between us we've been through a bout of hospitalisation for appendicitis, some heavy repressed memories resurfacing, a shitload of emotional processing (with anger, shame and vulnerability at the forefront), the extreme physical fatigue that accompanies such emotional processing, a teething baby (aren't they just always teething?!) and learning about the "tantrum explosion" stage of a certain ginger haired three-nager.

INTERGALACTIC CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

24/4/2016

You know those times when you create something so unexpectedly delicious, so unapologetically radical, so exceptionally epic, that it makes you want to jump up in glee and dance like a Beastie Boy in a Japanese train station?

Well, this was one of those times.

The full moon in Aries raging at the moment might have me a little more excited than I otherwise would be. But trust me, these are worth the effort of washing (licking) chocolate truffle mix off of everything.

After seeing a few similar recipes pop up on my Instagram feed, I decided I had to try them. It took a few exposures to convince me because these babies contain one of the ingredients I have been scared - terrified, actually - to use in my food adventures. Powdered medicinal mushrooms.

Immune-boosting Shiitake & Veg Stir Fry

11/3/2016

Corresponding to my piece on 11 tips for a healthy autumn, here's one of my favourite autumn recipes, using the principles of traditional Chinese medicine, and based on a recipe from my Chinese-malay mum! It's quick, easy, and most importantly, delicious. And it's vegan so everyone can enjoy this one!

Shiitake mushrooms (Lentinula edodes) were a favourite ingredient in my mum's Chinese cooking while I was growing up, and I still love them today. They're packed with flavour, have a great chewy texture and make an incredible meat alternative.

Their powerful immune-modulating and anti-tumour actions make them ideal as an adjunct therapy in cancer, for fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. Other medicinal mushrooms include maitake, reishi, and chaga. I often wonder how different our collective state of health would be if we routinely offered our kids traditional foods like these? I also chucked a little Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng) in for extra mum-staying power!

Why I ate my placenta.

31/10/2015

Placenta snaps, sliced and dehydrated by my fiancee, then placed in a container with salt to absorb any lingering moisture. I cut slivers into a green smoothie and blend it well.

This is easily the weirdest, freakiest post I have ever written. But given that it's Samhain or Halloween today, it's kind of fitting!

The main reasons some new mothers throughout the western world are embracing placentophagy (the practice of mammals eating the placenta of their young after giving birth) centre around these: mood stabilisation and improvement which may reduce risk of postpartum depression, and nutrient replenishment after birth which can help with energy levels, recovery, and breast milk production.

Despite these purported benefits, I still struggle with how to explain my decision to eat my own placenta. Even though I instinctively felt it was the right decision for me, I had to do my own research to satisfy my left brain. So let me start off with the reasons why I initially thought I would not eat my placenta.

Yin & Yang Foods

4/9/2014

I have a question for you.

What do you think your body wants most?

Better food? Cleaner air? More sex? All of the above?

Balance, or homeostasis, is what your body wants most. Your body naturally wants to be balanced. Any tiny change to your environment that alters your blood's pH and oxygen saturation will elicit a cascade of events that ultimately attempts to bring you back into a state of perfect balance.

Did you know that the food you eat is a major contributing factor to the overall balance of the body? According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, the energetic effects of some foods on the body are mild, such as vegetables and whole grains.

Foods such as meat, milk, sugar and salt have more extreme effects on the body, and when consumed in excess, can throw it off balance. This struggle eventually leads to a craving for whatever the body needs to regain balance. Extreme foods can be divided into two categories: contractive and expansive. Traditional Chinese Medicine recognises these food qualities as Yin (expansive) and Yang (contractive).

Sometimes my clients seem to be eating all the right things - their macronutrient intake is spot on, and they are getting adequate amounts of vitamins and minerals - but their bodies are still showing serious signs of imbalance.

This is when I might look to traditional, more energetically-based approaches like TCM for clues on how to get that person feeling better.

Contractive Foods

The most common and powerful contractive food is salt, which many people consume regularly and in large quantities especially if they eat a lot of takeaway or cured meats.

Animal foods (including fish) are also extremely contractive foods. These yang foods can imbue us with feelings of strength, aggressiveness and increased physical and mental power, partly due to the residues of adrenaline left behind in the muscles of these animals at their death, which we then consume.

When we eat too much of these foods, we create an imbalance and quickly feel bloated, heavy, sluggish and mentally slow, and we will crave expansive foods as a way of maintaining balance.

Ancient grains, root vegetables, and sea vegetables are examples of more balanced contractive or yang foods. You can eat these in place of processed meats, large amounts of red meat, and white bread to bring your diet back into balance, and ensure you're getting plenty of vitamins and minerals.

Even if you don't look at your diet from an energetic point of view at all, these recommendations still make sense! I find it amazing how traditional wisdom and science frequently line up to tell us the same thing.

Expansive Foods

Less extreme, more balance-creating yin foods include fruits, leafy vegetables, seeds and nuts. The main extreme expansive food is refined white sugar. Expandsive foods provide a feeling of lightness, elevations in mood and relief from blockages and stagnation. However, extremely yin foods like refined white sugar also cause rapid elevations in serotonin, followed by rapid declines.

When serotonin levels fall, we may experience feelings of depression, low energy, anxiety and loss of concentration.

Eating a diet too rich in sugar (yin) may cause a craving for meat (yang) to bring things back into balance. Being aware of the energetic properties of foods can help you to deconstruct your cravings and choose meals for optimum emotional and physical balance.

In my health consultations with clients, I assess not only the physical aspects of someone's diet and health, but the emotional and energetic aspects, too. These must all be balanced, just like the nutrient profile of a diet must be balanced and personalised for the individual.

Casey's blog