4 Fall Super Foods to Eat This Season & How They Heal Your Lungs
I think fall ranks high as many people’s favorite season because who doesn’t love the changing leaves, the fun fall festivities and all things pumpkin?
And yet, the fall also brings a dip in temperatures, allergies and the start of cold and flu season – all which can affect our lung health and function.
Now is the time to incorporate fall super foods into your diet this season to heal and protect your lungs.
This post continues my series which explores super foods that are fresh each season that also have healing properties for the organ system associated with that season according to Traditional Chinese medicine.
Read on to discover 4 fall super foods to eat this season and then catch up on the rest of the seasons too!
5 Spring Super Foods to Eat This Season & What They Heal
5 Summer Super Foods to Eat This Season To Heal Your Heart
Why Pick Super Foods by the Season?
First, seasonal super foods are selected according to what is most fresh that time of year.
Summer is the best time to grow lettuces, berries and other delicate greens whereas the fall transitions to more root vegetables and vegetables with a hearty skin to protect against the cooler temperatures.
These include parsnips, white potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, turnips, winter squash and pumpkin.
We also pick seasonal super foods based on the organ system that corresponds to that season.
For according to Traditional Chinese medicine, the change of seasons follows a cycle of five phases of energy and matter (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water) with the season of late summer also being the transitional phase between each of our four seasons.
Each of the five phases also corresponds with a specific organ system in the body and influences the health of that organ system.
So foods selected by season can aim to heal that organ system in the body.
The Fall Season and the Metal Phase
Fall is the season of the lungs and corresponds with the metal phase.
This season we should eat foods that strengthen our lungs as well as our immune system.
The lungs, according to Traditional Chinese medical theory, serve many functions beyond respiration including:
Building energy
Regulating respiration
Controlling the skin
Controlling the nose and nasal mucus
Supporting the immune system with the circulation of Wei Qi
Controlling the opening and closing of pores
Moistening the skin and body hair
Given these functions, if our lung system is out of balance, we may experience an overall lack of energy, coughing or wheezing, tightness in the chest, weak voice, frequent colds or sinus infections, mucus in the nose or lungs, dry skin or frequent sweating.
The Lungs and Large Intestine Relationship
In Traditional Chinese medicine, we also view organs as either yin or yang with each yin organ associated with a yang organ pair.
The yang organ pair of the lungs is the large intestine.
The large intestine’s role is to receive food and drink from the small intestine, form our stools and then move the stools for excretion.
If we think of it metaphorically, the large intestine also represents our ability to “let go” or not dwell on the past.
If we are not able to let feelings, events or emotions go however, we may experience constipation- a physical sign of the large intestine’s inability to let go.
To help prevent and treat symptoms of both lung and large intestine imbalances you can eat these fall super foods to heal your lungs and large intestine.
1. Pears: Fall Super Food to Moisten Your Skin and Lungs
Pears are 84% water therefore they help treat many dry conditions such as dry skin, dry cough, asthma or even loss of voice by moistening the skin and lungs.
Pears are also a fruit with a cooling thermal nature so they are perfect for clearing heat conditions and excess mucus of the lungs such as the case with pneumonia.
Also rich in fiber, pears help keep intestines functioning and bowel movements regular by softening stools and flushing toxins.
2. Garlic: Fall Super Food to Strengthen the Immune System
The lungs are the first gateway of our immune system since they control the area between the skin and muscles.
This area is where Wei Qi circulates. Wei Qi in Traditional Chinese medicine is essentially our first line of defensive in our immune system.
If our Wei Qi is strong when a pathogenic factor or germ enters the body through our pores, nasal passages or mouth, it can quickly expel it from the body before it is able to make you sick.
But, if our Wei Qi is not strong, the body cannot kick out the invading germ and we start to experience the first sign of cold symptoms or other illness.
So, keeping lung energy strong and strengthening it in the fall directly supports our immune system functioning with its relationship with Wei Qi.
A great immune booster to add to your diet in the fall is garlic.
This pungent, fall super food is the perfect addition to meals, in particular soups, to take advantage of its antiviral properties.
Garlic also increases natural killer cells, which are part of the immune system that kill off pathogens.
To increase and maintain its healing properties, be sure to chop or crush the garlic and let it sit for 10 min before adding to your soup ingredients.
3. Onions: Fall Super Food to Break Up Mucus and Phlegm
All members of the onion family (including garlic) are beneficial to the lungs.
Onions are high in antioxidants and quercetin which is an anti-viral, anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory flavonoid. This makes this fall super food an excellent immune booster to the lungs as well as a natural antihistamine to fend against allergies.
Because of their high sulphur content, onions are also strong detoxifiers against heavy metals and parasites.
Add onions into your diet this fall to help reduce mucus in the nose and phlegm in the chest as well as reduce inflammation in the lungs.
They can aid many lung conditions such as asthma, bronchitis, allergies and infections. Many tout the beneficial use of an onion poultice on the chest or on the feet to decrease congestion and treat a cough.
4. Oats: Fall Super Food to Treat Constipation of the Large Intestine.
Oats and oat bran are high in soluble fiber which have shown to relieve constipation.
Oats also soothe the sensitive lining of the digestive tract and increases the growth of good bacteria in the digestive tract.
Oats however have the highest amounts of phytic acid of any grain, which is an “anti-nutrient” found in grains and legumes.
Phytic acid blocks mineral absorption in the bowel and can cause bloating or digestive distress and even tooth decay.
To break down this phytic acid and make oats more digestible, it’s best to soak oats before eating them.
The simplest way to do so is to soak oats overnight in water with an acid such as some lemon juice or a spoonful of yogurt.
What fall super foods do you eat this time of year? Let me know in the comments below.
New Video Series on Chinese Medical Nutrition!
Looking for easy to use, practical advice on foods to eat and recipes to cook each season?
Check out the fall season video or the entire 6-part video series on eating by the season by Ancient Roots Nutrition.
These videos teach you how to use real food, common kitchen herbs, vegetables, fruit, spices, and proteins to bring your body back to optimal health each season.
They are a great deal and yours to keep to review each and every year as the seasons change.
[Disclaimer: I participate in the Amazon Affiliate program and use affiliate links for my favorite products. If you click and purchase, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.]
To learn more about the five phases and foods associated with each phase, check out these great books:
Healing With Whole Foods: Asian Traditions and Modern Nutrition
Helping Ourselves: A Guide to Traditional Chinese Food Energetics
Related Posts:
5 Spring Super Foods to Eat This Season & What They Heal