Energetics and Nutritions: Further Food Energetics: Direction

Question 1

Food energetics

Answer 1

Other important aspects of food energetics are ‘Direction’, ‘Flavour’ and ‘Organ affinity’. These enable practitioners to fine-tune their dietary recommendations

• Direction: Foods have different energetic ‘vectors’. Namely ascending, descending, centring, consolidating or spreading out to the exterior
• Flavour: bitter, sweet, sour, pungent, salty
• Organ affinity: different foods support specific organs by virtue of their flavour, colour or appearance

Question 2

Food direction:
Ascending foods

Answer 2

Ascending foods:

• Hot foods are ascending, i.e. hot spices, onion, garlic, coffee, chocolate, alcohol, sugar. Avoid with heat signs: headache, hypertension, infection
• Stalky vegetables that grow fast and upwards are ascending i.e. celery, asparagus, broccoli, parsley and spouted seeds/beans
• Stir-frying vegetables and dry-roasting grains gives them an ascending vector and adds warming energy to meals

Question 3

Food direction:
Descending foods

Answer 3

Descending foods:

• Cooling foods are descending, i.e. cucumber, watermelon, strawberry, raw food and veg juice
• They directed energy and fluids downwards, clear and descend heat, especially from the upper body
• Descending root vegetables such as carrots or parsnips
• Bitter foods are descending and clear heat, i.e. spinach, rocket, kale, radicchio, radishes, cabbage, lemon. Bitter leaves, with a splash of olive oil, relieve constipation by supporting the descending function of the digestive system

Question 4

Food direction:
Centring foods

Answer 4

Centring foods:

• Wet cooking methods (Steaming, boiling, Braising) nourish and warm the centre / digestion, i.e. soup, stew, porridge, steamed / boiled veg
• For weak digestion, dehydration and feeling cold. They keep us centred and grounded in ourselves
• Steam whole grains, sweet veg (sweet potatoes, squash – esp. orange colour) all nourish digestion
• Round shaped foods such as celeriac, sweet potato, squash, beetroot, Jerusalem artichoke, hazelnuts have affinity with the abdomen and are centring. So are warm water and herbal teas

Question 5

Food direction:
Foods that spread out to the exterior

Answer 5

Foods that spread out to the exterior:

• Help the lungs expel pathogens, I.e. hot spicy food, black pepper, ginger, chili
• Help lungs expel mucus, induce sweat, support digestion of mucus-forming foods, promote circulation to the mucus and limbs
• Spices can have a heating and dehydrating effect and should be used alongside foods that moisten the lungs
• Ginger, lemon and honey tea: Ginger helps lungs to expel mucus; Lemon (descending) clears heat from the lungs; Honey moistens and soothes the lungs

Question 6

Food direction:
Consolidating foods

Answer 6

Consolidating foods:

• Affinity with the kidney/adrenal function of preserving and supporting life (cortisol / adrenaline).
• Roosting vegetables or meat consolidates their volume and intensifies taste. It is the best cooking method for systems that need consolidation and rebuilding.
• Nuts and seeds are the most energetically dense part of plants that contain the blueprint and essential nutrients for new life. Bone broth is consolidating when recovering from chronic illness
• The sour taste of naturally fermented foods has a firming and moving action that helps consolidate blood

Question 7

Food direction:
Conditions; Ascending foods

Answer 7

Directions to emphasise in different conditions:

Ascending foods:
* Chronic diarrhoea
* Depression
* Lethargy
* Sadness
Ascending foods raise/ascend energy, lift up

Question 8

Food direction:
Conditions; Descending foods

Answer 8

Directions to emphasise in different conditions:

Descending foods:
* Headaches, Migraines
* Eye and ear infections
* Hypertension
* Anger, rage
Descending foods bring energy down from the top of the body – often resulting in a bowel motion, they detox, clear heat, remove waste

Question 9

Food direction:
Conditions;
Centring

Answer 9

Directions to emphasise in different conditions:

Centring foods:
* Weak digestion
* Feeling cold
* Exhaustion
* Feeling ungrounded or under-nourished within oneself
Centring foods support digestion

Question 10

Food direction:
Conditions;
Spreading out to the exterior

Answer 10

Directions to emphasise in different conditions:

Spreading out to the exterior:
* Colds and flu
* Excess damp and mucus
* Cold limbs and extremities
Foods that spread out to the exterior raise temperature, fight viral infections, help lungs clear mucus

Question 11

Food direction:
Conditions;
Consolidating Foods

Answer 11

Directions to emphasise in different conditions:

Consolidating Foods:
* Chronic fatigue
* Deep cold
* Chronic illness
* Old age
Consolidating foods are deeply nourishing, highly concentrated – they build up deep energetic reserves