Many people are very concerned about “dietary taboos”. In our daily diet, there is also the concept of “mutual generation and mutual restraint” among foods. This means that when two or more foods are paired correctly, they can “generate” each other, providing complementary nutrition and enhancing each other’s effects. However, improper combinations can easily lead to illness or poisoning. Here are the taboos of food combinations.
Compatibility Taboos of Chinese Medicine and Food:
Pork: Avoid Wu Mei (Mume), Jie Geng (Platycodon), Huang Lian (Coptis); combining with Cang Zhu (Atractylodes) can cause wind; combining with buckwheat can lead to hair loss and wind diseases; combining with pigeon meat, crucian carp, and soybeans can cause qi stagnation.
Pork Blood: Avoid Di Huang (Rehmannia), He Shou Wu (Fo-Ti); combining with soybeans can cause qi stagnation.
Pork Heart: Avoid Wu Zhu Yu (Evodia).
Pork Liver: Avoid buckwheat and fermented bean paste, which can lead to chronic diseases; combining with carp intestines can harm the spirit; combining with fish can cause abscesses.
Lamb: Avoid Ban Xia (Pinellia), Chang Pu (Acorus); avoid copper, cinnabar, and vinegar.
Dog Meat: Avoid Shang Lu (Salsola); avoid almonds.
Crucian Carp: Avoid Hou Po (Magnolia Bark); avoid Mai Men Dong (Ophiopogon), mustard greens, and pork liver.
Carp: Avoid Zhu Sha (Cinnabar), dog meat.
Turtle Meat: Avoid alcohol, fruits, and amaranth.
Eel: Avoid dog meat and dog blood.
Sparrow Meat: Avoid Bai Zhu (Atractylodes), plums, and pork liver.
Duck Eggs: Avoid plums and mulberries.
Tortoise Meat: Avoid pork, rabbit meat, duck meat, amaranth, and eggs.
Beef Compatibility Taboos:
Beef should not be eaten with olives. Beef is rich in protein, and when combined with the tannins in olives, it forms indigestible substances, causing gastrointestinal discomfort.
Beef should not be eaten with chestnuts. The vitamins in chestnuts can react with trace elements in beef, reducing the nutritional value of chestnuts and hindering digestion.
Beef should not be eaten with alkaline substances. Adding alkali during the cooking process can cause the amino acids in beef to react with the alkali, leading to protein denaturation and loss of nutritional value.
Beef should not be eaten with leeks. Beef is sweet and warm, while leeks are spicy and warm; consuming them together can easily cause fever and lead to symptoms like gingivitis and mouth ulcers.
Beef should not be eaten with snails. Beef is warm, while snails are cold; consuming them together can be hard to digest and may cause bloating and abdominal pain.
Beef should not be eaten with white wine. Both can invigorate qi and promote fire; consuming them together can exacerbate inflammation and lead to gingivitis.
Home Medication and Food Compatibility Taboos:
Calcium tablets and spinach conflict: Spinach contains a large amount of oxalic acid, which hinders calcium absorption and can easily form calcium oxalate stones.
Aspirin and alcohol conflict: Taking aspirin after drinking can worsen fever and body aches and may lead to liver damage.
Antibiotics and milk/juice conflict: Milk can reduce the effectiveness of antibiotics, while juice (especially fresh juice) can not only reduce efficacy but may also increase side effects.
Antihistamines and cheese/meat products conflict: During antihistamine treatment, avoid foods rich in histamine like cheese and meat products, as they can trigger dizziness, headaches, and palpitations.
Diuretics and bananas/oranges conflict: While on diuretics, potassium can accumulate in the blood; consuming potassium-rich foods like bananas and oranges can lead to complications related to the heart and blood pressure.
Vitamin C and shrimp conflict: Do not eat shrimp within 2 hours before or after taking vitamin C, as the copper in shrimp can oxidize vitamin C, rendering it ineffective.
Antihypertensives and grapefruit juice conflict: Drinking grapefruit juice while on antihypertensives can lead to excessively high drug concentrations in the blood, increasing side effects.
For the health of you and your family, it is recommended to save this information!