Adzuki bean and Mung bean and Rice

Adzuki bean

Sour and sweet (Wood and Earth), neutral, balance of Yin and Yang

Adzuki beans are a classic remedy for beriberi. They are also used as a remedy for bloody stools, diarrhea, balancing hormones during menopause, aiding the secretion of milk after childbirth, and for athlete’s foot. Protein, 8.7 g; Fat, 0.1 g; Fiber, 0.5 g; Carbohydrate, 26 g; Vitamin A, 6 IU; Vitamin B1, 0.13 mg;Vitamin B2, 0.07 mg; Niacin, 0.8 mg; Vitamin C, 0 mg; Calcium, 182 mg; Phosphorus, 22 mg; Iron, 2.36 mg

Mung bean

Sweet (Earth), cool, balance of Yin and Yang

Mung beans dissipate heat, detoxify, and nourish the heart and stomach. They are a remedy for high blood pressure, hemorrhoids, headaches, and intoxication from alcohol, lead, or mild poisons. The recipe for detoxifying is to boil one-half to one pound of mung beans in water and take as a soup, with seasoning, or grind the same amount into a powder and mix with warm water. Protein, 6.8 g; Fat, 0.5 g; Fiber, –; Carbohydrate, 10 g; Vitamin A, 28 IU; Vitamin B1, 0.13 mg; Vitamin B2, 0.07 mg; Niacin, 1.3 mg; Vitamin C, 1 mg; Calcium, 46 mg; Phosphorus, 140 mg; Iron, 1.62 mg

Rice

Sweet (Earth), neutral, weak Yang

Because rice is the staple dish in southern China, it would be quite surprising were it not recognized as having some therapeutic function within Chinese home remedies. Surprisingly, however, the therapeutic properties of rice turn out to be few. Polished rice is used as a base for various food remedies, usually as a sort of gruel or congee. On its own, rice can be eaten as a source of nourishing energy for the spleen and stomach, particularly when suffering from diarrhea and nausea. Two or three tablespoons of rice with a slice of fresh ginger, chewed slowly first thing in the morning on an empty stomach, can help allay morning sickness. Unfortunately, the relatively recent use of chemical weed killers in the rice-growing industry suggests that commercially grown rice may be harmful to one’s health. Rice is grown in rich, fertile soil in a few inches of water, ideal conditions for weeds and other parasites. Until a few years ago these weeds were removed by hand by cohorts of women workers who systematically damaged their bodies by wading, bent double, through the rice paddies, pulling at the weeds—necessary work that no one wanted to do. Chemical weed killers eliminated the need for any further human intervention. Yet the use of these weed killers translates as health risks to the consumer. In order to work, weed killers must be added to the rice crop insuch concentrations that the amount of poison present in every grain of unhusked rice is twenty times the danger level for human consumption.5 Most of the weed-killing poison settles in the husk. If you eat polished rice, you eliminate the poisons as well as the vitamins. Polished rice: Protein, 6.8 g; Fat, 0.5 g; Fiber, 0.2 g; Carbohydrate, 78.2 g; Vitamin A, 0 IU; Vitamin B1, 0.06 mg; Vitamin B2, 0.06 mg; Niacin, 1.9 mg; Vitamin C, 0 mg; Calcium, 10 mg; Phosphorus, 160 mg; Iron, 3.1 mg Unpolished rice: Protein, 7.5 g; Fat, 1.0 g; Fiber, 0.6 g; Carbohydrate, 76.7 g; Vitamin A, 2 IU; Vitamin B1, 0.21 mg; Vitamin B2, 0.16 mg; Niacin, 1.9 mg; Vitamin C, 0 mg; Calcium, 10 mg; Phosphorus, 190 mg; Iron, 3.2 mg

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