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Chinese Soups and Teas that Benefit Your Body During Pregnancy

ExpertsPost Category - ExpertsExpertsPost Category - PregnancyPregnancyHealth & WellnessPost Category - Health & WellnessHealth & Wellness - Post Category - NutritionNutrition

Let’s face it: it’s not always easy being a woman! Our unique physiological characteristics can be characterised into four major stages in our lives: menstruation, pregnancy, birth and lactation. If you’re in the pregnancy stage, you have a beautiful new baby to look forward to, but the physical and hormonal changes you’re dealing with can be extremely challenging nonetheless.

With a holistic approach to health, traditional Chinese medicine and recipes can be extremely beneficial to lowering risks of disease and uncomfortable symptoms during pregnancy. While short-term cures are useful, the key is aiming for a long-term, healthy lifestyle. Why not take some time to pay attention to your body’s signals, while noticing the effects of certain foods and medicine on your body? Our bodies are all unique, and the same disease may have different causes with different people. Even the “best” postpartum diet plans may not be suitable for everyone, so pay close attention to how your body reacts to different types of medicines and diet plans.

Today, we are focusing on traditional wholesome Chinese soups and teas – a fantastic natural way for your body to get the nutrients it needs both pre- and post-pregnancy. Read on for recommended Chinese recipes as well as advice on how to pay attention to your body’s physiological needs through the pregnancy process.

Pre-Pregnancy

Begin to take note of the condition of your menstrual cycle from menstrual cycle length and duration, to color, texture (thick or watery), and volume (heavy or light). In addition, pay attention to any accompanying symptoms such as menstrual cramps, blood clots, swelling, back pain, breast swelling, etc.

Here are two increasingly common factors that are affecting women’s chances of becoming pregnant today:

  1. A hectic urban life filled with stress and emotional burdens impairs the lung’s conveyance and dispersion functions, thereby affecting the circulation of qi and blood and causing irregular menstruation. This makes it more difficult to conceive.
  2. “Career women” who choose to delay marriage and children to a later age may have a decreased amount of kidney qi, also making it more difficult to conceive.

While it is impossible to turn back time, we can control the amount of stress we are experiencing. It is important not to ignore the condition of our monthly “visitor” as our menstrual cycles are closely related to whether or not we are able to conceive.

Being able to express and vent our emotions in a healthy way is also helpful in improving the quality of our menstrual cycle and chances of conception. I recommend drinking rose tea (helps the liver to rectify qi and regulate menstruation) up to one week before your expected period. This tea is especially soothing for those under a large amount of stress.

Early Pregnancy (1 to 4 months)

Your body goes through a lot of changes during early pregnancy to adapt to the growing fetus. During the first three months, your baby’s size will not increase too much, so there isn’t a need to immediately begin eating more. In contrast, you may experience perfectly normal pregnancy symptoms such as morning sickness, dizziness, motion sickness and general nausea, so it is recommended that you eat small, frequent meals instead. If you are experiencing severe symptoms, you may consider seeking advice from a doctor or a registered Chinese medicine practitioner.

Herba taxilli (Sang Ji Sheng) and egg sweet soup

Herba Taxilli (Sang Ji Sheng) and Egg Sweet Soup

Benefit: A simple sweet soup remedy to nourish the blood and protect the fetus. 

Ingredients:

  • 30g herba taxilli (tonifies liver and kidney, nourishes and protects fetus)
  • 15g eucommia bark (Du Zhong, tonifies liver and kidney, nourishes and protects fetus)
  • 1 egg
  • crystal sugar

Preparation method: Rinse all ingredients thoroughly. Cook egg in water and remove shell. Pour 1000ml of cold water into the pot, add ingredients, and cook over high heat until boiling. Switch to low heat and cook for one hour, adding crystal sugar to taste. Drink this tea once a week.

Mid-Pregnancy (5 to 8 months)

From 5 months onwards, the fetus becomes more stable and its growth accelerates. As your baby grows, your intestines become increasingly crowded, leading to bloating, affected bowel movements, and even constipation. If you are experiencing hard and dry stool, or other heat-related symptoms such as bloodshot eyes, dry mouth, canker sores or pimples, you should try to avoid eating foods that are hot in nature, including peanuts, curry and spicy food. Also, as more Qi and Blood is concentrated on nourishing the fetus, it is important to pay attention to the Chinese Spleen and Liver to enhance blood and qi production in order to better nourish the tendons (less likely to encounter leg cramps).

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Herba Taxilli (Sang Ji Sheng) Red Dates Snakehead Fish Soup 

Benefit: A simple soup that helps nourish Qi and Blood and reduces the occurrence of leg cramps:

Ingredients:

  • 1 snakehead fish (nourishes the body)
  • 30g herba taxilli (tonifies liver and kidney, nourishes and protects fetus)
  • 10 Chinese red dates, seeds removed (reinforces qi to promote production of bodily fluids)
  • 1 slice ginger
  • pinch of salt

Preparation method: Rinse all ingredients thoroughly. Pan-fry cleaned fish with oil, ginger and spring onion on both sides until slightly golden, then pour 2000ml of water into the pot. Add all ingredients and cook over high heat until boiling. Switch to low heat and cook for an additional 1.5 hours. Add salt to taste.

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Black Sesame and Fig Congee

Benefit: A simple sweet congee that helps to soothe the intestines and relieve constipation. 

Ingredients: 30g pine nuts, 1 tablespoon black sesame powder, 6 figs, 1/3 cup white rice

Preparation method: Rinse all ingredients and finely slice figs. Pour 1000ml of water into a pot and add pine nuts, figs, and rice. Cook over high heat until the water boils. Then switch to low heat and cook for 30 minutes, or until the congee reaches a desirable consistency. Finally, add black sesame powder.

Late Pregnancy (1 month before due date)

Ancient Chinese wisdom states that “cold” foods are preferred for women in late pregnancy, but it is important to re-emphasize that traditional Chinese medicine believes in syndrome differentiation and treating each illness with the appropriate remedies and medication. Our bodies are unique, and also change during different periods of our life. Women with a weaker constitution should avoid eating too much “cold” food during the entire pregnancy. This includes “cold” foods that are often “recommended” for women in late pregnancy, such as watermelon, grass jelly and ice cream. Enjoying these foods once a week is acceptable, depending on your body constitution. To prepare for labour, it is also helpful to drink one cup of rice tea or mild-natured soup every day this month, and to engage in mild cardio exercise such as walking or swimming.

Red and white rice and coix seed water

Red and White Rice and Coix Seed Water

Ingredients:

  • 3 tablespoons red rice
  • 1 tablespoon white rice
  • 1 tablespoon coix seed

Preparation method: Rinse all ingredients thoroughly. Pour 1000ml of water into a pot, add ingredients, and cook over high heat until boiling. Switch to low heat and cook for an additional 20-30 minutes. The tea is ready once the water turns a milky white colour. Consume only the water and do not keep overnight. This tea is suitable for the whole family.

Rice tea is easy for the Chinese spleen to break down and absorb, thus makes a great remedy for your body to recuperate from any illness, especially diarrhea or simply from a long day.

Featured image, image #3 and #4 sourced via Shutterstock

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