Abstract
Chinese dietary therapy has been documented to date back at least 4000 years (Zhang, 2012). The aim of traditional Chinese dietary therapy was to maintain health by achieving the balance of Yin, cold or cool, and Yang, hot or warm, components in human bodies through having a Yin-Yang-balanced diet. Yin foods were to expel heat syndromes, such as constipation, caused by excessive Yang (heat), while Yang foods were to treat cold syndromes, such as fatigue, caused by excessive Yin (coldness). However, evidence of this food therapy phenomenon was not clear yet. The purpose of this study was to explore the features of Yin, Yang and neutral food for specific nutrient commonalities and to determine their effect on improving specific diseases or symptoms. The ESHA Food Processor software program was used to analyze nutrient compositions of foods in the Yin, Yang and neutral food list from traditional Chinese medicine. Parametric and non-parametric tests were used to determine the different amounts in each variable between Yin, Yang and neutral groups. Based on the statistical analytic results, calories, dietary fiber, fat, retinol, and vitamin C were found to possibly determine the effect of Yin-Yang properties of foods on human health. The influence of these nutrients on the human body was partially consistent with the function of Yin, Yang and neutral foods recorded in traditional Chinese medicine.
Date of publication
Fall 12-16-2019
Document Type
Thesis
Language
english
Persistent identifier
http://hdl.handle.net/10950/2314
Committee members
JIMI FRANCIS, WILLIAM SORENSON, CHERYL COOPER
Degree
Master of Science, Health Sciences
Recommended Citation
Xu, Jingle, "THE “ACTIVE INGREDIENTS” OF YIN, YANG AND NEUTRAL FOOD AND THE EFFECT OF THESE NUTRIENTS ON IMPROVING AND MAINTAINING HEALTH" (2019). Health and Kinesiology Theses. Paper 17.
http://hdl.handle.net/10950/2314