In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), foods are seen as medicine and there are multi-dimensional attributes that describe the energy of different foods and how they interact with the energy of the human body to bring about nourishment and balance. Among such attributes of “Natures and Flavors”, “Tropisms”, “Ascending-Descending-Floating-Sinking”, “Toxic and Non-toxic”, “Natures and Flavors” belong to the core theory of them all.

“Natures” include “Warm, Hot, Cold and Cool” called “four Natures”.

“Flavors” include “Pungent, Sour, Sweet, Bitter and Salty” called “five Flavors”.

The concepts of “Flavors” originated from the perception of taste of foods or herbs on our palate which then gradually evolved into a high-level summary of the efficacy of the therapeutic workings of the foods or herbs through the pharmacological response to the body. Consuming or avoiding foods of different flavor categories is one of the ways we can balance or imbalance our body energies.

Many foods and herbs embody multiple flavors and therefore multiple medicinal actions on the body.

Therefore knowing the Natures and Flavors of foods can help us make wise choices during our consumption of meals to balance the dynamic energies of our body so as to keep the body in health and harmony as much as possible at any given moment.

In the subsequent posts, I will deep dive into each of the Flavor to give an insight into them and the kind of foods that hold that Flavor.

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Further Reading:

Everything you need to know about Acupuncture

TCM Wellness Women’s Health

TCM Wellness Nervous System Disorders Management

TCM Wellness Digestive Health

Acupuncture Slimming

TCM Pain Management

Everything you need to know about Dampness

Weight Gain from Digestion Induced Dampness

What is Phlegm