What I Learned about Healthy Digestion from the Chinese

Knowing that China boasted one of the most health conscious populations in the world (in addition, of course, to being the birthplace of TCM, one of the world’s oldest, most-respected styles of medicine), it shouldn’t have surprised me that I’d pick up new tools for my herbal toolbox during Gabe’s and my three weeks in southern China. I guess since we were there on a family trip with the purpose of visiting friends, I just wasn’t expecting to get much exposure to the healthcare aspect of the culture. It didn’t take long for me to learn, however, that health and hospitality (which I will say, is exceptionally generous in China) go hand in hand in this community; so I had the delight of gleaning fascinating ideas from hosts and strangers alike while sitting down in friends’ homes sipping tea (literally multiple times a day – it was AMAZING!) or perusing the city market place.

Digestive health in specific is very important to the Chinese, as their dietary and lifestyle choices attest; they are truly ahead of the curve on nurturing a digestive system capable of properly assimilating nutrients and housing a diverse ecology. Those of us in the U.S. can learn much from these people! I’m pleased to share some of those things with you here – in the hope that you’re inspired to incorporate some of them into your daily routine and reap the benefits!

• Balance at Breakfast – the average person in China starts each day with a bowl of either rice or rice noodles served in a bowl of light broth, including eggs or a small amount of meat (usually pork) if budget allows. Warm soy milk (boasting 7g of plant-based protein per cup) and green tea is also common on the breakfast table. Compare this light but still protein-filled meal to the average American breakfast of processed, refined carbs (breads, cereals, pastries), orange juice and coffee (maybe a little egg or processed sausage, for those who have the time to prepare it). Empty carbs + caffeine without enough protein to balance out the glycemic load and help the body make use of the energy consumed = a major blood sugar spike (and of course, sugar crash a few hours later) PLUS major inflammation in the gut. In our chronically busy society, meal prep often falls between the cracks, but imagine how much better we’d feel if we prepared a light soup or a gigantic egg casserole at the beginning of the week and ate that in the mornings the rest of the week? Those trying to support digestive health, regulate hormones or balance blood sugar would particularly find value in adopting this habit of a protein rich, low sugar breakfast.

• Nourishing Broths – traditionally, the Chinese drink broth daily with breakfast, and cook most of their meats and veggies for other meals in it as well. There are few things as easy to digest and healing to the gut as meat broths – which are chock full of exceptionally bioavailable forms of vitamins and minerals in addition to other anti-inflammatory and nutritious compounds like gelatin, amino acids, fatty acids, collagen, glycine, glutamine and glucosamine. And guess what? It’s super easy to make at home! Once you’ve done it one time, you’ll never go back to buying boxed broths from the store. It’s so easy, inexpensive, delicious – and can even be done in an hour with a pressure cooker or instant pot.

• Cooked greens – this one might sound weird, but hang with me. It’s becoming more commonly known that as good as spinach, lettuce, arugula, kale and other greens are for your health, for those with regular digestive distress, their high fiber content (which is in the form of cellulose) makes them very hard to break down and can cause a significant amount of discomfort, bloating and gas buildup. The Chinese wilt all of their greens (even lettuce) in a little oil, throw in some minced garlic and salt – and oh my goodness, it’s to die for! Qing Cai (wilted bok choy) is still one of my favorites of all the dishes I tried there (it may have even found its way into the Uhl family menu rotation). Maybe wilted greens by themselves aren’t your thing. What about throwing your spinach in an egg casserole or lasagna instead of eating it as a salad? Or putting a bunch of kale in a soup instead of drinking it raw in a smoothie? Be creative, and see if it makes a difference for you. It definitely did for me!

• Tea – The Chinese drink oolong or green tea with each meal and often between meals, as an alternative to afternoon snacking and a way to give their systems a rest from having to breakdown food. This habit (in addition to eating an incredibly low amount of sugar and being very physically active) is my best guess as to what’s behind the trim figures so characteristic of the Chinese! While the caffeine in the tea curbs an overzealous appetite, the warm liquid moving through the digestive system helps stimulate digestive juices, increasing enzyme activity and therefore nutrient uptake; and by promoting peristalsis, it also keeps anything that could get stagnant moving as it should. It tastes good, and it’s great for your digestion – a win-win!

• Low sugar – because white sugar (along with other short-chain sugars) are never fully digested in the gut and cause significant inflammation, they are to blame for the IBS symptoms so many people experience (bloating, gas, pain, constipation and diarrhea) – which, with time, can snowball into other more serious disorders. Get this, though: the Chinese don’t even like sugar. If asked, they will say their least favorite of the five basic tastes (savory/umami, sweetness, sourness, bitterness and saltiness) is actually sweetness. The World Health Organization estimates that the average Chinese person consumes less than 16 grams of sugar per day, while the average American eats a whopping 126.4 grams. Yikes! Makes sense the Chinese don’t deal with near as many digestive problems.

Beyond dietary habits, the Chinese were very aware of the benefits of balanced movement and exercise. It was common to see dozens of adults involved in yoga or group exercise like Tai Chi or gentle dance, at all hours of the day, in parks and parking lots. And although there is a place for high-intensity workouts, we are starting to learn how much better gentle activity is on our gut health than the jarring, stressful exercise we are accustomed to in the U.S. Does working out make you bloat? Maybe try limiting intense workouts or lengthy runs to once a week and incorporate yoga-style exercises, pilates or walking into your routine on the other days… trying something new can’t hurt, and maybe you’ll even find you feel better all-around.

Ok - I want to hear your thoughts! Which of these concepts struck you as the most fascinating? Will you be giving thought to adding any of them into your routine?