Okra 秋葵, 羊角豆

Vegetables or fruits cannot be any bad for the health and body. However, in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), there is certainly a vegetable OR fruit that can make an ill condition worse, even when it is just mild cough. If you have a common cold/cough, the advice you most likely get from a TCM practitioner is:

AVOID COLD DRINKS/FOOD
AVOID CHICKEN if the cold/cough comes with phlegm
AVOID FISH, EGGS
AVOID SPICE/CHILI
AVOID Fruits such as ORANGE, PINEAPPLE, KIWI


Yes. Avoid this and avoid that. Sometimes, I wonder, just what can we eat when down with cold/flu, cough etc.?

Anything light and nourishing should be fine, and I usually fall back on soups.

Do you avoid any kind of food when you get sick - e.g common cold or dry/phlegmy cough ?

I was planning to cook okra (秋葵 - Qiu Kui, 羊角豆 - Yang Jiao Dou) one day and found that okra (also called lady's finger) has been used in ancient medicine to treat persistent dry cough and throat irritation. Interesting...

And in-season okra is so fresh! Happy...

Tag: okra, lady's fingers, traditional Chinese medicine

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