My New Article on MindBodyGreen about Food Energetics

I'm so excited to write about the posting of an article that I wrote for a site called MindBodyGreen. If you haven't heard of this site then you really need to check it out. The articles posted on this fabulous site are interesting & informative so last week I decided to submit one for the first time. I had been thinking about it for a while, but there were so many ideas floating around in my head, I had trouble narrowing it down.

When I wrote my last article about yin & yang in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) & how essential this concept is to food energetics, I realized I needed to discuss more fully what role food energetics play in TCM & how whole foods are can be used as medicine to help heal your body or maintain vitality.The article is entitled "Food Energetics: Traditional Chinese Medicines Best Kept Secret" & really discusses energetics in general & how it pertains to our bodies.

Let me know what you think & anything you'd like to know more about food energetics or TCM as I try to figure out what next to write about! If you enjoyed the article or found it interesting, please pass it along via stumble, twitter, facebook, & email. Thanks!

The Importance of Yin & Yang in Traditional Chinese Medicine

The article I originally intended to write when I sat down at my computer was going to be entitled "The important role of the seasons in Traditional Chinese Medicine". But I soon realized that I had yet to fully address the cornerstone of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) & before one could discuss the important role of the seasons in food energetics, one must first have an adequate understanding of yin & yang. So it looks like the 'seasons' will have to wait to be my next article.

Most concepts of TCM are new to Westerners, but many have at least heard the words 'yin & yang' and have seen the tai chi symbol that represents this foundational concept of Chinese medicine.The tai chi symbol (pronounced like the words "tie chee") represents the ancient Chinese understanding of how the universe operates. The outer circle represents 'everything', while the dark & white shapes within the circle represent the interaction of two energies, called 'yin' (dark) & 'yang' (white). These two energies cannot exist without the other & cause everything to happen in the universe.

The tai chi symbol represents yin & yang, but more importantly our universe. The white shape must be on top & the black shape must be on bottom for the symbol to be correct; a symbol with the colors inverted is an incorrect representation. 

The concept of yin & yang is still used today & in many forms. Modern day physics uses this concept in much of the same way the Chinese did thousands of years ago when the idea was first invented. Physicists describe energy that is stored or inactive as potential energy, while this passive energy would be considered yin in TCM; energy that is being released is described by scientists as kinetic energy or would be considered yang in TCM. As you can see, there are many similarities in the way Easterners & Westerners describe the interactions in our world.