Winter Melon and Odema
Odema (fluid retention, also spelt oedema) is a very popular case in our clinic, the odema can be stuck in different parts of the body such as the ankle, legs, knees, wrist and hand, eyelid and face. It can also be throughout the entire body. Odema can stay all the time, and others can come and go. In early stage of odema, many people do not pay much attention to it, and often do not treat it. However, it is the internal organs telling the body that something is not right, thus it is important for it to be checked. Long term or serious odema can lead to kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and other disorders in associated organs.
Chinese medicine considers odema whether it be a lot of fluid retention or a small amount, it is a result of internal organ disorder. Most odema’s are associated with the lung, kidney, and spleen disorders which will develop the following symptoms; lack of energy, short of breathe, bloating after eating, sluggish bowl movement, lower back pain, and heavy legs and arms. Usually experienced TCM practitioners can diagnose which organ is causing fluid retention due to the location of the odema. TCM practitioners diagnose this problem by tongue and pulse diagnosis as well as the physical symptoms.
Winter-melon is a vegetable which helps to clear the fluid retention. If it is an early stage of odema, such as puffiness in certain areas on the body, eating winter-melon will help to relieve and clear the odema. Even during treatment, eating winter-melon will help to remove the fluid retention much more.
Why does winter melon have these effects?
A Chinese ancient book called <Ben cao jing ji zhu> records ‘winter-melon tastes bland, having cooling characteristics. Works on the lung, urinary bladder and large intestine, and has the function of clearing and removing the heat and increasing urination’. Another book called <’Chinese medical nutrition book’> also mentions that winter-melon ‘contains less sugar and has effects by clearing fluid and cholesterol, and is extremely beneficial for diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and some kidney dysfunctions’. In chinese hospitals TCM practitioners often use winter-melons in their medications which help to clear excess fluid in the body. But we suggest, if you cannot clear your fluid retention by only eating winter-melon, it means your case may be more serious. So it is best to see a doctor or a TCM practitioner to get treatment and further suggestions.
How to eat Winter melon?
Winter-melon skin and seeds should be removed before cooking. You can eat it in soups or by frying it alone. During the cooking add a little bit of fresh ginger which can help to improve the effect. Usually eating one cup, once or three times a week will help to improve fluid retention.
Precautions
As winter-melon has cooling and clearing characteristics, if your body is deficient in yang or spleen yang it is best to eat the winter-melon with ginger (as ginger has hot characteristics which will reduce the cooling characteristics of the melon).
Winter-melon is very easy to grow, just like green beans and cucumber. So if you like gardening, try to grow some winter-melon in your garden.
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