Five Phases Congee for chronically ill or cancer patientsWhen your loved one is struggling to get enough nutrition into their system and the digestion may be effected, the foods that you cook for them ought to be very easy to digest. They should be cooked and warm which will support the Qi of the Spleen and the digestion.
In Chinese and East Asian medicine there is a long understanding that the prepared food of choice is a nutritious rice porridge known as "congee" in Mandarin or "jook" in Cantonese. I have discussed these in past blog updates.Today I want to discuss a congee for very chronically ill people, and in this case cancer patients. But note that Five Phase Congee is good for any sick person and makes a very nutritious breakfast for anybody.
I call this Five Phase Congee and it is a congee that I use to impart nutrition, strengthen the Qi of the five organs and stop weight loss.
The Chinese character for "qi" depicts a man eating a bowl of rice in his house and there are vapors of life sustaining essence rising from the rice. White rice is easier to ingest and digest than brown rice. It will also help arrest diarrhea, a common side effect of chemotherapy.
The basic congee recipe is 1 cup of Japanese or Chinese white rice to 5 cups of liquid.This is easiest when cooked in a crockpot rather than a traditional pot on the stove. Its much simpler to cook, not requiring constant attention and stirring to prevent burning. The congee will require at least 4 hours of cooking for the rice to properly dissolve into a thick soupy gruel.
Basic Congee recipe:
2 cups of white rice 10 cups of homemade chicken stock 4 cloves of garlic, 2 ginger roots (size of your thumb) sliced
Put all ingredients in the crockpot and cook for 4 hours, stirring ocassionally.Start with high heat and turn down to low heat after 2 hours.
This will be your base and you can then use this for several days. Keep it refrigerated, then reheat portions as necessary.
Chicken Stock: Yellow GoldLet me discuss here the chicken stock as it is prepared by a dear friend of mine, Deborah Todd.
I call this Yellow Gold. It is the most powerfully delicious and nutritious chicken stock I've ever come across and it is like essence of chicken. This is powerful medicine.
In a large soup stock pot, put the skin and bones (the carcass) of a large organic chicken. Fill the pot with double filtered water (about 3 quarts). Add a whole head of garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced. Add a cup of thinly sliced ginger (use a mandolin). I should mention here that chicken is considered a powerful tonic for the Spleen and digestion. When the digestion is very weakened, making a stock is the best way to gain the benefits for your patient. The two aromatics will warm the digestion and the internal organs and strengthen the Spleen as well. Ginger will also help settle an upset stomach if the patient is having nausea. You can also add other cooking herbs/vegetables if you like: celery, carrot, rosemary, thyme, etc.
Add 3 quarts of water and 2 TBSP of sea salt.
Sea salt has more minerals in it and an enhanced flavor that is easier to taste and more palatable to chemotherapy patients who often lose sense of taste. You can always add more salt later, but start off conservatively.
I have altered this recipe slightly by adding 5 dried shiitake mushrooms. Mushrooms enhance the immune system and I use enoki and shiitake a lot in my decoctions.Cook this pot with the lid ajar for at least 6 hours over the course of 3 days. Add water whenever necessary. All of the connective tissue should dissolve and the bones should separate and sink to the bottom.
Chill this pot of soup whenever you are not cooking it and let the fat congeal on the top. Skim off and save this fat in a separate container and store it in the refrigerator.
After three days of cooking and skimming the fat there are two last steps to clean your broth.
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Wednesday, 1 August 2012
Cancer Patients-Chicken Stock-Congee Recipe-Rice Porridge-White Rice
Monday, 30 July 2012
Chemotherapy Patients-Treatment Of Cancer-Moxibustion Therapy-Powerful Tools-Cancer Patient
In my practice I have treated a number of people who are undergoing oncological treatment. Chemotherapy and radiation are powerful tools in the treatment of cancer. In the clinic I help patients deal with a number of the issues related to side effects from these treatments. Using dietary therapy, qigong exercises and treatments, acupuncture, moxibustion therapy and sometimes herbal therapy as well (when the western doctors will agree to it), there is a lot that the Chinese medical practitioner can do to help ease the side effects for the patient.I have also come to understand that the emotional strain of undergoing oncological treatment can be quite high and so I also help support the nervous system and a patient's will to continue forward.
I recently found a wonderful short video about the use of acupuncture for chemotherapy patients with neuropathy in the hands and feet. I'm posting it here so that my readers can get a further sense of what Chinese and East Asian medicine can offer the cancer patient.
I hope you find it useful. read more..
Monday, 19 March 2012
Prostate Cancer Awareness Month-Personal Philosophies-Oriental Medicine-Begrudgingly
With more than 2 million survivors of prostate cancer in the U.S., it’s important to recognize that September is Prostate Cancer Awareness month. It’s even more important when you realize that 1 out of every 6 American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. Thankfully, prostate cancer can be successfully treated for [...] read more..
Could Acupuncture be the Key to Aging Gracefully?
Growing older – we all do it. Some of us more begrudgingly than others. As time marches on, joints begin to ache, energy can fade and the face looking back at us in the mirror every morning can look…well…older. As we age, everyone wants to stay healthy and with September being Healthy Aging Month, I [...] read more..
Explaining Qi to MDs
It is but natural for many people to consider their personal philosophies and worldviews as the standard against which others must measure their versions. I recall an incident from my first year in college. For me, it was my first time to have classmates who did not know any Chinese, and for them, it was [...] read more..
American Cancer Society-Cancer In Women-Ovarian Cancer-Natural Cures-Thanksgiving
Many people don’t know that ovarian cancer is the ninth most common cancer in women and that about 22,000 new cases of ovarian cancer that will be diagnosed this year. While doctors are working to develop promising new treatments for ovarian cancer, the American Cancer Society estimates that there will be more than 15,000 deaths [...] read more..
Thanksgiving wishes a day early
I'm sending this wish today because tomorrow may be a very busy day for everyone! Many of us have so much for which to be grateful. Here's wishing that you have the experience on Thanksgiving that offers you the most growth, happiness, Spiritual wellness, and calm that you deserve. Remember, the important things in life aren't things. read more..
Natural cures: this one for diarrhea. More to come!
One of my patients and I were talking about natural cures (or treatments) for various conditions and she shared this natural cure for diarrhea that she's used since she was a child in Europe. http://m.voices.yahoo.com/natural-cures-treat-diarrhea-pomegranate-555760.html read more..