Aunt Zeng has suffered from stomach problems for many years; she often experiences stomach pain and bloating after careless eating or overexertion. With winter now the season for nourishing tonics, Aunt Zeng has embarked on a dietary regimen to strengthen her stomach, preparing a different nourishing meal each day: today it’s lion’s mane mushroom stewed with lean pork, tomorrow it’s a soup simmered with radix adenophorae and ophiopogon, and the day after that it’s chicken braised with Chinese yam and goji berries…

After a period of dietary supplementation, Aunt Zeng’s gastric condition not only failed to improve but actually worsened, with more frequent bloating and pain and a declining appetite. Puzzled, she couldn’t help wondering: had her “stomach-nourishing” regimen gone awry?

In fact, winter is indeed an ideal time for tonifying the body; however, everyone’s condition is unique—some may have a mix of deficiency and excess, while others may experience alternating cold and heat. Therefore, tonification should be tailored to one’s individual constitution. In addition, when it comes to stomach ailments, “three parts treatment, seven parts nourishment” is key, meaning that a well-balanced daily diet is equally essential. Below are five key principles for properly nurturing the stomach during winter.

To nurture stomach health, the first step is to regulate your daily routine. Irregular meal times can exacerbate symptoms such as stomach pain, bloating, and acid reflux; therefore, individuals with gastric disorders should pay particular attention to maintaining a consistent eating schedule. For the sake of stomach health, habits like staying up late, waking up late, and frequently eating late-night snacks should be abandoned. If, even with regular, portion-controlled meals, you still feel hungry often, you may have a light snack between meals—but avoid overeating, as this could interfere with your main meals.

The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine long ago proposed the dietary principle: “Five grains nourish, five animals benefit, five fruits assist, and five vegetables fill.” Rice, flour, and other grain products are easier to digest and absorb than meat, vegetables, and fruits; therefore, Chinese people should make rice, flour, and grains their staple foods, with meat, vegetables, and fruits serving as supplements. If this proper order is reversed, it can damage the spleen and stomach: large portions of rich meat and fish that are difficult to digest will instead accumulate as waste within the body, leading to various illnesses. Patients with gastric disorders should primarily consume refined rice and flour, as these are more easily digested than whole grains. Of course, this does not mean that such patients may eat nothing but porridge and plain rice; rather, they should, on this basis, pair their meals with gently cooked, light meat and vegetable dishes.

Cold, raw, and spicy foods can irritate the gastric mucosa, whereas soft, easily digestible foods place less strain on the stomach. Patients with gastric disorders should abstain from smoking, alcohol, coffee, strong tea, and carbonated beverages.

“The principle of ‘eating according to the season’ originates in the Analects, meaning that one should consume foods that are in season and appropriate for the current time of year—eating what is available at the right time. This aligns with the TCM concept of harmony between heaven and humanity. Below are two ingredients recommended for nourishing the stomach during the winter months.”

Raw white radish is cooling in nature and helps clear heat, soothe the throat, moisten the lungs, and dissolve phlegm. Cooked white radish, on the other hand, is warming and aids spleen function while promoting digestion. Therefore, individuals with gastric disorders who experience symptoms such as bloating, poor appetite, or constipation may benefit from moderate consumption of white radish, whether in soups or stir-fries.

Spinach has the effects of relieving chest and diaphragm discomfort, promoting digestion, and facilitating bowel movements, making it suitable for patients with gastric distension and constipation. It should be noted that spinach has a cooling nature, so a small amount of ginger may be added when cooking it.

Patients with gastric disorders commonly present with patterns such as spleen qi deficiency, spleen-stomach cold deficiency, and stomach yin deficiency; dietary therapy should be tailored to each individual’s constitution.
 

Individuals with spleen qi deficiency commonly experience discomfort in the epigastric region, fatigue, and general weakness; herbal medicinal diets incorporating spleen-tonifying and qi-boosting herbs such as ginseng, codonopsis, astragalus, Chinese yam, and Euryale seeds are recommended.

Individuals with deficiency of stomach yin commonly present with dull, aching pain in the epigastric region, a burning sensation, dry mouth, and a red tongue with scant coating; such cases are well-suited to dietary therapy using herbs that tonify qi and nourish yin, such as Adenophora, Ophiopogon, Dendrobium, Polygonatum, and Pseudostellaria.

In cases where phlegm-dampness accumulation is also present, patients commonly experience distension and discomfort, along with a thick, greasy tongue coating; in such instances, herbal medicinal dishes incorporating spleen-tonifying and dampness-transforming herbs such as tangerine peel, cardamom, coix seed, and poria can be selected.

If one feels chilly and sensitive to cold, with a sensation of cold in the epigastric region, it is necessary to warm the middle jiao and dispel cold; warming yang foods and ingredients such as ginger, Sichuan pepper, lamb, and beef are appropriate.

Many patients with gastric disorders visit the gastroenterology clinic to ask what foods are best to eat and what soups are most beneficial; in fact, the most important thing is to return to a light, bland diet. As long as one cultivates good eating habits, aligns with the natural rhythms of the seasons, and takes individual constitution into account, even everyday foods can nourish the spleen and stomach.