Feng Shui Institute

Yin & Yang Food

Yin and Yang is at the very heart of Feng Shui and Chinese philosophy. It is the essence of nature, where everything is in a perpetual state of change, moving from one extreme to the other to create equilibrium or universal balance.

The principles of Yin and Yang can also be applied to diet, and the term yin or yang relates to whether a food is a "cooling" or a "warming" food. However, these terms often have nothing to do with how it tastes or the way in which it is cooked, instead relating to the food's deeper essence. You might assume that all drinks are cooling; however beer is a cooling drink, but brandy is a warming drink.

Yang foods are warmer, drier and increase the internal heat of the body. Yin foods tend to cool, add moisture, and decrease the body's overall temperature. Yang foods also are also likely to contain more fat and provide the body with higher energy levels. Conversely, yin foods tend to have less fat but a higher water content.

Generally, a healthy, well-balanced meal should ideally consist of three parts yang and two parts yin foods. Using more yin foods than yang can also be helpful in calming children who tend to be hyperactive, but common sense must prevail and you should always seek medical advice before making major changes to any diet.

Foods fall into three categories;

• Yin foods
• Yang foods
• Neutral foods

Here is a very basic food list.

Yin and Yang information is also encoded into the ancient symbols known as Trigrams and form the basic Feng Shui Bagua, used in elementary Feng Shui.

When yang reaches its peak, yin is born and vice versa, illustrating how when something peaks, decline sets in. Everything in our universe works this way because atoms, the basic building blocks of life, behave this way. This ever-changing cycle leads to evolution.

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