Living requires breathing, but the air is now shrouded in haze.
Haze and fog are difficult to distinguish, truly called: seeing haze through fog, seeing fog through haze.
Breathing, exhaling, exhaling haze—it is unavoidable, but one can drink more tea to reduce the harm of haze.
Introducing several teas suitable for hazy days:
1. Tangerine Peel Tea
Fresh tangerine peel, an appropriate amount of brown sugar, black tea, brewed with boiling water as a tea substitute.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that fresh tangerine peel has anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, dispelling wind-cold, aiding sleep, calming the mind, and other effects. Adding brown sugar and black tea makes a simple and practical remedy for driving away haze and preventing colds.
2. Radish Tea
An appropriate amount of radish, a little edible vinegar, black tea, sliced and decocted into tea soup, consumed hot three times a day.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes: radish is cool, sweet, and pungent. It has the effects of clearing heat and promoting fluid production, cooling blood, and stopping bleeding. Adding edible vinegar increases its antibacterial function, providing certain auxiliary effects in preventing upper respiratory infections.
3. Scallion White Tea
Scallion white, black tea, chopped and decocted into tea soup, consumed hot three times a day.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that scallion white is pungent and warm; it can soothe the liver and unblock collaterals. It promotes the flow of yang energy throughout the body, induces sweating, and releases the exterior. Black tea also has the effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, refreshing and relieving fatigue, as well as being antibacterial. It can effectively prevent and alleviate symptoms like fever caused by colds.
4. Ginger Slice Tea
Ginger, black tea, decocted into tea soup, consumed hot in the morning and evening.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that ginger slices are pungent and slightly warm,归属肺脾胃经 (attributable to the lung, spleen, and stomach meridians); they can induce sweating and release the exterior, warm the middle and stop vomiting, warm the lungs and relieve cough. In hazy weather, it plays a positive role in preventing colds.
5. Vegetable Root Tea
Fresh Chinese cabbage root, black tea, sliced and decocted into tea soup, consumed hot twice a day.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that Chinese cabbage root is sweet and slightly cold,具有清热利水、解表散寒、养胃止渴的功效 (has the effects of clearing heat and promoting diuresis, releasing the exterior and dispersing cold, nourishing the stomach and quenching thirst). In ancient China, folk remedies often used boiled Chinese cabbage root water to treat colds, with good efficacy.
6. Ginger and Jujube Tea
Ginger, jujube (red dates), black tea, decocted into tea soup and consumed hot upon waking.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that red jujubes are sweet and warm,归属脾胃经 (attributable to the spleen and stomach meridians); they have the effects of tonifying the middle and boosting qi, nourishing blood and calming the mind, and strengthening the body. Decocting with ginger slices in tea can enhance constitution and improve the body's immunity.
7. Three Spices Tea
Garlic, scallion white, ginger, each in appropriate amounts, black tea, decocted into tea soup and consumed hot upon waking.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that garlic is pungent and warm, has the effects of releasing the exterior, promoting yang, detoxifying, etc. It can release both exterior and interior, promote yang and activate blood, disperse wind pathogens, etc. Adding scallion and ginger to the tea has good therapeutic effects on colds, wind-cold, headaches, etc.
8. Garlic Slice Tea
Two cloves of garlic, sliced, black tea, brewed with boiling water as a tea substitute.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that garlic is pungent and warm, has the effects of releasing the exterior, promoting yang, detoxifying, etc. It can release both exterior and interior, promote yang and activate blood, disperse wind pathogens, etc. Drinking it with black tea is a simple, practical, and effective way to prevent colds.
9. Sweet Ginger Tea
Fresh minced ginger, brown sugar (or white sugar), black tea decocted into tea soup, consumed hot upon waking.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that brown sugar is warm and sweet, enters the spleen,具有益气补血、健脾暖胃、缓中止痛、活血化淤的作用 (has the effects of supplementing qi and blood, strengthening the spleen and warming the stomach, alleviating pain, activating blood and resolving stasis). Adding minced ginger to tea is an effective practice for preventing colds.
10. Two Flowers Tea
Chrysanthemum, honeysuckle flower, green tea, brewed with boiling water as a tea substitute.
Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that chrysanthemum is sweet and bitter, slightly cold,具有疏散风热、平抑肝阳、清肝明目、清热解毒的功效 (has the effects of dispersing wind-heat, calming liver yang, clearing the liver and improving vision, clearing heat and detoxifying). Honeysuckle flower also has anti-inflammatory, detoxifying, clearing heat, and clearing the lungs effects. Drinking it with green tea can further soothe the throat and drive away dryness, improving the throat's ability to resist pathogen invasion.
In an era that emphasizes health preservation and focuses on health, haze has become a concern for the entire population, but there is no short-term solution. So, what tea is good to drink on hazy days? The article above introduces ten tea drinks for hazy days. Besides drinking more tea on hazy days, it is essential to wear masks when going out, drink plenty of water, and eat more fresh vegetables.