Tips for Your Vitality In Fall and Winter

According to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), energetic Fall and the season of the Metal element run from August 7 to October 20. Energetic Fall’s the time to gently immerse yourself in the quieter, more introspective energies of the season. It’s a time of harvest and preparation for the upcoming energetic Winter. Here are tips for making a smooth transition from energetic Summer to Fall and beyond.

Autumn is a time of establishing a rhythmic order. There is a downward energy, grounding our bodies, minds and even our food into the earth. It is the ideal time to focus on the colon as life energy contracts and will prepare for a dormant state in the winter. Autumn is associated with white, and also the time of year our ‘white’ foods are at their peak. They are the digestives and immune boosting foods such as: apples, pears, cabbage, cauliflower, garlic and leeks. – Kate Kennington, Cleansing with Kate

As you prepare yourself for Winter (season of the Water element), get yourself more organized at this time of year. Establish more order in your life.

Throughout energetic Summer (season of the Fire element), you probably feasted and fested. You might have been more physically active enjoying vacations, social events and holidays.

But the season of Autumn provides you the new opportunity to retreat within body and mind and reflect on your life positively and productively.

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What can we learn from the past two seasons in a way we can constructively apply throughout Fall and Winter?

If you have unfinished projects you started in Spring and Summer, energetic Fall is the perfect time to complete them. The energies of the Fall season will support and encourage you to begin indoor projects that involve more mental and introspective processes. 

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The lung and large intestine are the internal organs associated with Fall and the Metal element.

Lung is associated with the emotion of letting go. The very act of conscious breathing enables us to let go of what we don’t want as we fully and deeply exhale.

Some people so love Summer that Fall can be a challenging time for them. Now they have to give up longer days, warm weather and some outdoor social activities.

Utilizing the lungs to practice slowing down the breath helps you come to your center and the now moment. It will help you focus gratitude for the Summer which has passed and the Fall which has arrived.

Slower deeper breathing helps you maintain your physical vigor throughout both Fall and Winter. It can improve mental clarity and a nicely balanced emotional state.

Soul and spirit should be tranquil to keep lungs pure… – The Neijing Suwen

TCM finds the lung to be the "tender organ” since it’s the uppermost organ in the body making it particularly susceptible to wind and cold. As the temperatures change, be proactive with your health and dress appropriately for the weather.

Proper sleep encourages Fall vitality. The ancient medical text, the Neijing Suwen, advises we should retire early at night and rise with the crowing of the rooster during Autumn.

“There was temperance in eating and drinking. Their hours of rising and retiring were regular and not disorderly and wild. By these means the ancients kept their bodies united with their souls, so as to fulfill their allotted span completely, measuring unto a hundred years before they passed away.


The wise man will surely conform to the changes of the four seasons, adapt himself to the cold of winter and the heat of summer, neutralize joy and anger and live a regular life.

”

— Both passages from the Neijing Suwen

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Sources:

Maciocia, Giovanni. The Foundations of Chinese Medicine E-Book: A Comprehensive Text. 3rd ed., Elsevier Academic Press, 2015.

Kennington, Kate. Cleansing with Kate: A Whole Food Guide to Nourishing Your Whole Self. 3rd ed., Kennington, 2014.

Photo courtesy of Daiga Ellaby at Unsplash

What You Need to Know About Essential Oils

An essential oil is a natural volatile material typically obtained by distillation. It emits the characteristic fragrance, flavor and/or action of the plant or other source from which it’s extracted.

Essential oils are found in various plant parts: leaves, stems, flower buds, open flowers, peels, barks, fruits, roots, needles, twigs, and resins. 

When you utilize an essential oil for your well-being and vitality, the oils bombards you with a wide array of beneficial chemicals. Chemically, an essential oil is a complex mixture of 30 to 100 or more phyto-chemicals or plant compounds.

There are three primary ways to get the benefits of an essential oil:

1. through topical application

2. by inhalation, and

3. by ingestion.

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TOPICAL APPLICATION

You can enjoy essential oils’ benefits by topically applying directly to skin. But you must always apply an essential oil in a carrier oil. Fractionated coconut oil is one example.

You need to use a carrier oil to prevent burning, irritation or other very uncomfortable effects. This is because essential oils are extremely potent.

For example, it takes about 60,000 roses or 200 pounds of petals to make one ounce of damask rose essential oil. Similar factors hold true for all essential oils. So never apply an essential oil directly to skin unless it’s suspended in an appropriate carrier oil.

You can also diffuse essential oils in bathwater asanother way to apply the oils topically.

To increase aborption effectiveness, gently massage the area first to improve circulation in that area. Applying a drop of an essential oil blend on warmed skin will also enhance circulation and in turn enhance absorption. 

Take advantage of proven and appropriate proportions and blends of essential oils in reputable PHYTO5 Swiss-made skincare products.

This is how you can ensure you get the benefit of enormously potent essential oils without irritating skin.

European made products like PHYTO5 Swiss-made skincare must comply with strict European regulations limiting the type and concentration of natural essential oils in skincare products. The U. S. makes no such requirements for your protection.

INHALATION

Inhale the fragrance of essential oils. It’s another way to realize their healing benefits. Inhalation affects the body through several systems and pathways.

It can occur:

• by breathing the fragrance of the oil through the nose or mouth, and

• aromatherapeutically via diffuser or in a bath.

Do these two things to activate essential oils’ energetic properties:

1. warming the oils slightly, and

2. tapping the bottle first two or three times.

All the physical organs or cells which relate to the sense of smell make up your olfactory system. When you inhale the fragrance of an essential oil, airborne molecules interact with your olfactory organs and reach the brain almost immediately through a variety of receptor sites.

One of these receptor sites is the limbic system,(1)–what some refer to as the emotional brain or the smell brain.

The limbic system is a group of deep brain structures that are involved in the sense of smell and the experience of emotions… The limbic system works in coordination with the pituitary gland** and the hypothalamus*** area of the brain to regulate the hormonal activities of the endocrine system… [it] also influences immunity. Through their action on the limbic system, essential oils can have a positive impact on all of these functions by bringing balance to the body. – Roberta Wilson, Aromatherapy: Essential Oils for Vibrant Health and Beauty

When you inhale the scent of an essential oil its microscopic molecules travel to the lungs and interact positively with your respiratory system.

INGESTION

You can also internally ingest essential oils but again, because of their potency you must be very careful. Don’t overdo. One or two drops in a tall glass of water is all you need.

One or a few drops of essential oil doesn’t look like very much, but because they’re so powerful ingesting more could actually be detrimental. It could throw you into a healing crisis.

If you want to consume essential oils through the mouth, you really should consult an expert in essential oils for your safety. In France, for example, trained physicians and pharmacists prescribe and dispense essential oils as remedies.

Take these reasons for caution when ingesting essential oils seriously:

• Some essential oils can be toxic to the liver or kidneys when ingested.

• A chemical breakdown of essential oils during digestion can so alter the effects you may not achieve the results desired.

Sometimes quality of essential oils is questionable.

Be aware that just because you find essential oils in your local department or even grocery store, it doesn’t necessarily follow the quality is high. In some cases, they might even be synthetically created. They may smell great to you but have no wellness benefits whatsoever.

It’s smart to incorporate the use of essential oils into your holistic lifestyle. At the same time, do your due diligence to learn about every aspect of essential oils. Become a well informed consumer and get what you believe you’re paying for.

When it comes to essential oils in skincare (which is a profoundly therapeutic way to introduce essential oils into your system), rely on the vast knowledge and experience of chemists well trained in the appropriate dosages, blends and use of the oils. PHYTO5 skincare is formulated by expert chemists trained in the proper use of essential oils.

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Endnotes:

(1) a complex system of nerves and networks in the brain, involving several areas near the edge of the cortex concerned with instinct and mood. It controls the basic emotions (fear, pleasure, anger) and drives (hunger, sex, dominance, care of offspring). –The New Oxford American Dictionary

(2) A pea-sized body attached to the base of the brain, the pituitary is important in controlling growth and development and the functioning of the other endocrine glands. It is the major endocrine gland. –The New Oxford American Dictionary

(3) a region of the forebrain below the thalamus that coordinates both the autonomic nervous system and the activity of the pituitary, controlling body temperature, thirst, hunger, and other homeostatic systems, and involved in sleep and emotional activity. –The New Oxford American Dictionary

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Sources:

The New Oxford American Dictionary

Wilson, Roberta. Aromatherapy: Essential Oils for Vibrant Health and Beauty. New York: Avery, 2002. Print

Photo courtesy of Ksenia Makagonova at Unsplash

Relief for Sensitive, Hot, Irritated Skin: Ylang Ylang Essential Oil

Known as a beauty oil, ylang ylang (pronounced “ee-LUNG-ee-LUNG") is analgesic, anti-anxiety, anti-depressant, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, aphrodisiacal, cooling, a nervine, sedative, and antispasmodic. In PHYTO5 skincare, it helps prevent signs of aging, protects skin cells from oxidative stress and DNA damage and works to restore skin’s glow.

Ylang ylang is the flower of a tree native to Southern India, Southeast Asia and the Pacific islands. The blossoms are powerfully scented and must be harvested from the trees at dawn or they will become bruised and discolored and rendered useless for fragrance and essential oils.

Romantic and aphrodisiacal, ylang ylang flowers are strewn on the beds of newlywed couples in Malaysia. Ylang ylang, translated as 'flower of flowers,’ is a principle ingredient in such legendary perfumes as Chamade by Guerlain, L'Air du Temps by Nina Ricci, Jean Patou's Sublime, Opium by Yves Saint Laurent and the iconic Chanel No. 5 created by Coco Chanel. Its scent is sweet, spicy, floral and intoxicating.

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Ylang ylang’s aroma is distinctly feminine or yin. When we find ourselves in an excessive masculine (yang) state, we can balance it by using an essential oil such as ylang ylang. This flower is often a component in men’s fragrance because it has been found to be healing and balancing to the male psyche.

Ylang ylang stimulates and supports the emotion of joy, the most prominent emotion of energetic Summer. It assists to relieve depression and its cooling properties are extremely beneficial to skin conditions associated with the Fire element/Summer season (according to traditional Chinese medicine). As outlined below, ylang ylang can provide significant anti-depressant properties.

The array of benefits ylang ylang can holistically offer our lives, both physically and mentally, is impressive:

• helps prevent signs of aging

• protects skin cells from oxidative stress and DNA damage

• assists to restore a healthful glow to the skin

• fights the development of skin cancer cells and melanoma

• regulating and balancing to the skin and excellent for all skin types

• helps tone skin and hair

• calms and soothes sensitive, blotchy, allergic skin and couperose

• maintains the skin's moisture

• assists to reduce redness and irritation with antimicrobial properties

• prevents and controls acne

• naturally regulates sebum and is good for oily skin

• soothes dry, itchy scalp and repairs split ends

  • Check out Sweet Almond Oil Shampoo containing ylang ylang

• stimulates new hair growth and prevents hair loss

  • Have a look at Hairlixir Shampoo with ylang ylang 

• helps relieve symptoms of PMS

• balances hormones

• supports kidney and adrenal function; good for bladder control

• promotes healthy intestinal function

• calms and de-stresses (it’s aphrodisiacal); assists as an antidepressant and helps to maintain good temper; calms over-excited states

• helps diffuse feelings of fear, anger and tension

• assists with panic attacks by deepening cellular respiration and normalizing breathing

• improves ability to fall asleep and sleep well and peacefully

• increases blood circulation

• soothes tachycardia and hypertension

• comforts the heart after grief, trauma, shock and challenges to the nervous system

• helps to create a romantic environment: exotic, sensual, sweet, floral

• fights parasites

As always, for all essential oils, do your research on how best to use them whether it’s aromatically, topically or internally. Essential oils are very potent and not all of them can be taken internally. Most that can be ingested must be infused with a carrier oil and then only in very small amounts. Premium essential oils perfectly and precisely mixed in PHYTO5 skin and body care is a safe way to enjoy many of the benefits of a whole array of essential oils.

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Source:

Stiles, K. G. The Essential Oils Complete Reference Guide: Over 250 Recipes for Natural Wholesome Aromatherapy. Salem, MA: Page Street, 2017. Print.

Big Pharma Knows Plants Heal

Approximately half of the top ten prescription medications in the U.S. might not exist if it weren't for the spectacular biodiversity of the wild natural world.

Even so and despite all their promise, fewer than 10 percent of tropical forest plant species have been examined for their chemical compounds and medicinal value. Beyond the tropical, there could be plants growing in your own backyard or in your local park or preserve that are part of nature's most exquisite healing benefactors.

We haven't even scratched the surface of the cornucopia of healing gifts Earth has to offer. It's all there waiting for us to discover.

With earth was the human being created. All the elements served mankind and, sensing that man was alive, they busied themselves in aiding his life in every way. And man in turn occupied himself with them. The earth gave its vital energy, according to each person's race, nature, habits, and environment. –Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179), Medieval polymath

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Professor Sir Ghillean Prance, FRS, Director, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, London says:

Modern pharmacopoeia still contain at least 25% drugs derived from plants and many others which are synthetic analogues built on prototype compounds isolated from plants. Since so many of our modern medicines were also derived from plants and such a small percentage have been accurately analyzed chemically, it is certain that there are many more to be discovered.

The world's developing countries rely more on "traditional medicines" or plant remedies rather than medicinal drugs. Sir Gillian Prance goes on to say:

The World Health Organization has estimated that 80% of the population of developing countries rely on traditional medicines, mostly plant drugs, for their primary healthcare needs.

The drug cortisone comes from wild yams from Mexico and Guatemala and is the active ingredient in birth control pills. Vincristine, derived from the Rosy periwinkle, is used to treat childhood leukemia. Pacific yew, a conifer native to the Pacific Northwest, is the origin plant of a somewhat new medicine for cancer.

Dr. Jim Duke, author of The Green Pharmacy, headed the USDA program seeking anti-cancer drugs in the rainforest for many years with pharmacists and physicians in the rainforests of Costa Rica. What MedicineHunter.com says about Dr. Duke encapsulates the story of natural healing with plant remedies.

Dr. James A. Duke's preeminent contribution to USDA and the world is his integrated view of using plants for food, medicine and fuel; informed by his lengthy study of how people in remote jungles successfully use plants for all aspects of their economic existence. You might say that the author of the popular The Green Pharmacy was 'green' before the rest of the world recognized our need to use resources more efficiently. Another important contribution of note: Dr. Duke showed that almost all edible legumes contain estrogenic isoflavones, key cancer modulators.

PHYTO5 Swiss-made skincare takes nature’s lead too.

We rely almost completely on flower and plant essential oils and extracts for our skincare formulations. Synthetic chemical formulations don't make sense to us when nature is so abundant with every healing, nourishing, restoring gift imaginable. 

Some of the unique and natural ingredients in our seasonal Fire element line for Summer for example, include:

marine algae, essential oils of lavender, lemon, cypress, sweet marjoram, thyme, ylang ylang, corn seed, rosemary, Sylvester pine, grapeseed, jojoba, avocado, rose hips, and peppermint, plus extracts of capsicum and rosemary.

Visit the seasonal line of your choice and click through the product image for the list of unique ingredients specific to that product and their health and wellness benefits.

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Sources:

Bingen, Hildegard Af, and Priscilla Throop. Hildegard Von Bingen's Physica: The Complete English Translation of Her Classic Work on Health and Healing. Rochester, VT: Healing Arts, 1998. Print.

United Kingdom. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Global Initiative for Traditional Systems of Health. Medicine Plants for Forest Conservation and Health Care. Ed. Gerard Bodeker. Rome: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 1997. Print.

State of Mind Is Crucial In Healing

Nature offers so many healing gifts in the diverse flora that thrives all over the world that pharmaceutical companies often go to the rainforests to harvest them. Sadly, they adulterate the healing flora as they formulate their product.

The developing world mainly relies on nature for remedies and healing. We may see them as less developed or poor but maybe their lack of access to pharmaceuticals is really an advantage for them. Their healing from nature’s herbs and flowers will be real and true where pharmaceuticals only mask symptoms.

PHYTO5 relies almost completely on nature's flora for its unique ingredients abounding with life-enhancing vital energy. 

For any healing to be effective—holistic or conventional medical—another important component must be present. The companion to the medicine, natural or unnatural, is the mind.

As we’ve all experienced, healing or management of disease and physical pain doesn’t solely rely on taking natural remedies, synthetic analogs to nature or other drugs.

Studies show that 18 to 80% of the time, people taking placebos (including fake procedures) completely recover from their condition. This is without adding any other drug, remedy, medical procedure or therapy.

The placebo effect indicates the mind is a principal component in our health, healing, and wellness.

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Humankind has evolved long enough to have realized that our thoughts are powerful actors in our human experience. We’ve learned that when we think a thought, we immediately conjure a related emotion or feeling. The more clear and powerful the mind the more new circumstances take shape.

Sometimes the result of our thought is almost immediate. But most of the time a lag time exists between the thought, the emotion, and the manifestation.

This time lag between thought and manifested result actually provides the space for healing to occur. It allows us to realize an error in thought and correct it before an unwanted event results. Of course, this can only occur for those who are aware of the power of their minds and who seek to gain mastery of it.

This time lag is a sort of fail-safe mechanism that does into action by default. This is until we gain greater control of our mind and emotions.

This helps us to see illness or other limitations as potentially constructive experiences. We can emerge from them with a better understanding of ourselves.

Of course, this can only occur for those aware of the power of the mind and for those who work to gain mastery of it.

When it comes to self-healing, our state of mind is crucial.

Our state of mind demonstrates itself in the quality of our thoughts and emotions. Essentially, we either entertain positive thoughts and emotions or negative ones.

Experience shows the positive ones contribute to healing and the negative ones do not. In fact, the negative thoughts and emotions worsen the sickness or condition.

The more we practice dominion over our thoughts and emotions, the more effective creators we become. With a sustained practice, eventually the need to use thought and emotion to create healing will be gradually replaced by homeostasis. Eventually we’ll no longer need to seek healing because equilibrium will be our natural state of being.

Tons of self-help books have said it over and over again: What we focus on, expands.

This message is repeated so much because most of the authors have proven it out in their lives.

The more energy we give a thing, the bigger and more prominent it becomes in our lives. We need to look at where we place our focus and energy.

Focus is the key.

As long as we contemplate a certain desire outcome we create a preponderance of that thought in the mind. This makes our desire outcome likely to occur (though it may not always happen with the exact expected outcome). This is considered a law of the universe.

Our mental practice doesn't have to be rigid, dogmatic, absolute, complete and total focus. But if we can come close establishing that preponderance of positive thoughts about the healing we desire, our lives shift to reflect this new state of mind.

This can't help but feel good. And so we create a mental and emotional loop that creates physical bodies in closer alignment with our higher nature.

The ultimate book on the power of thought, As a Man Thinketh, written in 1902 by James Allen says it beautifully:

“They [men and women] themselves are makers of themselves by virtue of the thoughts which they choose and encourage; that mind is the master weaver both of the inner garment of character and the outer garment of circumstance, and that, as they may have hitherto woven in ignorance and pain they may now weave in enlightenment and happiness.”

As a Man Thinketh is in the public domain and you can download a free copy by going to Project Gutenberg here. The booklet is also for sale by booksellers quite inexpensively.

Feel Great In Summer. Be Its Mirror Reflection.

According to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), Summer runs from May 6 to July 19. TCM encourages us to live in harmony with each of the five seasons of this time honored medicine: Spring, Summer, between seasons, Fall, Winter. Living in harmony with the season means you become a reflection of the season. Become Summer’s mirror reflection. It will bring you benefits on all levels: physical, mental, emotional and spiritual.

The Yellow Emporer's Classic (Neijing Suwen) is an ancient medical text that provides many of TCM’s health and healing tenets. The jewels of wisdom contained in it the ancient Chinese derived over centuries of astute observation and study.

The Yellow Emporer’s Classic gives us the following proven Summer lifestyle strategies:

"In the months of Summer there is an abundance of sunshine and rain. The Heavenly (cosmic) energy descends, and the Earthly (telluric) energy rises. When these energies merge there is an intimate connection between Heaven and Earth. As a result, plants mature and animals, flowers and fruit appear abundantly.

One may retire somewhat later at this time of year, while still arising early. One should refrain from anger and stay physically active, to keep the skin breathing and to prevent the chi from stagnating. One can indulge a bit more than in other seasons, but should not overindulge. Emotionally, it is important to be happy and easygoing and not hold grudges, so that the energy can flow freely and communicate between the external and internal. In this way, illness may be averted in the Fall. The Summer season of Fire and Heart also encompasses late Summer, which corresponds to the Earth element. Problems in the Summer will cause injury to the heart and will manifest in the Fall.

Spring is the beginning of things, when the energy should be kept open and fluid; Summer opens up further into an exchange or communication between internal and external energies…

In the Summer, if too much sweating occurs in the heat, the chi will escape, the breath will become course and rapid, and one will feel irritable. This happens when heat attacks the exterior. If Summer heat attacks and enters the interior, it will affect the mind and spirit, causing confusion, mumbling and fever. For relief, the pores must be opened to release the heat.

In Summer, the weather is generally hot, and when there is extreme heat it produces Fire, which can burn and char things, producing the bitter taste. Bitter-tasting substances can clear the Heart. the Heart governs the blood, the Fire of the Heart produces the Earth, the Heart opens to the tongue, and therefore subtle changes in the Heart can be reflected in the tongue."

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Tips for Living the Mirror Reflection of Summer:

• The days are longer in Summer; Wake up earlier in the morning to get your fill of Summer life. When Winter comes, we'll soon realize how short-lived Summer was! Enjoy the season!

• Summer yields all kinds of luscious, colorful, vitality-laden foods; Eat the cooling foods of Summer like melons, peaches, cucumber, and fresh greens, some of which are transitory and sorely missed in colder seasons. Enjoy their flavors, textures, and nutritive gifts now, while you can!

• The sun is radiant with warmth, life, and joyful exuberance; Should anger bubble inside you, stop and take a look to see if you can’t transform it to love with the warmth of your inherent true self.

• The season is full of energy and passion; Seek out new exciting experiences and give your new discoveries your all.

• Summer is active and alive with the growth and ensuing maturity of abundant flora; Be more physically active, allowing your body to blossom with full blown energy and vitality.

• Summer is cheery; During this season, connect with what makes you laugh as often as possible. Bring colors into your environment for good cheer in all sorts of creative ways.

• Summer, in its aspect of maturity, connotes wisdom. Balance heightened levels of physical activity with spiritual practices such as conscious slow breathing techniques, meditation, and introspection for the life wisdom you seek.

• Nature is on full display in Summer; Focus on being all you can be during this season and allow yourself to blossom on full display and color.

Have Summer Fun! Enjoy These Benefits.

What we often don’t realize about energetic Summer(1) is having fun creates a myriad of wonderful physical, mental, and emotional benefits. If you take advantage of Summer's dynamic expansive energies, the benefits you derive will easily carry you well into energetic Fall. You’ll be ready to retreat into Fall’s slightly more subdued energy and feel strong throughout the last months of the year.

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Having tons of fun during Summer brings rewards we might not usually think of.

1. Pain can be relieved. When we have fun, we laugh. Laughter is known, even proven, to alleviate pain. Time Magazine’s article, “It’s No Joke: Why Laughter Kills Pain,” says, “Genuine laughter releases endorphins in the brain, chemicals that activate the same receptors as drugs like heroin, to pain-killing and euphoria-producing effects.”

2. Brain function including better memory improves. In their article entitled, “Eight Habits that Improve Cognitive Function,” Psychology Today names physical activity and social connections as two of the eight principle ways to improve brain function.

3. Creativity surges. Pleasant and fun work and educational environments foster creativity in students and employees. When a positive mood is fostered by engaging in fun activities or even by simply being surrounded by a less rigid environment, activity in the prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex of the brain is stimulated. Complex cognition, decision-making, and positive emotion necessary for heightened creativity levels are improved. Spending more time outside, engaging in physical exercise enjoyable to you, going to outdoor parties and picnics, and having office meetings under the shade trees on the nearby lawn, all can foster the latent creativity within you.

4. Mental, even physical youth is fostered. If we don’t use our muscles, they atrophy. No matter what age we are, beginning to use our bodies more actively stimulates our musculoskeletal system making us stronger and more vital and alive. “More than just hobbies, chosen activities rekindle early passions, return people to nature, set creative juices flowing and stir the soul,” says Lisa Esposito for U.S. News and World Report Magazine. The constitution of the World Health Organization states, “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” A positive mood sustained from regularly just plain having fun can be an important predictor of health and longevity.

5. Relationships are strengthened and love happens when having fun with others. It builds connections and solidifies social bonds.  Of course, we can have fun swinging on a park swing by ourselves, but fun is even more so when we do it with people we love. Laughing together, enjoying together, and taking in the Summer together fosters conditions where love grows.

6. Emotional wounds may be healed. In the book, Heal Your Spirit, Empower Your Life!, Dr. Jess Tregle Msc.D. advises that if we’ve had a rocky childhood, we should feel that our childhood is still taking place and to let it be way better than before. She suggests reconnecting with our inner child, our younger self, to heal emotional wounds. Be silly, be playful, and open up to enjoying life more and Summer’s the perfect time to begin!

7. Sleep patterns become more regulated because serotonin in the brain increases. The increased sunlight and physical activity we enjoy in Summer increases our serotonin levels. Serotonin can be found in a variety of foods, many of which we avidly consume in Summer like plums, tomatoes, kiwis, and pineapples.

8. Your body temperature and breathing become more balanced (again because of increased serotonin levels). “Serotonin is a neurotransmitter, or chemical messenger, that mediates many complex processes in the brain. It’s perhaps best known for its role in regulating mood. It’s also thought to help regulate several life-sustaining functions, such as breathing.” –from the article, “Serotonin Helps Control Body Temperature and Breathing,” National Institute of Health

9. Coping skills seem to be magically more available to us. When we’re happy, everything becomes easier. Things that were challenging before, we now seem to be able to accept as part of our everyday stride.

10. Physical energy increases. When we’re bored or feel unstimulated, our body responds as if it is tired or lethargic. Boredom equals lethargy. When we choose to transport ourselves to the next minute where we can engage in a fun activity we love, all of a sudden, our lack of energy has vanished.

11. Overall positive feelings become the norm. Optimistic people live longer. Yale University researchers have found that, “Positive self-perceptions can prolong life expectancy.”

12. We become transformed at a cellular level. The same chemical operation that occurs within the body when laughter is the impetus for the healing of sickness is the same operation that transforms our entire physical being at the cellular level.

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(1) Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) calls each of the five seasons energetic because each is charged with specific energies unique to that season. These include the energy of one of the five elements that correspond to each season: Spring–Wood, Summer–Fire, between seasons–Earth, Fall–Metal and Winter–Water. (There are four 18-day between seasons periods of the year that essentially form bridges or transitions from one of the four major seasons to the next.)

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Sources:

http://healthland.time.com/2011/09/14/its-no-joke-why-laughter-kills-physical-pain/ 14 Sept. 2011: n. pag. Web. <Time MagazineSzalavitz, Maya. "It’s No Joke: Why Laughter Kills Pain."

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-athletes-way/201403/eight-habits-improve-cognitive-function12 Mar. 2014: n. pag. Web. Psychology Today. Bergland, Christopher. "Eight Habits That Improve Cognitive Function."

https://greatist.com/happiness/ways-to-boost-creativity. N.p., 3 Mar. 2016. Web. "33 Surprising Ways to Boost Creativity for Free."

http://health.usnews.com/health-news/health-wellness/slideshows/what-keeps-you-young?slide=1 6 May 2015: n. pag. Web. U. S. News and World Report. Esposito, Lisa. "What Keeps You Young?" Bloomington, IN: Balboa, 2017. Print. Heal Your Spirit & Empower Your Life! Tregle, Dr. Jess, Msc. D.

http://nutritionwonderland.com/2009/06/understanding-bodies-serotonin-connection-between-food-and-mood/. N.p., 24 June 2009. Web. Wilcox, Christine. "Understanding Our Bodies: Serotonin, The Connection Between Food and Mood."

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/serotonin-helps-control-body-temperature-breathing(2011): n. pag. Web. 8 Aug. 2011. National Institute of Health. "Serotonin Helps Control Body Temperature and Breathing."

"Thinking Positively About Aging Extends Life More than Exercise and Not Smoking." http://news.yale.edu. N.p., 29 July 2002. Web. http://news.yale.edu/2002/07/29/thinking-positively-about-aging-extends-life-more-exercise-and-not-smoking>.

Authentic Wellness and Beauty and Millennials

Integrative wellness studios, sound baths, silent spas and natural beauty. Avocado oil, black garlic and sober socializing. Millennials have driven wellness-oriented spas and centers to new heights since the mid 2010s.

Millennials would love PHYTO5 products, method, philosophy and lifestyle approach to skincare. PHYTO5 is all about addressing the very organic, discriminating demands and progressive intelligent lifestyle choices of millennials.

PHYTO5 professionals all over the U. S. are gratified by the success they achieve in addressing the more creative real-time lifestyle choices and concerns of millennials.

Carlyn Weiler of Weiler Academy in Green Bay, Wisconsin says:

"Here in the U.S., facials tend to be more about rubbing products on the skin. When I came back to the states after being treated to and learning about European style facials and body treatments, I was very relieved to find PHYTO5 that is truly holistic and wellness targeted and so superior to any other skincare system I've seen or experienced."

PHYTO5 skincare and therapies offer a decidedly vibrational approach to skincare and wellness unmatched in the entire beauty industry. Working at the level, not just of matter but energy, true holistic natural beauty is achieved on subtle levels which radiate outward into the skin. 

Global Spa and Wellness Trends

"Wellness on the Rise: According to the latest figures from the Global Wellness Institute, the Global Wellness Economy has grown by 10.6% since 2013 to $3.7 trillion, far outpacing global GDP... The global spa market grew from $94 billion in 2013 to $99 billion in 2015 with 16,000 new spas and over 230,000 new employees." –psychologyofwellbeing.com

Many of PHYTO5's professional clients have been clients since PHYTO5's inception in the late 70s. This is a testament to PHYTO5 skincare's, technologies' and protocols' remarkable results.

These skincare and chroma-technologies are at once time honored and forever classically on trend. This is quite an unusual characteristic in the beauty industry.

The combination of our quantum energetic skincare and proprietary award-winning vibrational light technologies elevates the wellness effects of facial and body treatments to levels that reach far beyond the typical spa treatment. It's safe to say that PHYTO5 embodies all that wellness truly means.

Partake of the mystique of quantum energetic formulated plant-based skincare for your exalted natural beauty and well-being. Subscribe for a discount promo code, plus get truly unique beauty tips and offers.

Millennials Prefer Experience Over Materiality. And They Value Authenticity.

One of the first things you'll hear about millennials is that they "love and value authenticity, but what does that mean? Authenticity is a broad concept with a definition that's hard to put a finger on; authenticity comes from knowing your customers, their needs, and how to have that communicated," this according to Rakuten Marketing.

So Take a Good Look at PHYTO5

Millennials are propelling the wellness lifestyle forward.

PHYTO5 skincare can stand up to millennials’ wise skepticism. PHYTO5 offers much more than a product. We offer an experience from the moment the cap or jar is removed from the product container. 

Can your spa or does your chosen line of skincare authentically deliver what these highly discriminating consumers are demanding? 

Take a good look at PHYTO5—the embodiment of what Generation Y and all discriminating wellness and beauty product consumers avidly seek:

authenticity • clean • vibrational • plant-based vegan • wellness generated on the cellular level

Emotional Mastery and Your Wei Chi

We learned in school that matter is tangible, visible, solid, and real. There is ample empirical evidence to support this fact. Hardly anyone would dispute this.

We were also told that matter is made of molecules which are made of atoms composed of smaller particles such as neutrons, protons, and electrons, all assumed to be physical. And yet, we learn from quantum physics that all this is wrong although the public at large has not yet adjusted to that thinking.

What we think of matter is, in reality, made of nothing material, tangible, or visible.

• The quantum reality is that atoms are made of vortices of energy spinning and vibrating in their own particular way.

• Each one has a vibrating pattern that is unique, providing its own particular energetic signature.

• Atoms have no physical structure, therefore, physical things have no physical parts.

We’ve also learned from the discoveries of quantum physics and quantum mechanics that we create our own reality. The observer of a quantum experiment will affect its outcome by the simple act of observing.

This has led quantum scientists to conclude that our world, from our individual experience to our collective one, is a mental construction. The planet and the entire universe are the outcome of the collective consciousness of humanity.

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In 2015, the Dalai Lama spoke at an international quantum physics conference in India: "I hope conferences such as this one address two purposes: extending our knowledge and improving our view of reality so we can better tackle our disturbing emotions.”

It’s significant to see an enlightened spiritual leader embrace the discoveries of science, feeling comfortable that no discovery, as earth-shattering as it might appear, will endanger the fundamental truth of spirituality.

A very important element of the Dalai Lama’s statement is: “improving our view of reality so we can better tackle our disturbing emotions.”

1. We must “improve our view of reality.” This implies that our current view is not nearly as right as we’ve believed. Our belief in Terra Firm” as a bedrock of our knowledge of what is right, real, and true rests on a shaky foundation.

2. Our “disturbing emotions” (negative emotions) have a causal effect on our view and experience of our reality.

3. It’s imperative that we “better tackle our negative emotions.” We need to develop our emotional intelligence to achieve greater degree of mastery over our (negative) emotions.

PHYTO5 quantum energetic five-element lines of skincare align perfectly with these three keys. We formulate them according to the following principles:

1. “The physical body is actually a complex of interwoven energy fields.” –Richard Gerber, M.D.

2. “Beauty is health made visible,” which is PHYTO5’ founding motto.

3. The teachings of traditional Chinese medicine concerning how to increase Wei Chi, the energy of our immune system:

   1. Our best way to enhance our source of Wei Chi is in cultivating emotionally rewarding human relationships. Such relationships, however, can’t happen if we don’t first develop self-appreciation free of negativity.

   2. We can best contain or mitigate the natural enemies of Wei Chi is by gaining mastery over our emotions. This enables us to avoid the destructive aspect of negative emotions.

Key Attributes of Energetic Summer and the Fire Element

Energetic season begins May 6 and ends July 19 according to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Fire is the element that associates with energetic Summer—the time of sun, heat, growth, expansion, warmth, increased light, and abundance.

Fire is the most yang of the five elements. But since all things are both yin and yang in this universe of duality, Fire may also express as yin. Taoist astrology assigns the color red to yang Fire energy and the color purple to its yin aspect.

Emotions can be either in or out of balance depending on whether the energy we are in is in or out of balance. Personality traits can be positive or negative.

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Fire personality traits and emotions may include:

• love, both interpersonal and divine

• open-heartedness

• joie de vivre, joyfulness

• happiness

• generosity of spirit

• warmth

• playfulness

• flirtatiousness

• a compulsion to call attention to themselves

• passion

• dynamism

• reason

• self-expression

• optimistic

• positive

• enthusiasm

• excitement

• vanity

• jealousy

• frustration

Symptoms of Fire imbalance can show up physically and emotionally as:

• excessive or lack of perspiration

• rashes, hives, hot skin eruptions

• sleep disturbances, insomnia

• palpitations, irregular heartbeat

• restless or explosive energy

• inappropriate laughter

• disaapointment as the logical outcome of an out-of-balance and immature approach to relationships

A Fire type tends to find success in life through his or her predisposition to be warm-hearted and generous. They find experiences of love, compassion, fun, joy, and pleasure very healing yet they may find sharing joy and laughter without the goal of a reward in mind challenging.

Like hot molten lava, Fire can be unpredictable and changeable, chaotic and challenging to contain. It’s active, combustible, energetic, animated, and powerful.

In TCM, Fire’s body organs are the heart and small intestines. Therefore a fire personality may have a disposition for heart problems, such as heart attacks or may experience minor digestive problems in the small intestines.

Fire types are lovers and protectors of the heart. They tend to be driven to find love and intimacy sometimes at the expense of other important arenas of their lives. They can also be thrown off stable emotional course when experiencing traumatic events.

Other attributes of the Fire element include these:

• Color: red

• Tastes: bitter

• Direction: South

• Voice quality: laughter

• Smell: scorched

• Symptoms of imbalance with Fire include:

• Expectation: true love

• Stress response: loss of joy

• Emotional perception: hurt

For tips and tools on holistic Summer living, be sure to check out our former blog posts on the Summer energetic season:

• Eight Keys for Getting the Most Out of Summer Life… In Harmony with the Season

• Eight Refreshing Uses of Lavender to Cool and Soothe in Summer

• The Top Cooling Foods of Summer

• Summer Lifestyle Tips: How to Feng Shui Your Summer Season, Home, Party and Even Yourself and Enjoy Summer More

• 15 Spectacular Benefits of Having Fun This Summer

…

Source:

Moss, M.D., Charles A. Power of the Five Elements: The Chinese Medicine Path to Healthy Aging and Stress Resistance. Berkeley: North Atlantic, 2010. Print.

Enhance Your Wei Chi to Increase Your Well-Being

For thousands of years, mystics have known and advocated this truth and for several recent decades, so have quantum physicists: “ALL IS ONE.” Expressed in different words, this truth is fundamental to both religion and science but the core idea is the same.

The truth that all is one is becoming clear to an increasing number of people regardless of their religion or degree of scientific education. Still, this core idea is held as truth by a minority of people.

This is evident given the degree and spread of violence, disease and disparity around the world and the many other forms of man’s inhumanity to man. Peace, vitality, equanimity and justice for all in the world will occur only when enough people understand that hurting anyone else is actually hurting oneself and that hurting the environment including our animals is destructive to ourselves.

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The extent to which we feel connected to or separated from whatever we feel necessary to make us whole, happy and fulfilled, creates the root of all our emotions which, in turn, becomes the driving force in our lives.

If the absolute truth is that ALL IS ONE, the evidence of our physical senses, supported by our mental interpretation of our human situation, points exactly to the opposite. We appear totally separated from each other, and in most instances, from what we desire, be it relationships, material possessions, or conditions.

From the moment of birth, the baby separated from its mother longs to be reconnected physically and emotionally.

This is deeply embedded in all of us. It takes different forms as we grow older but it stays with us. The need to connect with others and to feel like we belong is very much a part of the human experience.

For some, the most expedient and available solution might be to belong to a street gang. But for most, there are a number of connections we feel driven to make, such as with a spouse or partner, a family, a sports or social club, a church or other place of group worship or philosophy, a professional association, or organizations celebrating ethnic or national identity.

All of these are attempts to feel connected. That feeling is key to a sense of self-actualization, contentment, and well-being.

The sense of separation is, of course, the opposite. It prevents personal fulfillment. It permeates all our endeavors and human relationships. And, as we saw in our earlier Wei Chi blogs, emotionally-nourishing human relationships are one of the few natural ways we have to improve Wei Chi, our energetic immune system.

At the same time, we learned that the “5 devils” that attack Wei Chi are the negative emotions associated with the 5 elements of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). And, here again, we are invited to emotional maturity by gaining greater mastery over our emotions. We must avoid negativity and foster positive emotions. It is incumbent on each of us to gain an awareness of our emotions–what triggers and what controls them. That is how we develop our E.Q.–our emotional quotient, commonly known as emotional intelligence.

This sense of separation is pervasive. Mystics are among the few who experience the ultimate connection–communion with their Source, whatever that might mean to each one of them. For Jesus of Nazareth, it is what caused him to say, “I and my father are one.” 

Quantum physicists and others who embrace their conclusion experience intellectual communion and the satisfaction of embracing fundamental truth. Their vision, not unlike TCM’s vision, is that each one of us is made of energy and each with our own energy field that evolves in an infinite energetic substance (or field) that we call space.

A singularity of energy fields is that they can exist as a multitude within any given space. But as energy is polarized in positive and negative phases, there is an interplay between opposite energies while there is harmony with same polarity. More positive energy is elevating. More negative energy is abasing. This is our choice to make.

Now, back to wellness. We learn that we can’t ignore our emotions. They give us a clues on as to how to increase our sense of well-being, by increasing what adds to it and by eliminating what makes us feel unhappy, sorry for ourselves, fearful, or angry.

Once we have gained a fuller awareness of our emotions as a sort of guidance system, there are ways to mitigate the negative and enhance the positive.

PHYTO5 has developed one such exciting method with a new generation of wellness spa treatments. 

---------------

This article was originally published May 2, 2017 and has been updated on March 12, 2020 for freshness and comprehensiveness.

Endnotes:

We are inspired by many authors when writing on the vital energy subject, but in particular, by:

1. Haas, Elson M. Staying Healthy with the Seasons. Berkeley: Celestial Arts, 2003. Print.

2. Beinfield, Harriet, and Efrem Korngold. Between Heaven and Earth: A Guide to Chinese Medicine. New York: Ballantine, 1992. Print.

3. Elias, Jason, and Katherine Ketcham. The Five Elements of Self-healing: Using Chinese Medicine for Maximum Immunity, Wellness, and Health. New York: Harmony, 1998. Print.

4. Gerber, Richard. Vibrational Medicine: New Choices for Healing Ourselves. Santa Fe, NM: Bear, 1996. Print.

5. The abundant writings of Deepak Chopra, M.D.

Wei Chi and the Beauty of Emotions

Maintaining an active Wei Chi is the best way to maintain a strong immune system. In a former blog, we defined Wei Chi:

Wei Chi is protector of your outer energy field (aura). It also protects the superficial layers of the body–the skin. Any pathogen that will eventually attack the physical body needs to first defeat Wei Chi by penetrating your aura and going past it through the skin layers. Wei Chi is the energy of your immune system and guardian of your health according to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM).

The primary way we enrich our Wei Chi is by cultivating emotionally satisfying relationships.

Next, we enrich our Wei chi by eliminating or at least lessening negative emotions. Negative emotions are the five “devils” described in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). They are the natural enemies of Wei Chi.

Partake of the mystique of quantum energetic formulated plant-based skincare for your exalted natural beauty and well-being. Subscribe for a discount promo code, plus get truly unique beauty tips and offers.

A high E.Q. (Emotional Quotient) will best predict a strong Wei Chi, and chi defense, in general.

Mature emotional intelligence is capable of managing both good and more challenging relationships. Combine this management with strong mastery over potential negative emotional reactions and now you have better control of your health.

And naturally exalted beauty is the end product. Balanced emotion encourages natural beauty.

As PHYTO5’s founding slogan says: “Beauty is health made visible!”

Even if we do a lot of other things right like maintaining a good diet, exercising, breathing well, sleeping, and enjoying holistic spa treatments, these things won’t be sufficient if our E. Q. is low.

PHYTO5 has evolved its well-known energetic method to help you squarely addressing negative emotions that form barriers to wellness and positive Wei Chi boosting emotions. The treatment approach we call The Beauty of Emotions. It offers unique quantum energy techniques and tools to assist you to feel and look better.

Two primary factors provide the foundation of PHYTO5's incredibly unique Beauty of Emotions treatment:

• the fundamental principles of TCM, and

• a proprietary new formulation method of our five-element skincare lines which elevates this high vibrational skincare to the level of quantum energy.

Feeling good must be our objective. It causes us to enjoy life more fully and it makes us more pleasant to be around.

Nevertheless, it’s almost too easy to focus on the good part of feeling good while many of us are challenged to even recognize or identify our feelings in the first place.

In other words, we must first become conscious of how we feel moment to moment and the impact we make on others' feelings when we interact with each other. 

We cannot manage our emotions and reactions unless we are conscious of them. It is a sine qua non condition of developing our E. Q.

The Beauty of Emotions program as a program of wellness begins by assisting the client/patient to first become aware of how he or she feels.

At first, it may sound at once overly ambitious and somewhat invasive. In our society, we have a tendency to keep our true emotions hidden to such an extent that we either lose our awareness of them or we make efforts to hide them.

Still, there are ways to overcome these tendencies, at least with anyone who is willing. That is why an understanding of the importance of emotions in the process of achieving wellness is so relevant. That willingness borne of our understanding will assist us in improving our emotional quotient. As we improve our E. Q. we automatically elevate our health, happiness, character, and even our physical appearance.

The second part of the Beauty of Emotions program encompasses a number of new and specifically formulated PHYTO5 products which are essential tools of the program. From their very inception, PHYTO5 products were successfully formulated for the purpose of balancing chi. PHYTO5 accomplished this for many decades by creating products in alignment with the formulation principles of TCM and its foundational 5-Element Theory.

All along, PHYTO5 has understood that the "5 Devils” described as the natural enemies of Wei Chi (and of chi, in general) affect all aspects of our health, particularly the energy of our five pairs of organs and the function of the five major fluids. Balancing chi always has a beneficial effect on the emotions attached to each of the five pairs of organs. 

PHYTO5's new product formulation has significantly increased the vibrational rate of PHYTO5 skincare products causing them to work faster and more deeply to balance not only the physical but the emotional aspects of our being.

We'll be sharing more on this fascinating subject when we unveil the Beauty of Emotions treatment protocol at the end of May 2017.

Of course, this program will need to be adapted to functions that a well-trained spa therapist can effectively perform and which he or she is allowed to perform by relevant state authorities. Special training for the Beauty of Emotions protocol will be involved.

In the meantime, think about the benefits of such an approach when you know how most of our spa clients, in fact, most of our population, live daily life under the duress of all sorts of pressure and unprecedented levels of stress.

Nature’s richness lies in its power to nourish all living things;
its greatness lies in its power to give them beauty and splendor.  –The I Ching

Make a little time for things that ignite your joy!  –Heart-Math Institute

…

Sources:

We’re inspired by many authors when writing on the vital energy subject but in particular by:

1. Haas, Elson M. Staying Healthy with the Seasons. Berkeley: Celestial Arts, 2003. Print.

2. Beinfield, Harriet, and Efrem Korngold. Between Heaven and Earth: A Guide to Chinese Medicine. New York: Ballantine, 1992. Print.

3. Elias, Jason, and Katherine Ketcham. The Five Elements of Self-healing: Using Chinese Medicine for Maximum Immunity, Wellness, and Health. New York: Harmony, 1998. Print.

4. Gerber, Richard. Vibrational Medicine: New Choices for Healing Ourselves. Santa Fe, NM: Bear, 1996. Print.

5. The abundant writings of Deepak Chopra, M.D.

How Holistic Treatments Can Support Your Wei Chi

The health and wellness industry liberally uses the word 'holistic.' But what really is a holistic treatment?

As the word indicates, holistic encompasses an approach for a treatment that embraces the whole of a human being. It begs the question: In addition to the physical body, what exists in the totality of this patient that we must consider in order to fully treat the whole being?

The first level of increased awareness, going beyond the physical, is fairly obvious and includes the mental and psychological aspects. What people think about themselves and others, combined with their emotional state, are relevant factors affecting any treatment, be it in a spa, a doctor’s office, or on a hospital bed.

At the second level of awareness of what is perceived as a part of the whole being is the notion of vital energy common to all energy medicines. This is sadly absent in so many wellness or medical practices.

The fundamental idea that the physical body we see is but the tip of the iceberg is often ignored or considered too esoteric. Yet there is something else that is invisible but essential, namely, that the body is not only vital matter but also vital energy.

Further, it’s vital energy that makes the matter vital.

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To see a human being in a way that envelopes these two levels is already quite an accomplishment, yet it is incomplete, particularly when it comes to serious diseases with consequences devastating enough that the very spirit of the patient is also under attack.

Critical to any possible healing are the core beliefs of the patient in view of the experience he or she is living. This is obviously a subject that concerns not only medical people but patients and would-be patients although this topic remains a very delicate one.

The third level has to do with the spiritual dimension of the one being treated. Some of us might be totally unaware of this aspect, or we might be simply putting it aside, maybe for examination at a later date.

Another possibility is we might simply be genuinely oblivious to this part of our constitution. 

From an ultimate point of view, the spiritual state of consciousness of the patient is not only relevant but might be a critical factor in dealing with serious ailments.

Clearly, rare are the practitioners who will embrace this view or be willing and comfortable enough to incorporate the patient's spiritual state of consciousness into the equation when faced with a deeply serious health issue which on the surface appears to be simply material or physical.

But how is all of this relevant to our wellness and beauty focus? It actually directly relates back to PHYTO5’s motto: “Beauty is wellness made visible!”

In our previous blog, “Wei Chi and the Three Levels of Defense,” we saw that wellness and beauty concerns are outside the picture at the third and fourth levels of defense, but they are reasonable ones for the first two levels even when both Wei Chi and chi are under attack.

It’s when Wei Chi is strong and an effective defender of our health that our wellness and beauty objectives are most effectively achieved. 

Maintaining a strong immunity with an active Wei Chi is of primary importance. The role of emotions and the matter of emotional intelligence as the arena we can most directly influence to maintain a strong immune system.

Further, even if we do a lot of other things right, such as focus on a proper diet, get adequate exercise, practice breathing exercises, and get plenty of sleep, it will be in vain if our E. Q. (Emotional Quotient) is low.

…

Sources:

We are inspired by many authors when writing on the vital energy subject, but in particular, by:

1. Haas, Elson M. Staying Healthy with the Seasons. Berkeley: Celestial Arts, 2003. Print.

2. Beinfield, Harriet, and Efrem Korngold. Between Heaven and Earth: A Guide to Chinese Medicine. New York: Ballantine, 1992. Print.

3. Elias, Jason, and Katherine Ketcham. The Five Elements of Self-healing: Using Chinese Medicine for Maximum Immunity, Wellness, and Health. New York: Harmony, 1998. Print.

4. Gerber, Richard. Vibrational Medicine: New Choices for Healing Ourselves. Santa Fe, NM: Bear, 1996. Print.

5. The abundant writings of Deepak Chopra, M.D.

Wei Chi and Your Three Levels of Energetic Defense

According to traditional Chinese medicine (TMC), Wei Chi is protector of your outer energy field (aura). It also protects the superficial layers of the body–the skin. Any pathogen that will eventually attack the physical body needs to first defeat Wei Chi by penetrating your aura and going past it through the skin layers. Wei Chi is the energy of your immune system and guardian of your health according to TCM.

These are the four sources of Wei Chi:

1. ancestral energy over which we have no control;

2. lifestyle over which we have partial control;

3. environment over which we have partial control;

4. our positive emotional relationships over which we should be able to have the greatest influence.

Wei Chi has natural enemies.

The first group of Wei Chi’s natural enemies traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) calls the five “devils.” These are essentially climatic conditions over which we have limited to no control.

The second group of enemies is composed of the negative effect of any of TCM’s five fundamental emotions. Negative points to an excess or imbalance in that emotion.

Each of the five emotions corresponds to one of the five elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water). Each emotion is like a coin with two faces. It has a positive and a negative side.

This is key: The negative aspect of each emotion diminishes Wei Chi while the positive side of each one of them becomes our greatest opportunity to strengthen our wei chi.

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The source of Wei Chi we have the most control over relates to our emotional intelligence.

It encompasses an ability to minimize the negative while increasing the positive aspects of our emotional life. This nourishes our Wei Chi and ultimately, our immune system.

Good Wei Chi flow literally keeps us out of the doctor's office.

In the late 70s, PHYTO5 was foundedon the slogan, “Beauty is health made visible.” Updating it for today we say: “Beauty is well-being made visible.”

This motto is an expression of the PHYTO5 philosophy and mission. It’s the logical outcome of its deep roots in TCM that take into consideration all the elements that make up our being. 

Poor eating, poor breathing, lack of movement, climatic aggressions, or destructive emotions, significantly weaken Wei Chi and our immune system to the point it might no longer be able to prevent pathogens from reaching deeper into the physical body.

Fortunately, as TCM tells us, there are not one but four different energetic protection levels.

If the first level of wei chi fails, the second level of protection is the chi which flows through the body along meridians or pathways of vital energy.

There are five basic functions attributed to Chi:

1. movement

2. warmth

3. protection

4. transformation, and

5. support.

When pathogens pierce through Wei Chi to attack your chi, the illness becomes more stubborn. You experience more pronounced physical and emotional disturbance although it’s not life-threatening.

Once the illness goes deeper, it affects the vital energy of the third level of defense, the blood.

According to TCM, blood functions energetically. This function goes beyond arterial and venous circulation. It includes the movement of other fluids from the hormonal glands and the transport of nutrients, among others.

Should this master transportation system break down, the body enters a chronic illness level with severe health and emotional consequences. Pain is deeper and more prolonged.

From this one and the next level, the body might never return to full health. Containment and mitigation might be the best available outcome.

Any worsening leads to an attack on the fourth level of defense, the energy of the organs.

What’s at stake at this level is organ survival. A defeated organic chi creates a domino effect or negative spiral since each organ affects the proper function of all the others. When any organ is under siege, it deeply affects how we feel in all aspects of life.

At all levels, but particularly the third and fourth, illness is not limited to the physical aspects.

Addressing psychological, emotional, and spiritual issues are the only way to bring all aspects of our being now under siege into restored healthy alignment. 

In this state, achieving wellness might be a distant dream.

At the fourth level, survival becomes the ultimate objective.

Pain management is a moment-to-moment concern. Healing through the restoration of chi within the entire body requires appropriate holistic treatment.

In other words, a comprehensive holistic approach to getting well is absolutely required. 

…

Sources:

We’re inspired by many authors when writing on the vital energy subject, but in particular, by:

1. Haas, Elson M. Staying Healthy with the Seasons. Berkeley: Celestial Arts, 2003. Print.

2. Beinfield, Harriet, and Efrem Korngold. Between Heaven and Earth: A Guide to Chinese Medicine. New York: Ballantine, 1992. Print.

3. Elias, Jason, and Katherine Ketcham. The Five Elements of Self-healing: Using Chinese Medicine for Maximum Immunity, Wellness, and Health. New York: Harmony, 1998. Print.

4. Gerber, Richard. Vibrational Medicine: New Choices for Healing Ourselves. Santa Fe, NM: Bear, 1996. Print.

5. The abundant writings of Deepak Chopra, M.D.

30 Fun Ways to Get More Green Into Your Diet

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) tells us the Spring energetic season (February 5 to April 17) is all about the sprouting of new life. TCM assigns two shades of green to Spring’s element of Wood: warm green (yang) and bluish green (yin). And during energetic Spring it’s important to nourish our bodies with life-giving, detoxifying green.

Not everyone enjoys green leaves and vegetables but what follows are a number of novel and fun ways to make sure you amp up your diet with green and enjoy the deliciousness of it too!

While most of these ideas provide ways to creatively add greens and green foods to your entrees and side dishes, don’t be afraid to make green the main event!

Partake of the mystique of quantum energetic formulated plant-based skincare for your exalted natural beauty and well-being. Subscribe for a discount promo code, plus get truly unique beauty tips and offers.

1. Scramble your eggs with cooking greens or add them to your frittata.

2. Add fresh fruit like strawberries to make your highly nutritious spinach salad more interesting.

3. Make a batch of green pesto to have on hand for adding to dishes like pasta or for garnishing dishes like scrambled eggs, soup or roasted veggies.

4. Learn to sprout! It’s so easy to do right in your kitchen with some mason jars, cheesecloth and sprouting seeds. In just a couple days you’ve got green sprouts absolutely brimming with nutrition that you can add to salads, add as soup garnishes or throw in your smoothies.

5. Learn to identify wild edible greens and pick them. Some might be in your backyard or favorite local forest preserve.

6. Everybody loves nuts and seeds so add them to your salads. Not only will they provide texture but lots of nutrition too.

7. Add a handful of spinach or other green to your favorite smoothie to make it green. We suggest spinach ‘cause it won’t alter the flavor intent of your smoothie.

8. Garnish your soups with parsley or cilantro.

9. Never miss adding a beautiful green leaf to your sandwiches. Experiment. Go beyond iceberg or romaine lettuce.

10. Garnish your sandwich plate or even top your salad with dehydrated kale chips. Depending on the sauce massaged into the kale before dehydrating, kids will love eating them instead of potato chips.

11. Add a handful of fresh basil, leaves and stems, to your blenderized soups for a subtle flavor enhancement and nutrition boost.

12. Add green legumes like pea pods and green beans to your side dishes for color, texture and vitality.

13. Learn to make a mean tabbouli. With the main ingredient being parsley, this minted salad is incredibly fresh tasting and you’ll feel so much better about yourself after eating it! You can sub quinoa for the bulgur wheat, if you prefer, and it will taste just as great.

14. Fold finely chopped parsley or spinach into your mashed potatoes or alfredo sauce.

15. Mush some not overcooked broccoli into side dishes for texture, flavor and nutrition.

16. Make some avocado topped toast or spread your toast with a mélange of peas tossed with a small amount of olive oil, quartered grape tomatoes, and edamame. Avocado toast is a current wellness trend!

17. Add shaved or grated courgette (zucchini) into your salad.

18. Have a nice spinach salad or other green leaf salad for breakfast. It’s a fantastic way to start the day.

19. Explore fresh green herbs (oregano, rosemary, basil, dill, cilantro, chervil, chives, tarragon) and learn how to add them to your dishes for an added dimension of healing and flavor.

20. Make green bean “fries” for an awesome snack. Toss washed whole green beans with a bit of olive oil, and then garlic granules, salt and pepper to taste, and munch!

21. Make your wrap sandwiches raw wraps using collard greens, bibb lettuce or swiss chard leaves; you can do the same when making tacos, too.

22. When puréeing your homemade hummus, throw in a half cup of spinach; it will lend a green hue to the hummus and give you added nutrition, but it won’t alter the flavor of the hummus.

23. Top your burger with lightly sautéed greens.

24. Make green dips; spinach-artichoke is always nice.

25. Make simple homemade green salad dressings in your blender; throw six to eight dandelion greens in the blender along with a cup of soaked raw cashews, a half cup of soaked raw sunflower seeds, a cup of water, a squirt of lemon juice, a half teaspoon of turmeric and Himalayan salt to taste and blend until smooth. Delish.

26. Double the amount of green vegetables and half the amount of animal protein in your dishes.

27. Be a sneaky chef; purée some greens and add them to marinara sauce or grate or finely mince the greens and add them to your burger and meatloaf mix.

28. Wilt your greens like spinach, arugula, mustard and dandelion greens; you can add them to your favorite dish or eat them straight with a little salt and pepper and a dash of olive oil.

29. Slightly blacken bundles of bok choy, broccoli or asparagus spears for a unique taste and nutrition treat.

30. Consume blue-green algae like spirulina or aphanizomenon flos aquae before or after meals or even before bed.

Best Foods to Eat During Energetic Spring

Even after energetic Spring begins February 5 (according to traditional Chinese medicine [TCM]), we still experience the remnants of the Water energy of Winter. Though TCM says Spring has arrived which is the new energy of the Wood element, it's challenging to think Spring.

TCM tells us we can enjoy our best health and vitality when we live in balance with the change of the five energetic seasons and their corresponding elements (Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water).

As humans, we exist an inherent part of nature. It makes sense to live in balance with nature to enjoy our best life.

Embrace the following attributes, characteristics and specific organ activity for the Wood element and Spring season.

If you’re affected by liver problems (the organs associated with Spring are liver and gall bladder), it’s a sign your body may be suffering from insufficient or lack of Wood chi.

You can strengthen your Wood chi by consuming more Wood element foods which tend to be sour in taste (sour is the taste for the Wood element). Sour foods facilitate clearing an overburdened liver.

Wood element foods act as astringents and help the blood to circulate, your energy to flow, and emotions to move more elegantly through you.

Eating fresh greens during this season naturally cleanses the body of physical and emotional impediments. 

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Wood element foods are cooling and contracting and prevent leakage of body fluids. If you’ve been indulging in a rich, greasy diet, you’ll want to switch to the Wood element foods at this time. 

Refer to the exhaustive list of Wood foods below.

Additionally, there are some herbs and spices we can use in springtime food prep that have a sour taste: dill, sour jujube fruit, and hawthorn berry.

Certain pungent and sweet foods such as scallion, garlic, cinnamon, fennel and ginger tend to have an expansive, rising quality. They are very nice to add to springtime meals and will help you resist colds and allergies.

As always, avoid or reduce consumption of foods and drinks that have little redeeming value for the body such as deep fried foods, oil, fat (aside from the more beneficial oils and fat content derived from olive, avocado and coconut), salty foods, spicy foods, alcohol, and sweets.

While we slow cooked our food in Winter by preparing stews and hearty soups, best cooking methods for the Spring energetic season are sauté, stir fry, light simmer, blanch, quick boil, pickle, and marinate.

At this time of year, our diet should be the lightest to enable our systems to cleanse and strengthen the body, mind and spirit.

Check out PHYTO5's Wood element skincare line to address imbalance in the skin such as oiliness, blackheads, hyperpigmentation, and issues of vital energy circulation.

Best Foods for Wood Element (in alphabetical order)

• adzuki beans

• almonds

• baby spinach

• barley

• black cherry

• black currant

• blackberry

• celery

• cheese

• chicken

• chives

• cod

• collard greens

• grapefruit

• green beans

• green cabbage

• green tea

• halibut

• hazelnuts

• herring

• leafy greens

• lemon

• lettuce

• lime

• liver

• long string beans

• napa cabbage

• nuts

• oats

• olives

• peas

• pickles

• pineapple

• plums

• raspberry

• rose hips

• rye

• sauerkraut

• scallions

• sour grapes

• sour green apples

• sour green star fruit

• sourdough

• spinach

• sprouts

• tomatoes

• vinegar

• walnuts

• wheat

• yogurt

“Adapting itself to obstacles and bending around them, Wood in the earth grows upward without haste and without rest. Thus too the superior man is devoted in the character and never pauses in his progress.”  – Nei Jing (475-221 B.C.)

 …

Sources:

Nguyen, Phil N. Feng Shui for the Curious and Serious. New Jersey: Xlibris Corporation, 2008. Print.

Thunderhawk, Denise, L. Ac. The 5-Element Guide to Healing with Whole Foods. N.p.: Lulu, 2016. Print.

Best Practices for Living In Harmony with Energetic Spring

Energetic Spring begins February 5 according to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). But the weather still feels like Winter. This is because of the remnants of the Water energy of energetic Winter remain well into energetic Spring. Nevertheless, when a new energetic season begins, we should shift our lifestyles to live in harmony with the new season.

In TCM, the element represented by Spring is Wood.

To live in balance with the 5-Element Theory of TCM and indeed, to live in balance with nature of which we are an inherent part, we’ll want to embrace the following attributes, characteristics and specific organ activity for the Wood element and Spring season.

1) The color for the Wood element is green. Bring green into your life in all sorts of ways–in your diet and even in your home decor.

2) Liver and gall bladder are the organs associated with the Wood element. If you have liver or gall bladder issues and/or you have a Wood element imbalance, incorporate more of what is outlined in this post and in the post to follow into your daily life. Click here for complete best eating practices.

Indications of too much Wood chi, a Wood imbalance, include stiff muscles and joints, liver troubles, sallow or yellowish skin, panic attacks, hysteria, neck pain, and stroke. Emotion-oriented displays of Wood imbalance include anger, resentment, bitterness, lack of compassion, erratic behavior, low self-esteem, shouting, complaining, arguing, violence, abuse, incessant arguing. These indicate strong Wood imbalance.

3) In addition to food, Wood element fragrances like lavender, orange, citrus, grapefruit, and chamomile can be used and enjoyed to uplift and strengthen Wood chi and help create more balance in Wood.

4) The green gemstones of green jade, emerald, and green opal may assist the flow of Wood chi. 

5) TCM-advised sound and breathing exercises for each element also help to bring imbalance to balance. 

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For Wood, the healing sound is easy. It’s a long “Shhhh” – as in telling someone to be quiet. On the exhale of a deep breath, this sound will help to release anger and frustration. It can help to soften the person suffering with anger and at the same time assist to quell ailments in the liver and gall bladder. 

The five element healing sounds are actually breathing exercises that are best done every day at least five times a week, taking at least six deep breaths, the deeper the better. It is most beneficial to do the exercises outdoors where chi is fresh, preferably in the morning, with the sun shining on you from the East but they can most definitely be done indoors too.

You will want to inhale through your nose until your abdomen is full of fresh air and then exhale out through the mouth making the soft healing sound Shhhh. On the inhale, imagine positive chi entering your body and cleansing the negative chi and ailments in your body. On the exhale, imagine pushing out the negative chi and ailments.

6) It is important to practice mindfulness and meditation at this time of year to bring clarity of vision, because the liver governs the health of the eyes and the clarity received applies both literally and figuratively. 

7) The time is energetic Spring! Rise early with the sun and take brisk walks. Live in harmony with Spring!

Check out PHYTO5's Wood element skincare line to address imbalance in the skin such as oiliness, blackheads, hyperpigmentation, and issues of vital energy circulation.

…

Sources:

Nguyen, Phil N. Feng Shui for the Curious and Serious. New Jersey: Xlibris Corporation, 2008. Print.

Thunderhawk, Denise, L. Ac. The 5-Element Guide to Healing with Whole Foods. N.p.: Lulu, 2016. Print.

Skincare Professionals! Here's How to Truly Set Yourself Apart from All the Other Spas In Your Area

PHYTO5 equipment was designed and is manufactured in Europe starting with earlier versions several decades ago. It stems from our conviction that in addition to the visible aspect of the human body, there are others, unseen, with great influence on how we feel and how we look, namely, our energy envelope and interior energetic centers and pathways.

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These are the tenets of PHYTO5’s philosophy which we apply to our award winning technology:

1. The body is not simply matter but vital energy as well. It is vital energy which makes vital matter vital (alive vibrationally). This understanding dates back to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and Ayurvedic medicine. It was revived in the twentieth century with the findings of quantum physics. Since those findings, a number of members of the medical community in Europe, Asia, and the U. S. have conducted conclusive research on the subject. Today, vital energy is measurable, thus proven. It is a carrier of essential information to all cells, tissues and organs of the body.

2. The body is about 80% fluids (matter). TCM highlights five major fluids: water, arterial blood (red blood), venous blood (blue blood), lymph, and vital energy. The function of the major fluids is to provide oxygen and nutrients to all cells and tissues (function of red blood), and consequently, to provide waste removal (blue blood removes carbonic gas and lymph removes waste matter resulting from the metabolism of the cells). Water being the largest component of the body, it must be allowed to circulate and not stagnate. That circulation depends on the activity of the diaphragm when we breathe and move around. It needs to fight gravity that would accumulate water in our legs. None of those functions would occur with the flow of vital energy.

3. The skin is an organ. It receives vital energy and its tissues are fed and cleansed by the harmonious workings of the energy of the five elements and the proper circulation of the five fluids corresponding to the five elements.

4. TCM attributes five aspects (phases or components) to vital energy. They are called the five elements. Each element drives the energy that is specific to each one of the five fluids.

5. Everything in the body is in a vibrational state. In fact, everything in the universe and on planet Earth is submitted to its own vibrational state although our five physical senses are not equipped to notice.

6. Any object (matter)–any piece of solid or amount of fluid–will respond to a specific vibration according to its mass. It is called the “pitch” of the object. This is part of the laws of harmonics stemming from the study of music whose consequences have been used in modern engineering and many other fields. 

7. In his book Vibrational Medicine, Richard Gerber, MD. states two important truths:

• “The physical body is actually a complex network of interwoven energy fields.”

• “If we are beings of energy, it follows that we can be affected by energy.”

Of course, we can be affected either in positive (wellness enhancing) ways as we can be affected in negative ways ranging from discomfort to illness.

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Equipment

There are two primary pieces of equipment created by PHYTO5:

1. The Biorhythmic Drainer: This technology balances the five major fluids according to TCM. A number of companies have created similar drainage machines or incorporated similar functions in multi-purpose pieces of equipment, however the PHYTO5 Biorhythmic Drainer is still unique inasmuch as it is not limited to lymph drainage.

2. The Chromapuncteur is a light machine. This PHYTO5 machine is unique inasmuch as it does not use LED technology that provides limited frequencies but a dichroic filter technology that reproduces the entire range of frequencies for each of the seven natural component colors of sunlight. The Chromapuncteur can be used to work on acupuncture points, chakras (energetic centers), reflex zones, and to perform energetic drainage in tandem with the Biorhythmic Drainer.

3. Each piece of equipment can be free-standing, or the two can be combined to work together, in particular, to perform “energetic drainages” for the purpose of balancing the five major fluids. The machines are made to connect together the mechanical movement of the drainage with the energetic potency of any of the nine colors of light from the Chromapuncteur.

A third piece of equipment, the Biostimulateur, is totally unmatched in the industry, and reserved for advanced energetic treatments on energetic zones, acupuncture points and meridians, in support of treatments offered in spas, wellness centers, and skincare institutes.

How PHYTO5 Equipment Works

Here we are focusing on the two primary pieces of PHYTO5 equipment:

1. Biorhythmic Drainer: Its purpose is to be able to balance any of the five major fluids of TCM (water, red blood, blue blood, lymph, and vital energy). All skin conditions can be improved by working not only at the level of the skin, but also on the energy of the fluids. To that end, the Biorhythmic Drainer has five pre-calibrated frequencies that set the proper (balanced) rhythm of each of the five fluids. Since each fluid, when balanced, has its own specific “pitch” and moves at its own specific rhythm, the drainage with the Biorhythmic Drainer using the pre-calibrated rhythm will “remind” the fluid to move at its proper rhythm to maintain its harmonious movement thereby providing optimum function.

2. Chromapuncteur: Light is energy that moves as electromagnetic waves. Each of the seven component colors of white (sun) light consists of a range of frequencies. The equipment reproduces that range for each of the colors offered by the machine. The “pitch” of each fluid will respond to a specific color of light because it is in harmony with that particular range of frequencies. 

To Sum It Up:

1. The Biorhythmic Drainer is superior to any other similar machine for two reasons:

   1. No other machine has a systematic way to work on more than simply lymph.

   2. It is made to be combined with the Chromapuncteur to perform award-winning“energetic drainages” that are unique to PHYTO5.

2. Although the Biorhythmic Drainer has a proven track record and can significantly improve the results of any skincare treatment (face and/or body), the results are enhanced when both Biorhythmic Drainer and Chromapuncteur work in tandem to perform the “energetic drainages” and balance the energy of all five TCM fluids.

3. With the Chromapuncteur, not only are energetic drainages possible, but additional energetic work using light therapy becomes available.

Eat Consciously. Get These Tips.

Most people are now aware that fast foods are generally bad for their health and that consumption of fried foods should be kept to a minimum.

There are many slimming diets on the market, but too often they are not balanced meals for proper ongoing nutrition.

We are all very different physically and so are our nutritional needs. It makes sense to try to find an approach that is adapted to you, rather than following government sponsored guidelines that are flawed. These guidelines treat everyone as if they were made by the same widget factory.

The concept that Dr. Peter J. D’Adamo outlines in his book, Eat Right for Your Type, makes sense because it recognizes our individual differences based on our blood type (one of four) corresponding to different metabolic capabilities and, consequently, different nutritional needs.

Ayurveda also teaches nutrition according to the three doshas or energetic types known as pitta, vata, and kapha. Ayurveda also illustrates the need to adapt to our specific composition or dominating energies.

Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig, Ph.D. challenges, in an informed and documented way, what they call the “Diet Dictocrats” who are all the governmental and quasi-governmental agencies more bent on defending the interests of powerful corporate lobbies than promoting the well-being of the people.

Energetic Food: Traditional Chinese Medicine offers an approach to nutrition based on the five elements. That is the basis for the FoodScan program created by the German company, Medprevent whose approach is very complementary to the PHYTO5 method. And the work of Dr. Haas, author of Staying Healthy with the Seasons, is in total harmony with the PHYTO5 approach.

From an energetic point of view, it is good to remember that food releases energy during the metabolism process. Both the quantity and the quality of energy matter.

Food contributes to the vital energy that we need, but that energy comes with a certain bulk that needs both energy and oxygen to process.

It is advisable to eat what is energetically rich (natural nutrients) with limited bulk and to avoid what is abundant in bulk but limited in energy. In this respect, the model of good food is a genuine farm egg that is free of added antibiotics and hormones. It represents great concentration of nutrients for a small volume.

Partake of the mystique of quantum energetic formulated plant-based skincare for your exalted natural beauty and well-being. Subscribe for a discount promo code, plus get truly unique beauty tips and offers.

The worst is any bulky food heated in a microwave oven that kills all the nutrients and remains void of vital energy. Many people have a bulk-rich diet void of nutrients and vital energy. As a result, they remain hungry and eat more bulk that eventually accumulates in their body. It becomes a vicious cycle. It is one of the real issues in the standard American diet, yet few people speak about it in those terms because the politically powerful food industry is more about bulk than nutrition.

The energetic quality of our food is either yin or yang.

Meat is more yang than vegetables. Red meat is the most yang; veal or pork are less yang; and poultry the least yang of meat.

Although, some fish, such as tuna, is quite yang, fish is more yin than meat.                                                   

Vegetables that grow in the ground such as potatoes and beets are more yang than leafy vegetables.

It is recommended to eat cooling or yin food during the strong yang season such as Summer and to eat yang food during the strong yin season of Winter.

It makes more sense to have a steak and mashed potatoes in the Winter than on a hot summer day when salads and fruit are more appropriate.

It is always recommended to eat the food of the season because they are in balance with the energy of that season. The color of fruit and vegetables is often used as a telltale sign of when it is best to eat them.

For example, yellow fruit and vegetables are recommended during the transitional Earth season happening now (the period of 18 days between seasons), while a (red) tomato is preferred during the Summer, the season of the Fire element according to traditional Chinese medicine).

The Chinese New Year Is January 28. What We Can Learn from Taoist Astrology for 2017.

The Chinese calendar is based on the lunar cycle, contrary to the Gregorian calendar which is based on the apparent movement of the sun. The date of each Chinese New Year takes place on the second moon after the Winter solstice. Because the dates of the new moon vary from year to year, it follows that the date of the New Year varies from one year to the next. 

The Chinese New Year is broadly observed in Asia and Southeast Asia, particularly, China, Korea and Japan. It has its roots in Taoism.

Partake of the mystique of quantum energetic formulated plant-based skincare for your exalted natural beauty and well-being. Subscribe for a discount promo code, plus get truly unique beauty tips and offers.

It is interesting to note that there are twelve branches in Taoist astrology as is the case for Western astrology with the twelve signs of the zodiac. Each branch is designated by the name of an animal reflecting some of the characteristics implied in the nature of the animal. 

As with all things that are rooted in Taoism, each branch is declined in five versions to reflect the characteristics of each of the five elements of Chinese medicine—Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water—and also, simultaneously, by the yin/yang duality.

Consequently, there are six yang branches and six yin branches. It means that 6 of the 12 animals are deemed yin and 6 are deemed yang. The yang years are the ones ending with an even number; and the yin years are the ones ending with an odd number. The yin animals will only appear in years ending with an odd number, and the yang animals will only appear in years ending with an even number.

Altogether, this creates a cycle of 60 years. It means that the yearly characteristics of Taoist astrology repeat themselves only every 60 years. It provides for ample distinctions on the energetic influence of each year! It is interesting to note the influence of numerology in the organization of the Chinese astrology system. 

The Chinese New Year starting January 28, 2017, is the one of the Phoenix, more popularly described as the Rooster. It is defined as a yin branch (animal), but as it is declined in the 5 elements, each element brings a lesser or greater yin or yang influence.

2017 is a year for a Fire type animal as it is the case for any year ending with a 7. Phoenix being a yin animal, will appear with the yin aspect of Fire. That combination – yin of Fire - is given the purple color which is why 2017 is the year of the Purple Phoenix.

A yang animal, such as the Monkey (the animal of 2016) during a Fire year (as it was in 2016) represents the yang of the yang and is given the descriptive color of red. No wonder that the Red Monkey of 2016 created such havoc on so many different levels! It was predicted.

In 2017, the characteristics of the Purple Phoenix are defined by a Fire influence, the most yang aspect of the 5 elements, but it is tempered by its inherent yin.  

Taoist astrology predicts that: “The year of the phoenix is a time of practical endeavors, conscientiousness, hard work, and discipline. Politically, conservative police states gain power, and law and order are championed.” 

“Purple Phoenix adores the spotlight…In business, Purple Phoenix desires success, fame, wealth, and status in society. She is intense and competitive when pursuing materialistic goals…” –Susan Levitt in Taoist Astrology: A Handbook of the Authentic Chinese Tradition.

A Tao Te Ching Verse for Phoenix

Fame or integrity: which is more important?

Money or happiness: which is more valuable?

Success or failure: which is more destructive?

If you look to others for fulfillment you will never truly be fulfilled.

If your happiness depends on money you will never be happy with yourself.

Be content with what you have. Rejoice in the way things are.

When you realize nothing is lacking the whole world belongs to you.

 …

Sources:

Levitt, Susan. Taoist Feng Shui: The Ancient Roots of the Chinese Art of Placement. Rochester, VT.: Destiny, 2000. Print.

Levitt, Susan, and Jean Tang. Taoist Astrology: A Handbook of the Authentic Chinese Tradition. p. 171. Rochester, VT: Destiny, 1997. Print.