Watermelon adds juice to TCM wellness

The watermelon has long been a summer favorite for bringing a quick burst of flavor and freshness with every bite. Amid the sweltering heat in recent months, it has garnered wider attention with its lesser-known medicinal properties to relieve stomach discomfort and cough.

The "medicinal watermelon" is a traditional Chinese remedy that involves scooping out a part of the flesh and then steaming it for about an hour with a customized herbal sachet, Chinese dates and ginger. The resulting concoction, which is then poured into the rind of the watermelon, can be consumed directly with the softened dates.

After drinking this traditional Chinese medicine remedy, patients are advised to rest under a light blanket to allow the body to break into a mild sweat, said Li Wei, head of the TCM internal medicine department at Shanghai Second People's Hospital. The concoction is recommended once a week, with each treatment cycle lasting one to four weeks, he said.

"This therapy is suitable for those with a cold-deficiency constitution," Li said. "Common symptoms include chronic coughing or wheezing, asthma, recurrent stomach pain and diarrhea, as well as persistent fatigue, cold hands and feet, and an unusual sensitivity to cold."

The remedy has a slightly sweet taste with a subtle herbal accent, making it especially popular among children and elderly patients. "We have recently been prescribing 30 to 50 sachets each day," he added.

The fruity medicinal concoction traces its roots to the early 1950s, when Zhang Shaotang, a renowned TCM practitioner based in Shanghai, developed the remedy. Shanghai Second People's Hospital is currently the only hospital in China offering the treatment.

Li said the medicinal formula reflects several core TCM principles, such as harmonizing yin and yang by tempering the watermelon's cooling effect with ginger and dates, as well as the homology of medicine and food, which means using ingredients that serve both nutritional and therapeutic purposes.

The remedy also aligns with the TCM approach of treating winter ailments during the hottest days of summer — known as sanfu on the lunar calendar — to expel excess cold from the body and fend off winter illnesses ahead of time.

Li noted that the "medicinal watermelon" remedy could be used alongside sanfu moxibustion — the best-known example of this approach — or other TCM treatment, such as acupuncture, cupping and medicinal plastering, to maximize clinical outcomes.

This year's sanfu period runs from July 15 to Aug 23. Zhong Hongchun, chief physician at the TCM department of China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing, said the period is an ideal time to address health conditions, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, allergic rhinitis, chronic diarrhea, and joint pain and stiffness, through various TCM therapies.

Other medicated diets recommended during this time include lamb-and-ginger soup and astragalus-and-yam congee, Zhong said.

Liu Yang, chief physician at Dongfang Hospital of Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, suggested incorporating ingredients such as yam, lotus seeds and winter melon into one's diet during the summer heat, along with bitter and sour foods made from bitter gourd, dark plum and hawthorn.

wangxiaoyu@chinadaily.com.cn