Core tip: As it turns cold, the human blood begins to astringe, and it is particularly suitable to eat chestnuts to take a tonic. The warm sweet chestnut has an effect of nourishing the stomach and invigorating the spleen, reinforcing the kidney and strengthening the sinew, promoting blood circulation and arresting bleeding, relieving cough and reducing sputum.

As it turns cold after the first frost, the human blood begins to astringe, and it is particularly suitable to eat chestnuts to take a tonic. The warm sweet chestnut has an effect of nourishing the stomach and invigorating the spleen, reinforcing the kidney and strengthening the sinew, promoting blood circulation and arresting bleeding, relieving cough and reducing sputum. The chestnut is especially suitable for the people having chronic diarrhea caused by deficiency cold of spleen and stomach, soreness of waist and knee, paralysis of the limbs and frequent urination caused by kidney deficiency.

Eating chestnuts after the first frost helps to reinforce the kidney and benefit Qi, reducing the risk of disease.

From a traditional Chinese medicine perspective, the chestnut is warm and sweet in nature; it has an effect of reinforcing the kidney and strengthening the sinew after entering the spleen, stomach and kidney channel, suitable for the people having soreness of waist and knee caused by kidney deficiency or legs and the middle aged and the elderly having feet weakness and frequent urination.  In addition, eating raw chestnuts has an effect of arresting bleeding and treating symptoms such as hematemesis, epistaxis and hemafecia.

The chestnut can be fried and boiled, with various ways to eat. Except for a sweet and delicious flavor, the chestnut has an effect of harmonizing the stomach and invigorating the spleen. The chestnut has an effect of inducing astringency and diarrhea, as well as coordinating intestines and stomach for the spleen-deficiency syndrome caused by the excessively fine modern diet and infantile dietary bias which is not uncommon. 

But it is important to note that the chestnut is sweeter and people with diabetic condition shouldn’t eat chestnuts. Eating too many chestnuts will cause stagnating and slimy as well as dyspepsia, and therefore, infants and the people with deficiency of spleen and stomach and chronic gastrointestinal diseases had better eat less chestnuts.

Chestnut Nutrition

The chestnut is tasty and it appears on the market in great quantities in late autumn. The aroma of chestnuts roasted with sugar at streets and lanes evokes memories of its soft and sweet flavor.

The chestnut is rich in nutrients, having 5.7 grams of protein, 2 grams of fat, 40 to 45 grams of carbohydrate and 25 grams of starch per 100 grams. The vitamin content reaches 40 to 60 milligrams in raw chestnuts and 25 milligrams in cooked chestnuts.

The chestnut also contains inorganic salts, such as calcium, phosphorus and ferrum, and carotene and B-complex vitamins. The chestnut is rich in carbohydrate and it can provide more calories, more conductive to the protection against cold in autumn and winter.

Health care efficacies of chestnuts:

1. The chestnut can treat hypertension, coronary disease, atherosclerosis and osteoporosis thanks to its abundant unsaturated fatty acid, vitamins and minerals, and it is an excellent anti-aging tonic promoting longevity;

2. The chestnut contains riboflavin and eating chestnuts regularly is beneficial in fighting refractory infantile mouth sores and dental ulcer of adults;

3. The chestnut is a dried fruit variety rich in carbohydrate, which can provide more calories for the human body and help fat metabolism, with an effect of benefiting Qi and invigorating the spleen, as well as reinforcing the stomach and intestines;

4. The chestnut contains abundant

vitamin C, which can maintain the normal function of teeth, bones, blood vessels and muscles, and prevent and treat osteoporosis, lassitude in loin and legs, arthralgia and myalgia, and muscle and bone weakness. It is an ideal health fruit for the aged postponing the aging process.