Why does my acupuncturist keep telling me not to consume cold food and drinks?

You’ve heard it over and over from your Chinese Medicine doctor: “don’t eat or drink anything cold. Especially with ice!” What’s the rationale behind this? First, we’ll start with Chinese Medical theory and then conclude with Western Medical theory on why you shouldn’t consume cold food and drinks. And we’ll also see how the two medicines see eye-to-eye on this issue.

In Chinese Medical physiology, the stomach is the first organ to receive food and drink and has been compared to a cauldron in which foods are “cooked” by the stomach fire. Because foods are “cooked” by the stomach fire, anything cold hinders this process. After it has been cooked, it then becomes “the pit where rotting and ripening occurs”. I know, it sounds pretty gruesome. We’ll see later how this process has a western explanation.

In Western physiology, digestion first occurs in the mouth through chewing and saliva. It then proceeds to the stomach where enzymes and acids continue the digestive process. The key term we’re going to focus on is “enzymes”.

Enzymes are biological catalysts and enormously speed up cell reactions. And in this situation, we’re talking about speeding up the digestive process without expending additional energy. Now, these stomach enzymes are influenced by temperature and pH (we won’t be talking about pH today). And guess what the optimal temperatures are for mammalian enzymes? The ideal is roughly body temperature (86-113 degrees Fahrenheit).

So what happens when you have an iced tea, cereal with milk, ice cream or a frosty beer? The stomach enzymes react to the cold temperature and become sluggish and unresponsive. This dramatically slows down the digestive process and the body expends additional energy trying to break down foods. This can lead to fatigue/sleepiness after meals, bloating, stomach discomfort, belching and gas.

What can you do to avoid this? One, don’t drink cold beverages. Instead of refrigerating or icing your favorite drink, leave it out and consume at room temperature. Two, if you do eat or drink something cold, try to combine it with something hot. For instance, have hot tea with your cold cereal or a hot soup with a salad. If you still have problems digesting cold foods or drinks, you may have to cut it out entirely until your body becomes stronger.