Lotus Root – Clear the Lungs and Find the Root Cause!
If you are like many people in the West…you may have never heard of Lotus Root!
It is much more common and easier to find in the East…and those who are familiar with Macrobiotics will be even more likely to know about this curious and visually fascinating food.
It is full of holes…yes, it’s true…laced throughout the interior of the Lotus Root are petal-like holes, making it stunning and exotic in appearance. In fact, some people would mistake it for perforations in a potato when sliced. It is rather beautiful!
In Bio-Energetic Medicine, we determine the medicinal value of a food by its energetic signature. It resembles and draws from the concepts of Traditional Chinese Medicine, in that every food, herb, root, leaf, flower, and every other substance has a specific frequency which alters the body or instructs the energetic nature of matter to resonate with a unique pattern. We classify these patterns as sweet, sour, bitter, salty, pungent, stimulating, sedating, tonifying, and many other constructs which imply a natural way of expression. These are the tenets upon which classifications for herbs and foods are based upon in creating a formulation to bring the body back into a state of Balance and homeostasis.
This unique little Lotus Root happens to “Clear the Lungs”. So if the lungs are irritated by smoke or foreign particulates in polluted air as in major cities around the world or from tobacco or chemical solvents…Lotus Root soothes and clears the Lungs of heat. There are many ways to prepare Lotus Root and recipes are online. My personal favorite is to slice the Lotus Root and let it soften by simmering in Miso soup with ginger root, tofu, garlic, and onion with scallions and toasted sesame oil.
