It’s cold outside.
And your body is doing everything it can to keep that cold from getting in.
It draws inward, conserves warmth, and tries to protect the inner fire – especially the digestive fire. Because only when there is enough warmth at the center can food be transformed, energy extracted, and all internal processes function smoothly.
In winter, this is not something that happens automatically. It requires daily care.
And every time we fail to support this inner fire, it’s a bit like pouring cold water on it – again and again, often without noticing. Especially in the morning.
Temperature is more than what you feel
This is not only about how hot or cold food feels when you eat it.
In Chinese medicine, we also speak of the energetic temperature of food.
A drink can be hot – and still have a cooling effect.
Peppermint tea is a classic example. It is consumed warm, but its energetic nature is cooling. It opens, disperses, and directs warmth outward. In summer, this can be helpful. In winter, it often works against what the body is trying to do.
And in winter, this effect becomes even stronger.
External cold amplifies the cooling impact of certain foods – particularly on digestion, energy, and inner warmth.
A short but important clarification
In Chinese medicine, there are no foods that suit everyone at all times.
People with pronounced internal heat or empty heat, for example due to strong Yin deficiency, may tolerate – or even benefit from – cooling foods in moderation.
For most people in winter, however, the situation is different.
Those who tend toward Qi deficiency, general exhaustion, Yang weakness, feeling cold, or dampness are much more sensitive to cooling and raw foods. During winter, these foods are not balancing but additionally burdensome. External cold meets internal cold.
The following examples are therefore intended for those whose systems need warmth, stability, and support during the winter months.
Yogurt and banana – the worst possible choice in winter
Yogurt with banana is still widely considered a light, healthy breakfast or snack.
From the perspective of Chinese medicine, this combination is for most people the worst possible choice – and in winter its effects are even more pronounced.
Both are cooling and damp-forming. Yogurt weakens digestive fire; banana increases cold and phlegm. Together, they burden the center instead of supporting it. Many people do not feel the effects immediately, but over time: as heaviness, sluggishness, cold hands and feet, loose stools, or increasing fatigue.
Especially in the morning, this combination acts like cold water on an already sensitive inner fire.
Oranges – suited for a different climate
For many, oranges are an obvious winter food. Energetically, however, they tell a different story.
Oranges ripen in regions where the climate is hot and dry. There, they help counteract heat and preserve fluids. In cold, damp winters, when eaten raw, they act cooling and damp-forming – exactly what many bodies do not need at this time of year.
When cooked and warmed, for example in mulled drinks with grape juice and warming spices such as cinnamon and cloves, they are easier to integrate in winter. In moderate amounts, they can help soothe dry mucous membranes stressed by dry indoor heating.
Eaten raw, however, oranges continue to cool the system in winter, often burden digestion, and add internal cold to the already present external cold.
Peppermint tea – warm to drink, cooling in effect
Peppermint tea is often experienced as soothing, especially with bloating or inner restlessness. Energetically, however, it is cooling and dispersing. It opens the surface and directs warmth outward.
For people who feel cold easily, are depleted, or lack inner reserves, peppermint often intensifies that sense of cold and emptiness in winter – even when the tea itself is hot.
Overnight oats – well-intended, but often too cold
Overnight oats are practical and popular. Energetically, however, they remain raw and cold – even when made with high-quality ingredients.
Especially in the morning, they demand a great deal of digestive energy while providing little warmth in return. Many people notice the effects only over time: as heaviness, fatigue, or a lack of stability.
A warm porridge works in a fundamentally different way.
Warmth in winter is not a rule – it’s care
Winter nutrition is not about perfection or rigid rules.
It is about not extinguishing your inner fire unnecessarily.
Warmth in winter is a form of care – in preparation, in rhythm, in daily life.
And sometimes it begins very simply: with a warming soup..
