Weight Loss, Blood Sugar Reduction, and Blood Pressure Stabilization: A Guide to Tea Therapy and Medicinal Diets for the Three Highs

Apple Tea

Ingredients: 2 apples, 50g cornstarch, 20g brown sugar.

Preparation: Soak the apples in water for 30 minutes, wash them thoroughly, then chop them into a puree with the peel on. Add an appropriate amount of water to a pot, add the cornstarch, bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer over low heat until it becomes a thin paste. Add the apple puree and brown sugar, stir well, and bring to a boil again over low heat. It can be drunk as a tea substitute.

Efficacy: Tonifies Qi and strengthens the spleen, warms the meridians and dispels cold. Apples have the effects of tonifying Qi and strengthening the spleen, astringing the intestines and stopping diarrhea, and apples also have a certain effect on the prevention and treatment of hypertension; brown sugar can tonify the middle and invigorate Qi, and warm the stomach. Suitable for patients with hypertension and diabetes.

Ginseng Fruit Tea

Ingredients: 30g fresh ginseng fruit, 3g green tea.

Preparation: Wash the ginseng fruit, cut it into chunks, place it in a pot, add 1000mL of water, bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer over low heat for 15 minutes. Use the decoction to brew tea. **Efficacy:** Strengthens the heart and kidneys, promotes body fluid production and quenches thirst, invigorates the spleen and stomach, regulates menstruation and promotes blood circulation. Ginseng fruit is rich in zinc, selenium, and calcium, and has anti-cancer, anti-aging, blood pressure lowering, blood sugar lowering, anti-inflammatory, calcium supplementation, and beauty-enhancing effects. Suitable for patients with hypertension and hyperglycemia.

**Broad Bean Flower Tea:** Ingredients: 10g broad bean flowers.

Preparation: Place broad bean flowers in a covered teacup, pour boiling water over them, and steep for 5-10 minutes.

Efficacy: Clears heat and cools the blood, calms the liver and stops bleeding. Broad bean flowers cool the blood and stop bleeding, and can treat various internal bleeding and hypertension. Suitable for those with hypertension accompanied by bleeding symptoms.

**Bitter Melon Tea:** Ingredients: 1 fresh bitter melon, appropriate amount of tea leaves.

Preparation: Cut the bitter melon in half horizontally, remove the seeds and pith, stuff with tea leaves, join the pieces together, and hang in a ventilated place to dry in the shade. Dosage: 6-9g each time, decocted in water or steeped in boiling water, drunk as tea.

Efficacy: Cools and reduces internal heat, clears the mind and improves eyesight. Bitter melon can clear heat and detoxify, promote urination and relieve summer heat, and aid digestion. It is suitable for patients with hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and hyperglycemia.

Polygonatum odoratum Tea

Ingredients: 10g Polygonatum odoratum, 3g green tea.

Preparation: Place Polygonatum odoratum and green tea in a cup, pour in 300mL of boiling water, and drink.

Effects: Nourishes Yin and moistens dryness, promotes body fluid production and quenches thirst. Polygonatum odoratum contains various glycosides, amino acids, zinc, manganese, and other nutrients, which have the effects of protecting the heart and blood vessels, clearing toxins from the body, and delaying aging. Suitable for patients with hyperlipidemia and hypertension.

Hawthorn and Lotus Leaf Tea

Ingredients: 20g fresh hawthorn, 10g lotus leaf.

Preparation: Wash and dry the fresh hawthorn and lotus leaf. Slice the hawthorn thinly and cut the lotus leaf into thin strips. Boil or steep in boiling water. Drink as tea.

Effects: Strengthens the spleen and stomach, promotes urination and reduces swelling. Hawthorn has stomach-strengthening, digestive, and blood-stasis-dispersing effects; lotus leaf has diuretic, dampness-removing, and edema-reducing effects. Suitable for patients with hypertension and hyperlipidemia.

Lotus Leaf and Hyacinth Bean Tea

Ingredients: 1 lotus leaf, 30g white hyacinth beans.

Preparation: Cut the lotus leaf into shreds, decoct with the white hyacinth beans, remove the residue, and drink.

Efficacy: Clears summer heat and promotes diuresis. Hyacinth beans have the effect of resolving dampness and relieving summer heat; lotus leaf has diuretic, dampness-removing, and edema-reducing effects. Suitable for patients with hypertension and hyperlipidemia.

Two-Melon Blood Sugar Lowering Tea

Ingredients: 300g pumpkin, 50g bitter melon.

Preparation: Wash the pumpkin and cut into thin slices; remove the seeds from the bitter melon, wash, cut into thin shreds, dry, grind into powder, and divide into 3 equal portions. Add the pumpkin slices and appropriate amount of water to a pot, bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer over low heat until the melon is soft and tender. Remove and mash the melon with a spoon, then put it back into the pot and stir well. Take one portion of bitter melon powder each time, swallowed with melon soup. Three times daily for 10 days as one course of treatment.

Efficacy: Strengthens the spleen and stomach, clears heat and detoxifies. Pumpkin has the effects of moistening the lungs and replenishing qi, resolving phlegm and draining pus, expelling parasites and detoxifying, and can also effectively prevent and treat diabetes and lower blood sugar; bitter melon can clear heat and detoxify, promote urination and relieve summer heat, and aid digestion. Suitable for patients with high blood sugar.

Winter Melon Peel Tea
Ingredients: 30g winter melon peel.

Preparation: Grind the winter melon peel into coarse powder, put it in a cup, pour in boiling water, and drink as tea.

Efficacy: Promotes diuresis and reduces swelling, clears summer heat and eliminates dampness. Winter melon peel can promote diuresis, eliminate dampness and reduce swelling. Drinking it as tea can remove excess water and dampness from the body, thereby reducing swelling and slimming the body, and can also lower blood pressure and blood lipids. Suitable for patients with various types of hypertension and hyperlipidemia.

Jujube and Plum Tea
Ingredients: 15 jujubes, 10 plums.

Preparation: Boil jujubes and dried plums in water, remove the dregs, and drink as tea.

Efficacy: Nourishes Yin and Qi, promotes body fluid and quenches thirst. Jujubes have the effects of tonifying the middle and replenishing Qi, nourishing blood and calming the mind; dried plums can astringe sweat, promote body fluid and quench thirst. Suitable for those with high blood sugar who are deficient in both Qi and Yin.

Gentian Tea
Ingredients: 5g gentian, 20g green tea.

Preparation: Wash the gentian, cut it into sections, and brew it with warm water along with the green tea.

Efficacy: Clears liver heat, promotes diuresis and reduces fire. Gentian clears heat and dries dampness, reduces fire and detoxifies, and can lower blood pressure. Suitable for patients with hypertension and its complications.

Medicinal Diet Recipes for Lowering the Three Highs, Safeguarding Health

(1) Medicinal Diet for Lowering Blood Sugar
Angelica and Codonopsis Stewed Chicken
Ingredients: 35g angelica, 20g codonopsis, 1500g chicken, appropriate amounts of ginger, scallions, rice wine, and salt. Preparation: After killing the hen, remove feathers and internal organs, and wash thoroughly. Place angelica root and codonopsis root inside the hen's abdomen, put it in a casserole dish, add seasonings and an appropriate amount of water, bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer over low heat until the chicken is tender and the meat easily separates from the bone.

Efficacy: Tonifies qi and blood, replenishes vital energy. Angelica root invigorates blood and replenishes blood; codonopsis root tonifies qi and replenishes deficiency; hen provides warmth and greatly replenishes vital energy. Suitable for those with long-term diabetes and qi and blood deficiency, and physical weakness.

Steamed Tea-Stewed Crucian Carp
Ingredients: Approximately 500g crucian carp, appropriate amount of green tea.

Preparation: Keep the scales on the crucian carp, wash it, and stuff its abdomen with green tea. Consume once daily, eating the fish meat plain.

Efficacy: Replenishes deficiency and quenches thirst. Crucian carp replenishes deficiency and clears heat; green tea promotes body fluid production, quenches thirst, and clears heat. Suitable for those with diabetes and qi and blood deficiency accompanied by heat.

Corn Silk Stewed Clam Meat
Ingredients: 50g corn silk, 200g clam meat, 3g salt. Preparation: Wash corn silk and clam meat, place them in a clay pot, add water, and simmer over low heat until tender. Add salt to taste.

Efficacy: Diuretic and thirst-quenching. Corn silk promotes urination and removes dampness; clam meat nourishes yin and blood, clears heat and detoxifies. Suitable for diabetes and diabetes complicated with nephropathy.

Clam and Bitter Melon Soup
Ingredients: 250g bitter melon, 100g clam meat.

Preparation: Keep live clams in clean water for 2 days to remove sand. Wash the clam meat and place it in a pot with the bitter melon. Add an appropriate amount of water and cook into a soup. Season to taste and serve as a side dish.

Efficacy: Clears heat and detoxifies, relieves irritability and quenches thirst. River clams nourish yin and blood, clear heat and detoxify; bitter melon clears heat and detoxifies, relieves irritability. Suitable for diabetes with lung and stomach heat syndrome.