Constitution refers to the characteristics or nature of each individual based on the nature, foundation, individual form, and all functional characteristics of the body. Its origin is Hippocrates in the West and the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine in the East.
In Western constitutional theory, nature is divided into character and temperament.
Character is a predisposition to will, and is considered to be formed postnatally through environmental influences on a physiological basis, while temperament is a predisposition to emotion, and is considered to be an innate characteristic of an individual’s emotional response.
Temperament is the idea that the universe is made up of the elements of earth, wind, water, and fire, which are the elements that make up this world, starting from ancient Greek philosophy. (If you think about the origin of the universe by Galle and Thales, water and fire, you can easily understand it, right?)
Seeing this, Hippocrates claimed that the body fluids are made up of blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile, and based on this, he argued for humoral pathology. Later, Galenusson completed the theory of the four temperaments: choleric, black bile (melancholic), phlegmatic, and sanguine, based on this humoral pathology.
In the East, the classic of Oriental medicine, the Yellow Emperor’s Internal Classic, Chapter 72, Tongcheon, classifies human body types into five types based on the theory of yin and yang and the five elements.
They are the Taeyangin, Taeeumin, Soyangin, Soeumin, and Yin-Yang Hwa Pyeongjiin.
Also, in accordance with the theory of the Five Elements, the 64 Yin-Yang 25-In (Yin-Yang 25-In) of Yeongchu is divided into the five Tae-Ins of Mok-Hyeong, Hwa-Hyeong, To-Hyeong, Hyeong-Geum, and Su-Hyeong, and this is still used as a reference material in medicine.
Perhaps, it can be said that the philosophical thoughts such as the theory of the unity of energy and qi, monism, and dualism formed the basis of this constitution.
It is true that the Western theory of the four temperaments and the Eastern theory of the Five Elements have many similarities.
Lee Je-Ma, who lived in the Joseon Dynasty, put forward the theory of Sasang, and later, the theory of Palsang, etc. were also introduced, but rather than blindly believing them, we living in modern times should be aware of food compatibility and our own body condition (such as diarrhea when drinking cold water, etc. according to our constitution) and utilize them to maintain our health.
According to the Ijeoma’s Dongui Susebowon, human constitution can be divided into four types, which is similar to the four types of constitutions in ancient Rome, including choleric.
If you know your constitution well, eating foods that are suitable for your body can also help your health.
- Tae-Yeum-In
- Seafood: Shellfish, abalone, sea squirt, shrimp, sea cucumber, oyster, crab
- Vegetables: Cabbage, lettuce, cabbage, spinach, water parsley, mugwort, kale, freshwater squirt, bracken, etc. Leafy vegetables
- Tea: Green tea, lemon tea, apple tea, pine needle tea, cocoa
- Foods to avoid: Meat, dairy products, flour, fried foods, root vegetables, nuts
- Tae-Eum-In
- Seafood: Eel, pollack, croaker, cod, monkfish, shrimp, sea cucumber, oyster, crab
- Vegetables: Radish, carrot, onion, green onion, garlic, lotus root, bean sprouts, bellflower root, burdock, etc. Bellflower root vegetables
- Tea: Cassia tora tea, Job’s tears tea, Omija tea
- Foods to avoid: Green leafy vegetables, green fish, fish, green juice, shellfish
- So-Eum-In
- Seafood: Wakame, laver, kelp
- Vegetables: Mustard greens, turnips, Spicy leaves and root vegetables such as sesame leaves, chives, radish, onion, green onion, garlic
Tea: Soongnyung, corn tea, ginger tea, jujube tea, ginseng tea, honey tea, angelica tea - Foods to avoid: raw fish, barley rice, pork, squid, melon, cucumber, octopus, octopus, sea cucumber, shrimp, oyster, crab, egg white, red bean, cold food
- Soyangin
- Seafood: pufferfish, shrimp, sea cucumber, oyster, crab, squid, octopus, octopus, abalone
- Vegetables: cabbage, lettuce, cabbage, water parsley, kale, freshwater ginseng, carrots, bean sprouts, burdock, etc. Mild leaves and root vegetables
- Tea: barley tea, goji berry tea, green tea
- Foods to avoid: chicken, dog meat, goat meat, glutinous rice, brown rice, potatoes, seaweed, laver, kelp, mustard, pepper, curry, ginger, green onion, onion