新數據：蔬食飲食的確能讓身體回春 只要這樣吃

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新數據：飲食的確能讓身體回春　只要這樣吃

閱讀學習英文學習 蔬食救地球

身體機能會隨著時間逐漸衰退，如何逆齡回春，是每個人的追求和嚮往，最新研究發現，只要吃對食物，就有機會讓身體各項機能更年輕。

老化是難以逆轉的生理進程，帶來的心血管問題、失智症、各種慢性病更讓人們努力避之。儘管老化無可避免，近期有研究發現，透過正確飲食，可以讓各器官、新陳代謝逆齡回春，因為飲食能影響DNA。

研究顯示吃素8週後改變基因表現，各項生理指數都變年輕

該研究是刊登在《BMC Medicine》的兩個研究中的一個。史丹佛大學的預防醫學研究中心（Stanford Prevention Research Center）該研究將21對成年、BMI平均26的雙胞胎分成純素組和雜食組，進行8週的研究，除了看生理和心理狀況，也用細胞年齡來檢驗受試者的器官、新陳代謝和荷爾蒙等等數值是否降低；純素組避免吃動物來源食物，雜食組則是奶、蛋、肉、蔬果都吃。

研究發現，只有純素組的細胞年齡降低，包括心臟、肝臟、內分泌系統、新陳代謝系統、內分泌系統都「逆齡回春」，發炎指數也減少。不過，雜食組也有好的改變，主要是攝取較多動物性蛋白質，所以色胺酸變多、情緒比較愉悅和穩定。

飲食能影響DNA，讓身體器官和新陳代謝逆齡回春。

無糖就能降低生理年齡，即便健康飲食碰到糖也破功

另一個研究是從營養素的角度出發，研究地中海飲食、替代健康飲食（Alternative Healthy Eating）和表觀基因營養飲食（Epigenetic Nutrient）3種飲食的差異，這3種飲食的特色包括：

地中海飲食：吃大量蔬果、全穀類食物、堅果、豆類、魚類，使用橄欖油、，避免加工肉品。

替代健康飲食：高攝入量的蔬菜、水果、全穀物、堅果和豆類，低攝入量的含糖飲料、果汁和酒類。

表觀基因營養飲食：不用食物、而是以營養素當作標準，高攝入量的葉酸、維生素B12、維生素D、Omega-3脂肪酸和抗氧化劑（如維生素C和E），適量攝入膳食纖維。

研究將342名受試者隨機分成3組給予以上的飲食型態，但不限制糖分攝取，也就是說，受試者除了吃研究規定的飲食內容，不規定額外的糖要怎麼吃，藉以了解糖對細胞年齡的影響。

結果發現，這3種飲食法都能降低生理年齡，其中地中海飲食最顯著、可以使細胞年輕0.41年，但一碰到糖就破功，多攝取1公克的糖，細胞就會老化0.02年，也就是老了7.3天，即便1天不超過25克糖分攝取，吃25克糖也會使細胞老183天。

DNA猶如電腦硬體，靠後天飲食和生活好習慣修補「bug」

這2個研究的結論都是透過飲食可逆轉細胞年齡，且不約而同提到了「DNA甲基化」，該怎麼解釋？

功能醫學呂營養師比喻，DNA就像是電腦硬體，可以搭配很多軟體，也就是「甲基化」，不同軟體可以讓這台電腦有不同的功能，同時可以定期清除「bug」和更新，關閉錯誤的程式碼、打開或維持正常的程式碼運作。

甲基化是否能正常，後天生活習慣是關鍵，如果生活習慣不良、DNA甲基化功能不正常，會累積過多「bug」而當機，導致很多DNA上的基因無法正常運作，例如抗癌基因、抗老基因等，導致慢性病或遺傳疾病。

很多研究發現，即便有遺傳疾病，但透過後天飲食、營養攝取和生活習慣調整，就不一定會產生，這就是DNA甲基化有被良好的調控，因此異常表現的機率就降低了。

這2個飲食實驗都是探討食物或營養素對「DNA甲基化」的影響，發現只要健康飲食，被調控良好的DNA甲基化就會開啟抗老基因、關閉老化基因，所以能達到細胞年齡回春的效果，「蔬食的植化素提供更好的抗發炎效果、減少氧化壓力，身體能定期修復DNA，同時植化素也能保護細胞，這些蔬果的好處都能使細胞回春，」呂美寶說。

純素飲食就能贏？專家：不盡然，這樣吃才健康

飲食型態中減糖普遍被認為是正確的做法，但純素飲食是否真的健康？史丹佛大學預防醫學研究中心研究員亞若尼卡（Lucia Aronica）指出，純素食雖然能讓細胞回春，但這不代表純素食贏了，「人體需要各種營養素，長期純素食會使營養缺乏，可吃蛋奶，避免加工食品和糖才真的健康」。

營養師表示，該研究是吃純素食8週，可能還看不到身體缺乏哪些營養，如果長期吃純素食，可能會缺乏動物性食物的蛋白質、維生素B12、維生素D、鐵質、鈣質等，因此建議補強營養缺口，或是改採奶蛋素才不會缺乏營養。如果無法完全吃蔬食，可實施地中海飲食，但每月可吃幾次蔬食，即可讓身體健康，又可節能減排。

大部分資料來源康健

New data: Diet can indeed rejuvenate your body. Just eat this way

Body functions will gradually decline over time. How to reverse aging and rejuvenate is everyone's pursuit and wish. The latest research has found that as long as you do two things right in your diet, you have a chance to make all body functions younger.

Aging is a physiological process that is difficult to reverse, causing cardiovascular problems, dementia, and various chronic diseases that people avoid. However, although aging is inevitable, two studies have found that through correct diet, various organs and metabolism can be rejuvenated as we age. The reason is that diet can affect DNA.

Eight weeks of vegetarianism changed gene expression, and all physiological indexes became younger

The first study was a twin study published in BMC Medicine. This study by the Stanford Prevention Research Center divided 21 pairs of adult twins with an average BMI of 26 into a vegan group and an omnivorous group. The study was conducted for 8 weeks. In addition to looking at physiological and psychological conditions, cells were also used. Age was used to test whether the subjects' organs, metabolism, hormones, etc. were reduced; the vegan group avoided eating animal-derived foods, while the omnivorous group ate milk, eggs, meat, fruits and vegetables.

The study found that only the vegan group's cell age was reduced, including the heart, liver, endocrine system, metabolic system, and endocrine system, which were "rejuvenated" and the inflammatory index was also reduced. However, the omnivorous group also showed good changes, mainly because they consumed more animal protein, so their tryptophan increased and their mood was happier and more stable.

Diet can affect DNA and rejuvenate body organs and metabolism.

Sugar-free can reduce physiological age, even if a healthy diet encounters sugar, it will not work

Another study is to study the differences between the Mediterranean diet, Alternative Healthy Eating and Epigenetic Nutrient diets from the perspective of nutrients. The characteristics of these three diets include:

Mediterranean diet: Eat lots of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, beans, fish, olive oil, and avoid processed meats.

Alternative healthy diet: high intake of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts and legumes, low intake of sugary drinks, juices and alcohol.

Epigenetic nutritional diet: not using food, but using nutrients as the standard, high intake of folic acid, vitamin B12, vitamin D, Omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants (such as vitamins C and E), moderate intake of dietary fiber .

The study randomly divided 342 subjects into 3 groups and were given the above dietary patterns, but did not limit sugar intake. That is to say, in addition to eating the diet specified in the study, the subjects were not stipulated how to eat additional sugar, so as to understand Effects of sugar on cell age.

The results showed that these three diets can reduce physiological age. Among them, the Mediterranean diet is the most significant, and can make cells younger by 0.41 years. That is 7.3 days of aging. Even if you do not consume more than 25 grams of sugar a day, eating 25 grams of sugar will make your cells age 183 days.

DNA is like computer hardware, and "bugs" can be fixed by acquired diet and good living habits.

These two studies concluded that cell age can be reversed through diet, and they both mentioned "DNA methylation". How to explain it?

Functional medicine nutritionist Lu likes that DNA is like computer hardware, which can be matched with many software, that is, "methylation". Different software can allow this computer to have different functions, and at the same time, "bugs" can be removed and updated regularly. Close faulty code, open or maintain normal code operation.

Whether methylation can be normal depends on acquired living habits. If living habits are poor and DNA methylation function is abnormal, too many "bugs" will accumulate and crash, causing many genes on DNA to not function normally, such as anti-cancer. Genes, anti-aging genes, etc., leading to chronic diseases or genetic diseases.

Many studies have found that even if there are genetic diseases, they may not occur through acquired diet, nutritional intake and lifestyle adjustments. This is because DNA methylation is well-regulated, so the chance of abnormal manifestations is reduced.

These two dietary experiments both explore the impact of food or nutrients on "DNA methylation". They found that as long as you eat a healthy diet, well-regulated DNA methylation will turn on anti-aging genes and turn off aging genes, so you can reach the age of your cells. Regarding the rejuvenation effect, "The phytochemicals in vegetable food provide better anti-inflammatory effects and reduce oxidative stress. The body can repair DNA regularly. At the same time, phytochemicals can also protect cells. The benefits of these fruits and vegetables can rejuvenate cells," Lu Meibao explain.

Can a vegan diet win? Expert: Not necessarily, this is the only healthy way to eat

Reducing sugar in the diet is generally considered the right thing to do, but is a vegan diet really healthy? Lucia Aronica, a researcher at the Preventive Medicine Research Center at Stanford University, pointed out that although a vegan diet can rejuvenate cells, this does not mean that the vegan diet has won. “The human body needs various nutrients, and long-term vegan diets will lead to nutritional deficiencies. You can eat eggs and milk and avoid processed foods and sugar to be truly healthy."

Nutritionists said that the study was based on eating a pure vegetarian diet for 8 weeks, so it may not be possible to see what nutrients the body lacks. If you eat a pure vegetarian diet for a long time, you may lack protein, vitamin B12, vitamin D, iron, calcium, etc. from animal foods. , so it is recommended to make up for the nutritional gap, or switch to lacto-evo-vegetarian so as not to lack nutrients. If you are unable to eat completely vegetarian food, you can implement a Mediterranean diet, but you can eat vegetarian food a few times a month to keep your body healthy and save energy and reduce emissions.

年輕世代為什麼愛吃素？

 不容小覷的素食潮流～ 2020年全球彈性素食者已達42%

社群媒體影響Z世代蔬食主義新趨勢

文章發表於2020年Media

素食成為越來越多人的選擇

近年來， 隨著現代人對於健康、環境，和動物保育的意識提升，「素食」不再只侷限於宗教信仰，而是展開了一個全新的飲食文化趨勢。其實台灣人愛吃素是世界數一數二的，早在2017年時，台北就被CNN評選為「世界十大素食友善城市」，台灣的素食人口數，更是全球排名第三。根據《世界素食人口報告》 指出，台灣的蔬食人口（含彈性素食者）已高達300萬人，佔總人口約13%。

蔬食是一種選擇：彈性素食主義

儘管全球的全素食人口仍佔少數，但盡量減少食用某些動物性製品的人卻越來越多，這些所謂的「彈性素食主義者」並不完全排斥動物性產品，但更偏好食用植物性產品或蔬菜。而這群人在2020年便已高達全球人口42%。

各球素食人口占比前十的國家

瞄準這一波趨勢和消費者口味的改變，各大餐飲業邁向著「素食文化」發展，推出了各式新的素食菜單，知名連鎖超商也紛紛開設素食專區好讓素食族群用餐更加方便。但令我們好奇的是，究竟這股蔬食旋風是如何興起的呢？

全球對於素食的關注度不斷上升，而台灣也緊緊跟上潮流。根據Google Trends 的數據顯示，2020 年在Google 上與素食有關議題的搜尋量增長47%，比5年前高出兩倍的普及率。

最流行吃素的國家

十年前，素食主義的概念還並不盛行，大多數人也只是停留在宗教信仰的認知層面。如今，在社群與數位化媒體的推波下，素食主義儼然已成為一種時尚和潮流。除了台灣以外，我們盤點了三個重要的素食友好國家，帶各位認識各地不同的素食文化：

一、印度

印度是全世界素食人口排名第一的國家，共有超過4億的素食者。有趣的是，印度的素食文化不僅僅是一種飲食行為 — — 由於宗教、種姓制度，和歷史的關係，吃素逐漸變成在高社會階層、富有和優雅的象徵。在 2014 年，印度城市帕莉塔納城（Palitana）成為了世上第一個素食城市，並且也在2015年禁止了許多城市的動物宰殺和非法售肉行為。

二、瑞士

由瑞士素食協會所調查的「瑞士人口與素食」顯示，大約260萬（約1/3的瑞士人口）正在減少肉類消費。素食在瑞士的流行，不僅是因為當地居民極高的環保、健康意識，更因為相較其他國家，素食在這裡極其容易購買以及享用。順帶一提，世界上第一家素食餐廳就是位於瑞士名城蘇黎世，至今已有超過百年的歷史。

三、德國

豬腳和香腸遠近馳名的德國，如今也掀起吃素風潮，漸漸成為了新的主流。CNN 報導表示德國在2016年推出了許多純素食品，全球約 18% 的純素食品都是從德國出口的。他們利用大豆之類的植物性蛋白研發了和肉相同的口味和口感，好讓入門的吃素者更加適應習慣。在 2011 年，柏林也開設了歐洲第一間純素連鎖超市Veganz，如今在德國已有10間分店，提供超過 4,500 種素食產品。

為什麼吃素？年輕人少吃肉者比例更高，原因竟與社群平台有關？

根據全球市調公司歐睿國際（Euromonitor International）2021年3月針對素食者以及植物性食品前景所發布的報告《Going Plant-Based: The Rise of Vegan and Vegetarian Food》指出，隨著素食者對於吃素的倡導和討論，素食人口持續成長，每年的搜尋量與社群聲量也持續攀升。吃素的原因和動機非常多元化，包括因信仰而吃素的宗教原因、抵制不道德的動物飼養、希望降低二氧化碳排放量幫助環保，以及為了健康飲食的訴求，藉由蔬食飲食達成健康目標。隨著追求素食主義的人越來越多，餐飲業也不斷地研發更精緻和美味的素食餐，提高潛在素食者的接受度。

但是為什麼年輕人更愛吃素呢？食力FoodNext指出在這群蔬食主義者中有越來越高的比例來自年輕族群：1995年後出生的Z 世代中，有54% 的受訪者表示他們正在減少食用肉類或其他動物性質的產品；而在1950年代出生的嬰兒潮同樣的比例則為34%。這些數據顯示年輕人似乎更加在乎素食議題，並尋找更健康和道德的食品選擇。

Source: Euromonitor International《Going Plant-Based: The Rise of Vegan and Vegetarian Food》

社群媒體影響年輕世代

Z世代作為網路原生世代，其中有70%的時間每天都在使用Facebook與Instagram等社群媒體，而透過在社群平台發文、討論，可以更容易號召與凝聚集體意識。同時，像崇尚環保、維護動物權益而減少肉食的行為，容易在年輕人社群中帶來模仿效應；再加上KOL的影響力，也使得更多年輕族群加入了蔬食社群；最後，這些社群使用者也能透過參與及分享的方式，來獲得歸屬感及認同，進而影響更多同溫層。

社群討論狀況

根據LnData社群系統Ln{Social}爬搜結果顯示，關於「素食/蔬食」的討論聲量非常高，僅以4/14~8/15四個月的期間，便有高達23,690篇討論。主要來源自Facebook上許多名人/KOL的分享素食或吃素有關的話題，進而帶動許多粉絲關注與回應；Instagram則更集中於蔬食餐廳美食的分享，但也有不少人是從健康/環保的切角進行分享；PTT網友們集中在台灣吃素環境與不同素食類型的討論上；Dcard上也有不少網友分享自身的減塑生活，連帶提及蔬食體驗。

整體來說，台灣網友的社群討論趨勢與研究結果大體一致，消費者選擇蔬食的原因不外乎便是環保永續、健康、宗教與動保因素，進而也開始有對於各議題更深度的討論。有趣的是，有相當比例的人已經認為素食是「美食」、「美味的」，不論是分享好吃的蔬食餐廳、尋求推薦，或是開始嘗試自行料理，儼然形成一種時尚風潮。

台灣吃素議題社群聲量文字雲(爬搜區間: 2022/4/14~8/15)

吃素真的可以拯救地球嗎？

雖然吃素的動機多種多樣，但最被重視的原因不外乎是「保護動物」和「減少碳足跡」。不過，就氣候變遷而言，究竟吃素是否能夠幫助環境一直以來都是大眾爭論的焦點。

即使如此，這題的答案仍算明確。根據英國牛津大學和美國明尼蘇達大學的一項健康與環境影響的研究中，50 公克的紅肉所排放的溫室氣體是100公克蔬菜的至少20倍，而土地使用的面積更是蔬菜的100倍。如果每個人都停止吃牛肉，採用純素飲食，全球土地使用量將下降75%，這項建議更被視為「減少人類對地球影響最有效的方法」之一。

農曆七月的相關英文

 GCIOSGF Newsletter 

English leaning 

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Edit: OF 

psychic [ˋsaɪkɪk] 靈媒 

🔸medium [ˋmidɪəm] 靈媒、乩童 

🔸gift [gɪft] 天賦、天命 

(例句)She has a gift for talking to dead people.

(她具有和死去的人們對話的天賦。)

🔸shaman [ˋʃɑmən] 仙姑、師父師姐 (執行收驚等)

(例句)The kid’s grandmother took him to a shaman for his night terrors.

(那個小孩的阿媽帶他去給仙姑收驚。)

🔸spirit-rebalancing 收驚

🔸to ward off evil spirits.避邪

(例句)She had a car accident last week, so she went to a temple to get her a spirt-rebalancing.

(她上禮拜出車禍，所以她到廟裡收驚。)

🔸paper charm 符

🔸incense ash 香灰

(例句)The shaman made him drink a mixture of water and the ashes from a burnt paper charm.

(那位仙姑要他喝下符水。)

🔸sixth-sense 第六感

Sofia: AHHHH!!! Why are you screaming? You scared the hell out of me!

Sofia：啊啊啊啊啊啊！你幹嘛要尖叫？嚇死我了！

Bob: YOU scared the hell out of me! Why are you sneaking around?

Bob：你才要嚇死我！你在那鬼鬼祟祟什麼？

Sofia: No, I’m not! ( staring at Bob ) Are you alright?

Sofia：我才沒有！（看著 Bob）你還好嗎？

Bob: …This remind me of my childhood memory. There was a time when I had a fever for days, my grandmother believed that I must have been possessed by something so she took me to a Taoist shaman.

Bob：…這讓我回想起一段童年往事。有一次我高燒數日，我阿嬤覺得我一定是卡到了什麼，於是帶我去見師公。

Sofia: She thought you need a siu-kiann.

Sofia：她覺得你需要收驚。

Bob: Yes, she thought there must be something to exorcise.

Bob：對，她覺得我需要驅邪。

讓我們先透過以上這段對話，來學習幾個重點單字吧。

Possessed (adj.) 卡到陰，著魔的

Possess作動詞代表「擁有」（to have，to own），同時也有「支配」的意思，形容詞以possessed表示，指的是「被什麼所支配；著魔的」，也就是我們俗稱的「卡到陰」。

Demi possessed the talent of playing musical instrument.

Demi 擁有演奏樂器的天賦。

Tom’s life was possessed by his wife.

Tom 的生活受他老婆所支配。

She must have been possessed to buy that hideous hat!

她一定是著魔了才會買那麼醜的帽子！

Taoist shaman (n.) 師公

Taoist為形容詞，意思是「道教的」（Taoism 為「道教」的英文說法），而shaman原先用來專指「薩滿巫師」，後來延伸為用來泛指「民間信仰的法師」，Taoist shaman指的即是廟裡的「師公」。

The rite of siu-kiann was hold by a Taoist shaman.

收驚的儀式由一位師公所主持。

Exorcise (v.) 驅魔

Exorcise意指「驅魔；驅邪」（小心別和另一個動詞 exercise「運動」搞混哦！） ，exorcist則是指「驅魔師」。

After the priest exorcised the girl, the girl regained her health.

牧師幫那位女孩驅魔後，女孩重拾了健康。

讓我們把Bob小時候被帶去收驚的故事給看下去：

Sofia: What did you think of the rite then?

Sofia：那你覺得當時那個儀式如何？

Bob: Well, all I remember now is that my grandmother asked me to drink a mixture of water and charm paper.

Bob：其實我唯一記得的只有我阿嬤要我喝符水。

Sofia: Wow…

Sofia：哇 ……

Bob: Yeah, it was terrible. However, after that my fever did go away.

Bob：嗯，難喝極了。不過那之後我的燒還真的退了。

Sofia: Seriously?

Sofia：你認真的嗎？

Bob: In fact, now I seem to recall something… I recall something I saw in the dark alley a few days ago before the fever.

Bob：事實上，我現在好像記起了一件事 ……。我回想起發燒前我在暗暗的巷子裡看到了什麼。

Sofia: Do… do you think that’s a ghost?

Sofia：你是說 ……你是說看到鬼嗎？

Bob: It’s hard to say…

Bob：這很難說 ……

Rite (n.) 儀式

Rite為名詞，意思是「儀式」，如 religious rite「宗教儀式」、funeral rite「喪禮儀式」。

The Catholic parents had their baby baptized according to religious rite.

這對天主教夫妻讓他們的嬰兒根據宗教儀式受洗。

Mixture of water and charm paper (n.) 符水

Charm paper的意思是「咒文；符咒」，mixture則代表「混合物」。因此， mixture of water and charm paper 指的即是「水和符咒的混合物」，也就是「符水」。

Bob listened to his grandmother and drank the mixture of water and charm paper.

Bob 聽阿嬤的話把符水喝了下去。

Ghost (n.) 鬼

ghost 的意思是「鬼怪；鬼；幽靈」。另外為大家補充幾個相關單字，包括代表「鬧鬼的」的haunted，以及「鬼故事」的英文說法ghost story。

That old hotel must be possessed by ghosts. Three people went into it and never came out.

那棟老舊的旅館裡一定有鬼。三個人進去之後一去不回。

That old hotel is said to be haunted.

那棟老舊的旅館據說鬧鬼。

七夕節又稱女兒節

GCIOSGF Newsletter:

 常言道：“七月初七，牛郎會織女”。這天是七夕節，中國的傳統佳節。在過去，七夕節活動豐富多彩，尤其是少女少婦們更是開心快樂。這一天，也叫女兒節，一听就知是女孩子的節日。而且，這天據說還是織女的誕辰，很多女孩子都會向織女祈求手工技巧和美滿姻緣。

我們來看看七夕節乞巧、賽巧等為主的傳統習俗吧！我是暢談生活點滴，一起暢談吧。

喜蛛應巧

喜蛛應巧是應用蜘蛛進行預測的一種形式，是非常有意思的乞巧活動。

基本操作方法：

在七月七日這天，把小蜘蛛放到盒子裡面，讓小蜘蛛在盒子裡生活一天，等到第二天時，也就是七月初八，再觀察盒子裡面情況。

通常，人們以蜘蛛網密多的情況，為巧多；以蜘蛛網稀者，為巧少。也有的以觀察蜘蛛網的有無和蜘蛛網是不是圓正為巧，但後來人們按照疏密來驗巧，是不是特別有意思！

穿針乞巧

這是非常早的遊藝活動，深受姑娘們喜愛，也正好展現自己才華的大好手機，更是大顯身手之時。

基本操作方法：

過去，姑娘們準備好七彩線和七孔針，待準備妥當，時間一到，開始比賽，也就是“賽巧”。看誰穿得最快，誰就第一，叫贏巧，也就是說，穿得越快乞到的巧越多；如果穿針引線比較慢，那就是輸了，被人們稱為“輸巧”，愿賭服輸，還要奉上小禮物哦。

在過去，人們是織衣縫製，離不開穿針引線。也是效仿織女的技巧，學習織女的才能。當然，更是在七夕節祭拜織女，祈求賜巧和賜予姻緣之舉，而舉行的有意義的遊戲，希望心靈手巧，婚姻美滿。

對月穿針

“對月穿針”，這個難度相對比較大，大家想一想，七月初七如果夜空晴朗，但月亮也是彎彎，光線昏暗，不是十分明亮，穿針引線有一定難度。

基本操作方法：

人們在家中院落，先擺上桌子，放上瓜果酒菜，祭拜牛郎和織女星二星，希望賜巧，接著進行穿針引線。姑娘們對著月亮，拿起五色線，開始穿針，凡是能穿過去的，就是巧手，謂之心靈手巧。然後，大家歡歌笑語，吃飯飲酒，唱歌跳舞，通宵達旦。

可以想像，難度還是比較大的，據五代王仁裕《開元天寶遺事》中記載：“七夕，陳以瓜果酒炙，祀牛女二星，以九孔針五色線向月穿之，過者為得巧之侯。”

投針驗巧

除了上面的祈求技巧活動和習俗外，還有一項習俗，那就是投針驗巧，這也是七夕節的傳統習俗，在過去也比較流行。

基本操作方法：

方法比較多，通常，在七月初六，準備一盆水，放在院子裡露天過夜，到了七月初七再曬一天，盆裡的水錶面就會形成一層薄膜。這時候，可以拿一繡花針放在上面，看水底針影，如果形狀各異，優美漂亮，謂乞得巧；如果針影粗如錘、細如絲、直如線，這就是拙，不是巧手。

這項活動，起源於穿針引線，但是又不同於穿針，在明清兩代比較盛行。是不是很有意思！你是不是也想試試，其實也不簡單哦。

蘭夜鬥巧

農曆七月，過去稱為“蘭月”，而七夕這天晚上，又被人們稱之為蘭夜。蘭夜鬥巧就是這個時候進行。

基本操作方法

據記載，這項遊藝活動起源於漢朝的宮廷遊戲。在七月七日這天，宮娥彩女們一起到閉襟樓上學習，練習穿七巧針，準備七夕夜進行乞巧活動。

其中，有個宮女把菱藕雕刻成各種花鳥魚虫等等形狀，奉獻給皇上，皇上非常開心，就把這些手工藝品放到桌角上，然後，讓宮女們摸黑尋找，這就叫作“蘭夜鬥巧”，

大家看到了吧！ “蘭夜鬥巧”就像捉迷藏一樣，是一項遊戲活動，看看誰能找到，誰就得巧，大家玩得非常開心，不亦樂乎。

看到了吧！七夕節的乞巧活動豐富多彩，是姑娘們祈求技巧的遊藝活動，也是希望織女賜予婚姻，美滿幸福。

老話說：“七月七，織女哭”，到了農曆七月七日，牛郎會織女，兩人相見，難免眼淚汪汪，淚如雨下，而且這天還會出現降雨，傳說是織女的眼淚。當然，在七夕節這天，活動豐富多彩，尤其是在過去，人們還有的祭拜織女、感恩老牛、食七夕果、曬書晾書、洗頭沐浴等等傳統，習俗多多，喜聞樂見。

As the saying goes: “On the seventh day of July, the Cowherd meets the Weaver Girl.” Today is the Chinese Valentine’s Day, a traditional Chinese festival. In the past, Qixi Festival activities were rich and colorful, especially for girls and young women. This day is also called Daughter’s Day, and you know it is a festival for girls. Moreover, it is said that this day is also the birthday of the Weaver Girl, and many girls will pray to the Weaver Girl for their craft skills and a happy marriage.

Let’s take a look at the traditional customs of Qixi Festival such as begging for skill and competing for skill! I am talking about my daily life, let’s talk about it together.

Happy spider should be clever

Spider Yingqiu is a form of using spiders to make predictions. It is a very interesting begging activity.

Basic operation method:

On July 7th, put the little spider into the box and let the little spider live in the box for a day. Wait until the next day, which is the eighth day of July, to observe the situation inside the box.

Usually, people regard the situation with dense spider webs as having many tricks; those with sparse spider webs as having few tricks. Some people thought it was a coincidence to observe the presence or absence of spider webs and whether the spider webs were round or straight, but later people tested the coincidence according to the density. Isn’t it particularly interesting?

Threading a needle and begging for skill

This is a very early entertainment activity, which is very popular among girls. It is also a good mobile phone to show off your talents, and it is also the time to show off your talents.

Basic operation method:

In the past, girls prepared colorful threads and seven-hole needles. When the preparations were complete, when the time came, they would start the competition, which was also called “Sai Qiao”. Whoever threads the thread the fastest will be ranked first, which is called winning tricks. That is to say, the faster the thread is threaded, the more tricks you can get; if the threading is slower, you lose, and it is called “losing tricks”. If you are willing to admit defeat, you will also be given a small gift.

In the past, people knitted and sewed clothes and could not do without needles and threads. It is also to imitate the skills of the Weaver Girl and learn the talents of the Weaver Girl. Of course, meaningful games are held during the Chinese Valentine’s Day to worship the Weaver Girl and pray for luck and good luck in marriage, hoping for dexterity and a happy marriage.

needle to the moon

“Threading a needle to the moon” is relatively difficult. Think about it, if the night sky is clear on the seventh day of July, but the moon is also curved and the light is dim and not very bright, it will be difficult to thread a needle.

Basic operation method:

In the courtyard of their home, people first set the table with fruits, wine and dishes, worship the Cowherd and the Vega stars, hoping for good luck, and then go about sewing. The girls faced the moon, picked up the five-colored thread, and began to thread the needle. Anyone who could thread the needle had a skillful hand, which was called dexterity. Then, everyone laughed, ate, drank, sang and danced all night long.

As you can imagine, the difficulty is still relatively high. According to Wang Renyu of the Five Dynasties, “The Legacy of Kaiyuan Tianbao” records: “On Qixi Festival, Chen uses melons and fruits to bake in wine, worships the two stars of the Cow and the Girl, and uses a nine-hole needle and a five-color thread to pass through it. The Marquis of Good Fortune.”

Test your skill by throwing a needle

In addition to the above praying skills activities and customs, there is another custom, which is to test one’s skill by throwing a needle. This is also a traditional custom of Qixi Festival and was quite popular in the past.

Basic operation method:

There are many methods. Usually, on the sixth day of July, prepare a basin of water and leave it in the yard in the open air overnight. On the seventh day of July, it will be exposed to the sun for another day, and a thin film will form on the surface of the water in the basin. At this time, you can put an embroidery needle on it and look at the needle shadow under the water. If the shapes are different and graceful, it is said to be skillful; if the needle shadow is as thick as a hammer, as thin as silk, and as straight as a thread, it is clumsy, not Skillful.

This activity originated from needle threading, but it is different from needle threading. It was more popular in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Isn’t it interesting! Do you also want to try it? It’s actually not easy.

Lan Ye Dou Qiao

The seventh month of the lunar calendar used to be called “Lan Moon”, and the night of Chinese Valentine’s Day is also called Lan Night. Lanye’s fight for skill was carried out at this time.

Basic operation method

According to records, this entertainment activity originated from the palace games of the Han Dynasty. On July 7th, the colorful ladies of the palace go to the Guanjin Tower to study together, practice threading the Qiqiao needle, and prepare for the Qixi Festival night begging activity.

Among them, a palace maid carved lotus roots into various shapes of flowers, birds, fish, insects, etc., and presented them to the emperor. The emperor was very happy, so he put these handicrafts on the corner of the table, and then asked the palace maids to search for them in the dark. This is called “Lanye fights for skill”,

Everyone has seen it! “Lanye Douqiu” is a game activity like hide and seek. Whoever can find it will get the trick. Everyone is having a great time.

See it! The begging activities of Qixi Festival are rich and colorful. It is a recreational activity for girls to pray for skills and to hope that the Weaver Girl will give them a happy marriage.

There is an old saying: “On the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, the Weaver Girl cries.” On the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, the Cowherd meets the Weaver Girl. When the two meet, they inevitably burst into tears, and there will be rain on this day. Legend has it that the Weaver Girl’s tears. Of course, there are many colorful activities on the Qixi Festival. Especially in the past, people also had traditions such as worshiping the Weaver Girl, giving thanks to the old cow, eating Qixi fruits, drying books, washing hair and bathing, etc. There are many customs that are very popular.

蔬食好好吃！

 GCIOSGF Newsletter 會訊：

何謂GCIOSGF時尚蔬食薈？

活得健康又長壽，是現代人追求的目標。

大部分的人因疾病而死亡，部分天災人禍。

雖然醫療科技進步，但終究不是仙丹妙藥。

求人不如求己，靠自己養生保健積福德是最重要的一環。

GCIOSGF時尚蔬食薈的蔬食涵義：

多蔬果,豆類，堅果，可薑蔥蒜韭菜蛋奶。勿食肉。追求多wins:  個人健康，救地球 。宜處如下：

蔬食的好處

1 有助於減重

2 延緩衰老

3 皮膚美麗光澤

4 減少慢性疾病，癌症

5 心情變得平和

6 遠離毒素，排除體內毒素

7 減少地球暖化

8 保護動物

9 預防便祕

10 保護眼睛

11 頭腦思緒更清楚

What is GCIOSGF Fashion Veggie Club?

Living a healthy and long life is the goal pursued by modern people.

Most of the people died due to diseases and some were caused by natural disasters and man-made disasters.

Although medical technology has advanced, it is not a magic bullet.

It is better to rely on yourself than ask for help from others .Relying on your own health and health to accumulate merit is the most important part.

The meaning of vegetarian food in GCIOSGF fashion Veggie Club’s monthly meal gathering is:

Lots of fruits and vegetables, beans, nuts, onions, garlic, chives, eggs, ginger, and milk. Don’t eat any kind of meat. Pursue multiple wins: personal health, save the planet. The advantages are as follows:

Benefits of Vegetarian Diet

1 Helps in weight loss

2. Delay aging

3 Gain beautiful and glowing skin

4 Reduce chronic diseases, cancer

5 Feeling calmer

6 Stay away from toxins and eliminate toxins from the body

7 Reduce global warming

8 Protect animals

9 Prevent constipation

10 Protect your eyes

11. Think more clearly

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeOgkEoF1yzyBioCORJI4V7swW8B3G1iQ47FQXBtSBONm3-Iw/viewform大中華留學生全球總會時尚蔬食薈入會表 

GCIOSGF時尚蔬食薈目的

GCIOSGF Newsletter 

GCIOSGF 時尚蔬食薈每月蔬食一次救地球

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeOgkEoF1yzyBioCORJI4V7swW8B3G1iQ47FQXBtSBONm3-Iw/viewform

大中華留學生全球總會時尚蔬食薈入會表 

在地球暖化嚴重之當前，大中華留學生全球總會時尚蔬食薈的目的是集眾人力量每月吃一次蔬食救地球，給自己和家人積福德，同時也給自己的腸胃每月清爽一次。讓自己活得更健康長壽。蔬食薈勿政治，勿宗教，勿直銷，勿拉保險。只針對當前環保綠能議題與自我提升增進友誼等相關議題推廣活動。時尚蔬食薈任何人都可參加無年齡學歷要求.歡迎大家加入這個非常有意義的社團。謝謝！At a time when global warming is serious, the purpose of the Fashion Veggie of GCIOSGF is to gather everyone’s efforts to eat vegetarian food once a month to save the earth, accumulate merit for yourself and your family, and also refresh your stomach every month once. make yourself healthier and live longer. Fashion Veggie Club is not about politics, religion, direct sales, or insurance. We only promote activities related to current environmental protection, green energy issues, self-improvement and friendship enhancement, etc. Anyone can join Fashion Veggie Club, no age or academic requirements required. Welcome everyone to join this very meaningful club.Thanks!

 

吃15次蔬食可減少？ 公斤碳排

 GCIOSGF Newsletter :

Fashion Veggie Club of GCIOSGF 歡迎大家加入每月一次蔬食救地球活動

入會連結🔗

https://forms.gle/wg3PSrMNQ4FiuaTs9

吃15餐蔬食可減少12公斤碳排放量，相當於種一棵樹。

大家積極參與吃蔬食種樹，愛地球！

◎聯合國跨政府氣候變遷小組(IPCC)，主席帕喬里博士和全世界的領袖專家政要都不約而同地指出：肉食是全球暖化的主因，吃蔬食可以立即減碳。

◎環保署發起1人1日1公斤減碳活動，只要我們每日一餐不吃肉就能減碳780克。

◎飲食排放二氧化碳量:

*生產一公斤牛肉製造36.4公斤二氧化碳。

*肉食者一年因飲食產生1,500公斤二氧化碳。

*蔬食者一年飲食產生430公斤二氧化碳。

*全臺民眾若一天不吃肉可減少161,000,000公斤二氧化碳。

Eating 15 vegetarian meals can reduce 12 kilograms of carbon emissions, which is equivalent to planting a tree.

Everyone actively participates in eating vegetarian food, planting trees, and loving the earth!

◎The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Chairman Dr. Pachauri and world leaders, experts and politicians all unanimously pointed out that meat is the main cause of global warming, and eating vegetables can immediately reduce carbon emissions.

◎The Environmental Protection Agency has launched a 1kg carbon reduction campaign per person per day. As long as we don’t eat meat for one meal a day, we can reduce 780g of carbon dioxide.

◎Amount of carbon dioxide emitted by diet:

*Producing one kilogram of beef produces 36.4 kilograms of carbon dioxide.

*Meat eaters produce 1,500 kilograms of carbon dioxide a year from their diet.

*Vegetarians’ diet produces 430 kilograms of carbon dioxide per year.

*If people in Taiwan don’t eat meat for one day, they can reduce 161,000,000 kilograms of carbon dioxide.

 https://forms.gle/KtW1yvQ2SzSVmLCE9

 https://forms.gle/LXaSRjHHmuLe1RLm8

How food affects the mind, as well as the body It turns out you are what you eat after all

 from Economists 

Merry Reading Time 

This article is part of our Summer reads series. Visit the full collection for book lists, guest essays and more seasonal distractions.

Aglistening roast turkey. Rounds of golden, roast potatoes and parsnips. Pigs in blankets (because what meat-based meal is not improved by a side of sausages wrapped in bacon?). Brussels sprouts. Bread sauce. Cranberry sauce. Gravy. And, to finish, brandy-sodden pudding topped with butter.

Countries vary in their Christmas-meal traditions. Poles prefer fish, often carp. A Swedish julbord groans with variety, though herring will never be far off. But the repast served at most British tables on December 25th is iconic, and has been (with goose sometimes standing in for turkey) since the time of the Victorians.

A good meal has a positive impact on one’s mood. Part of that pleasure is immediate. Those who avoid overindulgence and family squabbles will enjoy a postprandial rise in their blood sugar. That will prompt a flood of endorphins—chemicals that act as happy hormones—to rush through their brains. 

But the pleasure goes deeper. Animal proteins, such as roast fowl, hams or fish, contain all the amino acids that the body needs including many it cannot make for itself. Tyrosine and tryptophan are needed for the production, respectively, of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that controls feelings of pleasure and reward, and serotonin, another such, which helps regulate mood. Brussels sprouts contain folate, a vitamin without which the brain cannot function properly. And cranberries are high in vitamin C, which is involved, among other things, in converting dopamine to noradrenaline, another neurotransmitter, and a lack of which seems to be associated with depression.

With mental-health disorders rising, a growing number of scientists are investigating how food or nutritional supplements affect the mind. Brains, being the most complex and energy-demanding of the body’s organs, almost certainly have their own specialised, nutritional needs. Welcome, then, to the emerging field of nutritional psychiatry.

An adult human brain, which accounts for about 2% of a body’s mass, uses 20% of its metabolic energy. A host of vitamins and minerals are necessary to keep it going. Even in one small section of the brain’s metabolic pathways, many essential nutrients are needed. The conversion of tryptophan to serotonin alone requires vitamin B6, iron, phosphorus and calcium.

Disentangling the brain’s nutritional needs from those of the rest of the body is tricky. Recommended daily allowances (rdas) are little help. They were formulated during the second world war on the basis of the nutrients needed for the physical health of troops. No such rdas exist for the brain. Not yet, at least.

Compared with other fields, nutritional science is understudied. That is partly because it is hard to do well. Randomised controlled trials (rcts), used to test drugs, are tricky. Few people want to stick to an experimental diet for years. Instead, most nutritional science is based on observational studies that try to establish associations between particular foods or nutrients and diseases. They cannot be used to definitively prove a causal connection between a disease and a particular contributing factor in a diet. But as with smoking and lung cancer, put together enough of these kinds of trials and causal narratives begin to emerge.

It is now clear that some diets are particularly good for the brain. One recent study concludes that sticking to the “Mediterranean diet”, high in vegetables, fruit, pulses and wholegrains, low in red and processed meats and saturated fats, decreases the chances of experiencing strokes, cognitive impairment and depression. Other recent work looking at a “green” Mediterranean diet high in polyphenols (the antioxidants found in things like green tea) found it reduced age-related brain atrophy. Another version, the mind diet, emphasises, among other things, eating berries over other kinds of fruit and seems to lessen the risk of dementia.

Only 10% of adults in America consume their recommended daily serving of vegetables

Scientists think such diets may work by reducing inflammation in the brain. This, in turn, may affect areas such as the hippocampus, which is associated with learning, memory and mood regulation—and where new neurons grow in adults. Studies in animals show that when they are fed a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids (from walnuts, for example), flavonoids (consumed mainly via tea and wine), antioxidants (found in berries) and resveratrol (found in red grapes), neuron growth is stimulated and inflammatory processes are reduced. This fits with research suggesting that those who regularly eat ultra-processed, fried and sugary foods, which increase inflammation in the brain, heighten their risk of developing depression.

The hanger games

That Christmas feast is often lambasted as an orgy of gluttony. In fact, with its sides of multiple vegetables, its nutritional density may make it among the healthier meals some people eat throughout the year. Only 10% of adults in America consume their recommended daily serving of vegetables, and just 12% get enough fruit. It is a similar story in much of the world. As a result, many turn to vitamin and mineral supplements to make up for their dietary deficiencies.

In 2018, 54% of North Americans and 43% of Asians were taking a nutritional supplement. The most common types are multivitamins, vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids. America spends the most on dietary supplements, followed by western Europe and Japan. One estimate put the global market at $152bn in 2021, with 9% annual growth expected until 2030. But in many places the regulation of the supplement industry is either weak or non-existent and little rigorous research has been carried out on either their benefits or risks. 

The story of nutritional supplements starts in 1912 when Casimir Funk, a Polish-American biochemist, proposed that unidentified organic substances were required in tiny amounts to maintain human health. It was a revolutionary idea. And he was correct. Along with macronutrients such as protein and carbohydrates, there were undiscovered components of foods—micronutrients. The first vitamin to be isolated and then synthesised in 1936 was thiamine or B1. Deficiency causes beriberi, a disease that can affect both the cardiovascular and the central nervous systems. The discovery prompted a race to isolate, characterise and manufacture vitamins and ultimately launched the supplement industry.

Half a century after Funk’s discovery, the notion that nutrients might be able to treat mental illnesses took hold. Abram Hoffer, a Canadian psychiatrist, tried treating schizophrenics with high doses of vitamins B3. Then in 1968 Linus Pauling, a Nobel-prize-winning chemist, coined the term “orthomolecular psychiatry” to describe the theory that varying the concentration of substances normally present in the body could treat mental disease. But there was little evidence to support their claims and in 1973 the American Psychiatric Association released a report dismissing orthomolecular psychiatry, highlighting the lack of controlled experiments and concluding that large doses of B3 were “useless and not without hazard”.

The absence of any large-scale, serious studies in the field of nutritional psychiatry left an opening for those keen to promote the potential of supplements far beyond any existing science. Autumn Stringam is one such case. After her first baby was born in 1992 Ms Stringam, a Canadian, was admitted to a psychiatric ward with severe post-partum psychosis. Her family had a history of mental illness, including bipolar disorder, psychosis, depression and suicide. Her prognosis was grim. But then her father, together with a friend working in the animal-feed business, developed a supplement containing a range of vitamins and minerals that they claimed were based on supplements that reduced anxiety and stress in pigs. Ms Stringam credited the supplements with her recovery. Her story spread and the family started selling the pills widely.

There were, however, no trials proving efficacy or safety. The suggestion that the supplements were a cure-all led one schizophrenic to abandon his prescribed medication. He subsequently murdered his father and seriously injured his mother. In 2003 the Canadian drug regulator, concerned about the use of untested supplements for serious mental-health disorders, seized the pills. The episode cemented the idea in many minds that using micronutrients to treat mental-health conditions was pure quackery.

And yet today much science does support the idea that there is a strong link between what people eat and their mental health. Studies have shown that b12 shortages cause depression and poor memory and are associated with mania and psychosis. Low levels of vitamin D are associated with increased risks of dementia and stroke, and are implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders. A recent rct found that high doses of B6—100mg per day rather than the rda of 1.3mg—reduces anxiety. In a study by Robert Przybelski of the University of Wisconsin of geriatric patients attending a memory clinic, 40% were deficient in one vitamin (of five that were looked for), and 20% in two.

Epicurious

So why not simply pop a handful of vitamins rather than bother with a complex, and perhaps expensive, diet? In part because you rarely know exactly what you’re getting. Ted Dinan, a professor of psychiatry at University College, Cork describes the supplement industry as the “Wild West”. Unlike tightly regulated drugs, supplements may contain more, or less, of what they claim. Too much vitamin A can be harmful in pregnancy. There are a variety of health risks from taking beta carotene and vitamin E. High doses of one nutrient can interfere with the absorption of others. 

Any testing of the use of micronutrients in mental-health conditions in Canada stalled after the episode with Ms Stringam. And yet some remained intrigued. Julia Rucklidge, a clinical psychologist at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, was approached in 2003 by a Canadian colleague to see if she might be interested in running such trials. She was sceptical: “I had been taught that nutrition is completely irrelevant to brain health.” At the time, she recalls, she was immersed in positive data showing the efficacy of Prozac, an antidepressant, and stimulants such as methylphenidate for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (adhd). She was excited, she explains, to have these new drugs as tools to treat mental-health problems.

Then she was forced to question those views. She had been treating a child with obsessive compulsive disorder for a year with no success. The family did not want medication. One day when they were leaving she remembered she had a box of supplements under her desk for a trial she was planning. She offered them to the parents with the caveat that she had no idea whether they would work. Two weeks later they returned, saying the child’s obsessions were gone.

Dr Rucklidge was sceptical that any improvement was due to the supplements but it nudged her towards conducting more trials. A few decades on and she has shown that supplements are helpful in children with adhd—particularly those who struggle to regulate their emotions. The trial was recently replicated in America. Other evidence of the efficacy of supplements is emerging. The results of a large rct published in September showed that taking a daily multivitamin may improve cognition in those over 65. Researchers followed more than 2,000 people and estimated that three years of supplementation led to a 60% slowing of cognitive decline.

Nutritional psychiatry is still in its infancy. As it becomes clearer which micronutrients affect the brain, the next stage is to determine how they do so. Another new field of research could help with that.

One of the most intriguing scientific developments of recent years is the discovery of the importance of micro-organisms in the gut as intermediaries between what goes into the mouth and what happens in the brain. Researchers now know that microbes form a complex ecosystem in the gut—known as the microbiome. These microbes need micronutrients. A diet lacking in them, such as that consumed by many in the West, may lead to an imbalance in the gut microbiome.

A person’s capacity to deal with stress can be altered by a single strain of bacterium

Could this affect how people think and feel? Evidence is mounting for a link between the gut and the brain in what is termed the psychobiome—part of the microbiome—that does just that. The substances that the various bacteria, viruses and fungi produce may go directly into the bloodstream and infiltrate blood vessels, or they may stimulate the vagus nerve that connects the gut and the brain. The bacteria in the gut produce, among other things, tryptophan, the amino acid thought to have come entirely from the diet. 

The sorts of microorganisms found in yogurt specifically, and fermented foods generally, have also been shown by trials to reduce anxiety. Most astonishing to Dr Dinan is the finding that a person’s capacity to deal with stress can be altered by a single strain of bacterium. Studies show that two species of Bifidobacterium and one of Lactobacillus each reduce stress. In a trial on germfree mice, an abnormal stress response was reversed when they were given oral doses of Bifidobacterium infantis. These findings have given rise to the notion of “psychobiotics”—bacteria that, when ingested, may have similar effects to antidepressants or anti-anxiety medication.

The difficulty with developing this new field of research lies in the economics. Unlike drugs, vitamins, minerals and microbes are not patentable. Pharmaceutical firms have nothing to gain commercially from running trials on pills that anyone can flog. It is difficult to trust industry-sponsored research since it has a bias towards favourable findings. Governments, universities and health systems are better placed to run such trials. None of this will replace the need for a good diet. But it would provide food for thought. ■