The Cornerstone of Health for Elderly Men: Detailed Explanation of the Medicinal Effects of Beneficial Grains and In-Depth Analysis of Physiological and Psychological Degeneration Characteristics
Japonica rice: Also known as white rice, it is a staple food, containing a large amount of starch, vitamins, protein, fat, and inorganic salts. It has functions such as tonifying the spleen and stomach, replenishing qi, quenching thirst and stopping diarrhea, relieving irritability, alleviating heart pain, clearing heat toxins, and strengthening muscles and bones. Glutinous rice: In addition to the nutrients of japonica rice, it also contains calcium, phosphorus, iron, thiamine, riboflavin, nicotinic acid, and other trace elements needed by the human body. It can tonify the stomach and spleen, benefit the lungs, replenish qi, and ward off cold. Wheat: Among staple foods, it has a high nutritional value and has effects such as nourishing the heart and calming the mind, benefiting the spleen, and astringing.
Mung beans: Also known as green beans, they are not only an essential food but also a valuable medicine. According to ancient Chinese medical texts, they have the effects of reducing fever and detoxifying. Mung bean soup is the best refreshing drink to prevent heatstroke in summer. Regular consumption of mung bean soup can also lower blood pressure. Mung bean skins can clear summer heat, detoxify, and clear eye ailments. Red beans: Also known as adzuki beans, they are a common food with a wide range of uses, both for consumption and treatment. Traditional Chinese medicine believes they have the effects of strengthening the spleen and stomach, clearing damp heat, promoting urination, stopping diarrhea and dysentery, clearing heat toxins, and dispersing blood stasis.
Elderly men generally refer to men over 60 years of age. Old age is the period nearing the end of life, a time of physiological aging and psychological decline. The main manifestations of physiological aging in elderly men include: dry and rough body tissues; slowed cell division, growth, and repair; sluggish tissue oxidation and decreased metabolism; cell atrophy, degeneration, increased pigmentation, increased fat, and a gradual decrease in tissue elasticity, leading to deformation of elastic tissues; and progressive atrophy and degeneration of the nervous system.
These changes cause a decline in sensory perception in older men, such as decreased vision, and varying degrees of reduction in hearing, smell, taste, temperature, and vibration sensation; attention deficit is more pronounced; imagination declines, with fewer fantasies and a lack of curiosity about new things; language declines, with slurred speech, rambling speech, and difficulty writing; and cognitive decline, leading to stubbornness, a tendency to overthink, and reduced mental agility and flexibility. They are prone to feelings of neglect, loneliness, low self-esteem, passivity, boredom, and depression, as well as irritability. Their personality is typically characterized by egocentrism, introversion, conservatism, and suspicion.
In old age, retirement inevitably brings about numerous role changes. Retirement transforms elderly men from retired cadres, workers, and intellectuals into purely family members. Lacking adequate preparation for this role shift, elderly men often struggle to gain social support and assistance. Furthermore, many psychological and physiological characteristics revert to childlike traits in old age, seemingly a regression to childhood-a phenomenon known as regression. This manifests primarily as: 1. Willfulness: A childlike personality emerges, characterized by suspicion and emotional instability. 2. Vulnerability: A persistent sense of insecurity, a constant suspicion of harm, and an anxiety about coping with unforeseen events.