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Covering food with a copper vessel lid causes sweat condensing on the vessel to drip into the food, leading to the development of malignant sores (Echuang) and internal deep-rooted abscesses (Neiju). This is because the nature of food忌讳 (avoids/dislikes) copper vessels.

Using water from boiled soup that has been left overnight to wash the face will cause a sallow complexion; using it to bathe the body will lead to tinea (Xuan). Using soup water that has not been left overnight to wash the face will also produce the same effect.

Consuming donkey meat while drinking Schizonepeta tea (Jingjie Cha) can be fatal. Eating softshell turtle meat together with Amaranth (Xiancai) can also be fatal. Drinking rainwater dripping from a thatched roof onto meat, and then consuming such meat, can also cause death. These three matters require particular caution (Three sayings from Bencao).

Diet must be cautious; avoid overeating, as excessive intake leads to illness. Do not lie down immediately after feeling full, as this causes cardiac agitation (Xindang), which often results in sexual misconduct. Overeating easily causes disease; once diseased, the efficacy of medicine cannot take effect (from Jiyiji).

People in Zhejiang often induce vomiting due to excessive consumption of melons and gourds, resulting in sudden onset of vomiting, diarrhea, and cholera-like symptoms, termed "Fa Bao" (Sudden Onset), which can even lead to untreatable conditions. Why do melons and gourds, planted for a short time in the soil, grow and mature quickly when the weather warms up? Consuming them causes "Fa Bao." If consumed together with Mosla herb (Xiangru), it can be avoided. Xiangru refers to Mosla chinensis today. Some people have servants eat Mosla with melon seeds, illustrating this principle (from Mingyilu).

Generally, one should eat small amounts frequently rather than large meals at once. One should not eat hastily, as haste damages the Spleen. Food should be chewed thoroughly and swallowed slowly; cold food is preferred, and hot water should not be used for rinsing the mouth after eating cold food. Conversely, cold water should not be used for rinsing the mouth after eating hot food. Meals should begin with hot food followed by cold food.

Alcohol possesses great toxicity and heat properties. It prevents seawater from freezing even in extreme cold due to its intense heat. It causes confusion and alters human nature due to its intense toxicity. However, regarding resolving wind-cold, promoting blood circulation, eliminating pathogenic factors, and guiding medicinal potency, nothing surpasses alcohol. Yet, if one drinks excessively, pouring like basins and measuring like pecks, the toxic qi attacks the heart, corrodes the intestines and stomach, and rots the hypochondrium, becoming the source of death (from Xiuzhen Mijue).

Taboos for a day: Do not eat until full in the evening. Taboos for a month: Do not get heavily drunk on the last day of the lunar month. Taboos for a year: The elderly should not travel far. Lifelong taboos: Do not engage in sexual intercourse with candles lit at night, as this injures the sinews; excessive vinegar injures the bones; overeating injures the Lungs; hunger injures Qi; prolonged visual strain injures Blood; prolonged lying down injures Qi; prolonged standing injures bones; prolonged sitting injures muscles; prolonged walking injures sinews. Beds should not be placed facing North, nor should one sit facing North. At night, do not cover one's head while sleeping. If afflicted by sleep paralysis (Ren Yan), do not light a lamp; calling out to the person will surely cause death without doubt. Burning white hair on the Yin day of the first lunar month is auspicious. Cutting fingernails on Yin days and toenails on Wu days, along with burning white hair, is also auspicious (from Rongmu Xiantan).

When eating Yellow Catfish (Huangsang Yu), one must not consume Schizonepeta (Jingjie). A person from Wu named Wei Jidao, dining at his wife's home, ate yellow fish soup and then drank tea brewed with freshly picked Jingjie. Soon after, he experienced severe itching in the soles of his feet, with pain penetrating to the Heart and Lungs. He ran barefoot in the sand, acting madly, with his foot skin cracking open. He urgently sought antidotes, took them, and the symptoms subsided after several days.