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Q: "Chinese bodies are different" How do you respond to this?
I've been having the same argument over and over with my girlfriend recently. It's frustrating the hell out of me as I just can't put it to bed. There are several variations, and catalysts,, but it normally goes something like this:
Me: Do you want a drink?
Her: Yes, hot water
Me: It's 40 degrees out, are you sure you don't want something cold?
Her: I want, but of course I can't have. It's my period.
Me: You know you can still drink cold water and nothing will happen, right?
Her: It's bad for my body, everybody knows this.
Me: In my country the girls drink cold water and nothing bad happens.
Her: Yes, but Chinese bodies are different.
Me: No, we are all the same.
Her: How can you say that? You are white, I am yellow. You have brown hair, I have black hair. You have blue eyes, I have brown eyes.
Me: Ok, but on the inside we are the same.
Her: No we're not.
Me: Yes we are.
Her: No we're not.
And on and on it goes. I then go on Google and find loads of article about how it is fine to drink cold water, she gets on Baidu and finds loads of articles about how it's bad for you.
So how to finally put this to bed? I'm sure we've all had this conversation, what do you say?
This will depend on what you are trying to achieve. Do you want her to finally accept that Chinese bodies are not significantly (and relevantly) different from non-Chinese bodies? Or do you want her to drink cold water?
If the answer is the former, then even from a western perspective your argument is going to fail. Showing evidence for how western bodies don't respond badly to drinking cold water only reinforces her ideas. What evidence you need to provide is how cold water has not negatively affected Chinese people - such as those mainlanders who have gone overseas. Once that little bubble has burst ("look love, real Chinese people drinking cold water - no problem"), she will have to find some other excuse ("Oh, they've been living in the west, their bodies have changed"... then just give dumb look...).
If your idea is to get her to drink cold water, this is easy...it's 40degrees outside. She's already hot, and needs fluids and a cooler temperature. Simply point out that by putting more heat into her body, she is creating an imbalance of Yang/Fire energy, and thus depleting her Yin energy. This will dry up the Yin in her system and cause Stagnation of the blood (Xue)... therefore leading to painful periods and irritability. In addition, by increasing the amount of Heat/Yang in her body, it will cause the liver to burn hot (not to mention the Triple Heater/SanJiao), giving rise to Liver Fire Blazing in the form of headaches/migraines. The red flush to the face is also indicative of too much heat in the body, and the especially bright cheeks are signs of Yin Deficiency.
Depleting the Yin energy by the imbalance of Yang will also lead to Phlegm/Damp Heat, which again leads to bad problems!
Cold water will help retain Yin, and keep the Heat down. It will also nourish the Blood.
All of these things can be proven by doing a pulse or tongue diagnosis. If she drinks hot water, the pulse will become rapid and thin, and will be 'floating', and the tongue will become red (usually with bright red spots).
Cold water will slow the pulse, and make it deeper and thicker (in relation to the hot water).
Garbo:
Just tell them that in your country the water is safe to drink and doesn't have to be boiled.
She'll come through. My wife is drinking cold water now.
Just let her drink whatever temperature of water she wants... Why try to force her to drink cold water? Does it do anything for you?
estern:
She can drink whatever she wants for all I care. I was simple using the hot water thing as an example of something that leads onto the "Chinese bodies are different" conversation. And yes, the fact that she genuinely believes that Chinese bodies are differnt does really bug me.
jetfire9000:
Alright. Well if you truly don't mind her drinking what she wants then I'd say just let it be. There's no reason to be turning something so mundane into a battlefield between that of which is foreign and Chinese. Such a confrontation is what causes her to immediately build walls to defend herself behind such rhetoric in the first place. I'd guess that if such a discovery can be made on her part, it is one that will be made only slowly and willingly. What you need is to allow her to lower her guard by not being confrontational on such little topics. Only then can she come to learn about things more casually and naturally.
This will depend on what you are trying to achieve. Do you want her to finally accept that Chinese bodies are not significantly (and relevantly) different from non-Chinese bodies? Or do you want her to drink cold water?
If the answer is the former, then even from a western perspective your argument is going to fail. Showing evidence for how western bodies don't respond badly to drinking cold water only reinforces her ideas. What evidence you need to provide is how cold water has not negatively affected Chinese people - such as those mainlanders who have gone overseas. Once that little bubble has burst ("look love, real Chinese people drinking cold water - no problem"), she will have to find some other excuse ("Oh, they've been living in the west, their bodies have changed"... then just give dumb look...).
If your idea is to get her to drink cold water, this is easy...it's 40degrees outside. She's already hot, and needs fluids and a cooler temperature. Simply point out that by putting more heat into her body, she is creating an imbalance of Yang/Fire energy, and thus depleting her Yin energy. This will dry up the Yin in her system and cause Stagnation of the blood (Xue)... therefore leading to painful periods and irritability. In addition, by increasing the amount of Heat/Yang in her body, it will cause the liver to burn hot (not to mention the Triple Heater/SanJiao), giving rise to Liver Fire Blazing in the form of headaches/migraines. The red flush to the face is also indicative of too much heat in the body, and the especially bright cheeks are signs of Yin Deficiency.
Depleting the Yin energy by the imbalance of Yang will also lead to Phlegm/Damp Heat, which again leads to bad problems!
Cold water will help retain Yin, and keep the Heat down. It will also nourish the Blood.
All of these things can be proven by doing a pulse or tongue diagnosis. If she drinks hot water, the pulse will become rapid and thin, and will be 'floating', and the tongue will become red (usually with bright red spots).
Cold water will slow the pulse, and make it deeper and thicker (in relation to the hot water).
Garbo:
Just tell them that in your country the water is safe to drink and doesn't have to be boiled.
You: Hong Kong Chinese aren't different. Taiwanese aren't different. Chinese Australians, Chinese Americans and Chinese New Zealanders aren't different. So is it just that mainlanders are weaker?
Her: Oh no that can't be.
You: Oh, so Chinese bodies aren't different.
I usually ask them in what respect Chinese bodies are different. Sometimes, people aren't actually talking crazy--I had one lovely private student who told me that Chinese athletes were probably different from Western athletes. I asked her why, and she explained that Westerners grow up eating more protein rich foods, while the Chinese athletes ate rice and veggies with a little bit of meat in their childhoods. She theorized that it was why they couldn't bulk up the way that Westerners can. Which is refreshing, considering the amount of times I am fed that line to explain why eating ice cream on my period does not kill me instantly.
I usually ask if Chinese bodies are really different then why do Chinese people here go to hospital and receive westernised medicine. Surely if the bodies really were different then that foreign medicine would not work properly. Also why Chinese people abroad also receive western medicine and they also get better. It does seem to make some people think although they probably disregard it as soon as they get home.
I get into these debates with my wife and other Chinese as well. Actually, Chinese do have a point but it is something about core temperature control and eating specific foods (usually either like spicy to raise it or like bland/sweet food to lower it). All humans do have differences because of our point of origin/conditioning.
Most mainland Chinese have very little body fat, are lactose intolerant, allergic to alcohol (this is why many turn bright red) etc. Many Chinese have died in the past (women) during childbirth due to colds, chills etc.
For some reason (most likely diet) Chinese just seem a lot softer and much more frail than say Europeans that descended from the Norseman, Saxons, Germanic tribes etc. Compare Mongolians to Southern Mainland Chinese for example. Totally different body types and statures.
White people's skin burns under strong UV rays, while black people's skin cracks in dry biting cold climates. We do have things about us that are different. Obviously, she could get used to drinking cold water over time and I see a lot more fatter Chinese running around blaming MacDonalds and KFC... but our bodies are not all the same in that sense.
For the warm water during period, it sorta makes sense. When I touch my fiancee's belly during her period it is often cold, even if the weather otherwise is warm. I assume drinking hot beverages makes it more comfortable.
As for the "Chinese bodies are different", I try to challenge her assumptions about everything. My goal isn't to necessarily change her opinions, but more to make her think about different things, and not just accept everything. I do this by asking why, and if she can explain, sometimes she explains very well and *I* change my assumptions, sometimes she can't explain, and sometimes she get's angry do to endless questions.
For people I'm not close to, I just smile and nod, and maybe roll my eyes a little.
Shining_brow:
Look into a moxa box! With the good stuff (moxa, I mean)
Works wonders (especially if there's a couple of needles under it, so the heat travels into the body).
It's a wall. No amount of explanation, demonstration and counter-example will do. For example, take Asian people who grew-up in Western families (ie. adopted kid) who have none of the problems they are supposed to have according to the "Chinese bodies are different" theory : blank face, you are a liar, don't even bother talking to me. Move on.
Baidu is your friend. I tells you what to say in China.
I just smile knowingly and nod my head. I couldn't care less what they drink, etc.
I like Chinese hocus pocus most of the time. I think a lot of the time,traditions are a good thing. Just sometimes they are a bit strange. Visited a woman who'd given birth 3 weeks before. She smelled bad and was scratching her head a lot.
There are some differences in human physiology between ethnicities. A drug that works for one ethnicity might kill somebody of another. When was the last time a white guy won the 100 metres? Dietary differences has influenced genetics. But you're right. I really don't think drinking hot or cold water will be different
To the men I say: "Yes I know, your thingy is so small while laowai's is huge, Chinese girls agree, so sorry for you bro".
I think evolution has a little to do with what a body can take or not take, likes or dislikes. Just ask the Australian Aborigines or the North or South American Indians.
Your body likes and or can put up with some things that another cannot.
Your mind has a lot to do with how the body reacts too, I suppose....picky eaters comes to mind.
When I go out to eat, I have no problem with just about anything they care to order. No big deal. Their place, their way.
At home, I want, what I want, and that certainly does not include bone splinters, (my biggest bitch), fish heads. I just cannot use my tongue and manipulate foods as well as they can. I cringe at spitting things out on the table. If it isn't meant to be ate it should not be on my plate or in my bowl. bite size chunks of ginger, no thanks.
all them separate dishes, not to be mixed together, bullshit, all goes the same place.
Hot water, Cold water, same temp in a matter of seconds after my delicious COLD DRINK has soothed my mouth.
I have IRON GUTS.... eat anything .... I thought.... but have an issue brewing.
insects is a fast rising food in many parts of the world, and i am hesitant.
40 degree heat is another thing that my mind/body questions.... 30-37 OK ...... -30, OK
all in the mind.
My friends girlfriend was like this but thankfully for him he already had a chinese sister in law... Who drank.. Cold water!!! 
And she was fine.. So she tried it and drank cold water, she was fine too.. And that was the end of that chapter
