Meat, fish, eggs and nearly all animal foods are very yang, while most fruits and vegetables(except seaweed) are yin and some are on the cool-neutral end. 

 

THOUGH eating costly meat and fish was once a symbol of wealth(wealth is the possession of a large amount of money, property, or other valuable things. You can also refer to a particular person’s money or property as their wealth) in China(中国Zhōngguó), today many people can afford animal protein(蛋白质dànbáizhì).

Too many, it seems. It is estimated that around 230 million Chinese are suffering cardiovascular diseases, according to China Cardiovascular Disease Report 2010 released by the China Medical Association. Overweight, caused by a rich diet, is a major cause; too much salt, alcohol and stress are other factors.

But eating animal protein has a long tradition in China.

Eating only vegetables violates the cardinal principle of balance in Traditional Chinese Medicine, according to Professor Qian Hai of Shanghai University of TCM. Eating animal foods is essential to maintain balance of yin(cold energy) and yang(hot energy), he says.