The Central Weather Bureau says that Taiwan is set for another week of intense, sweltering heat.
It’s a typical summer in Taiwan: hot, humid, and stuffy. And Wednesday may have been the hottest day of the year. That’s because Wednesday was the first day of “Da shu”. “Da shu”, or intense heat, is one of the 24 “micro-seasons” that make up the year in the traditional lunar calendar.
Central Weather Bureau forecaster Wu Wan-hua says that northeastern and western Taiwan can expect afternoon thundershowers after Saturday. The same holds for mountainous areas of central and southern Taiwan.
But perhaps the sweltering heat is a blessing. An agricultural proverb holds that “if the weather is not hot on the day of ‘intense heat’, chances are there will be tropical storms or flooding.”
To stay cool, doctor of traditional Chinese medicine Chen Chao-zong suggests foods that help reduce body heat: for example, mung beans, grass jelly, and ice jelly. Fruits such as pears, watermelons and kiwi are also good choices.
But Dr. Chen does not recommend these foods for people who have a headache or feel dizzy after staying in an air-conditioned room for too long. That’s because they could prevent the humidity from coming out of the body.