A central role in TCM is played by the life energy "Qi", which is kept flowing by the two life poles Yin and Yang: If Yin and Yang are in balance, then according to TCM we feel healthy. If the flow of energy is disrupted, for example by environmental influences such as cold, heat, drafts, poor diet, mental stress or overexertion, then according to TCM health problems can arise. Of particular importance among medicinal plants (according to TCM understanding) are medicinal mushrooms, which have been used in TCM for thousands of years. The oldest official list of medicinal substances from the 29th century BC contains several types of mushrooms that were already used for therapeutic purposes at that time.
Here, too, there are great parallels to Ayurveda - because both teachings see food as medicine. However, differences become clear in the details: while in Ayurveda, type-appropriate food is crucial in terms of balancing the doshas, in TCM everything revolves around energy flows. TCM assumes that food can have an energetic effect: some foods have a cooling effect (yoghurt, for example), some have a heating effect (chilli, for example); some foods reduce Qi, some increase it.