The spleen is also responsible for transporting water and dampness and has a significant influence on the distribution of water in the body. “The spleen opens the mouth and the lips, and is the supply station of nutrients.
1. Is the spleen and stomach described in Chinese medicine as the spleen and stomach?
The “spleen” described in Chinese medicine and the spleen referred to in Western medicine have the same name, but are different in terms of anatomy, physiological function and pathological changes, so they should not be treated as the same. According to Chinese medicine, “the spleen is the master of transportation and transformation”, which means that the spleen has the physiological function of digesting and absorbing the water and grain essence (nutrients) in the diet and transferring it to the whole body. The spleen’s transport function includes the transport of water and grain (generally referred to as various dietary items) and the transport of water and fluid.
(1) Transporting water and grain refers to the spleen’s function of digesting, absorbing and distributing food throughout the body, which means that the spleen is responsible for digesting, absorbing and transporting nutrients in food to all organs and tissues of the body to perform its nutritional function.
(2) Transporting water and fluids, meaning that the spleen is responsible for absorbing, transporting and dispersing water and fluids to all organs and tissues of the body, exerting its moisturizing and nourishing effects. The functions of the spleen and stomach in TCM include all the functions of the digestive system and some of the functions of the circulatory system in Western medicine, therefore, diseases of the spleen and stomach are mainly manifested in the dysfunction of the digestive system.
The spleen and stomach in Chinese medicine refers to the entire digestive system.
2.What is the main thing to nourish the spleen and stomach?
The digestion and absorption of food, to ensure the nutrition and moistening of the body with water and grain essence (nutrients).
The main function of the spleen and stomach is to digest and absorb food, and to ensure the nutrition and moistening of the body by the water and grain essence (nutrients). Therefore, the most important way to maintain the health of the spleen and stomach in daily life is to pay attention to the regulation of diet (refer to the section on diet regulation).
3.Why are southerners more prone to spleen and stomach problems than northerners?
”The spleen corresponds to long summer”, and special attention should be paid to prevent dampness from attacking the body during long summer.
The spleen and stomach are both earth in the five elements, and the spleen is yin earth in the theory of yin and yang, so the spleen’s yang energy is prone to decline and yin energy is prone to flourish, and its characteristic is that it likes dryness but hates dampness; the stomach is yang earth, with more gas and blood, and its characteristic is that it likes moistening but hates dryness. When dampness invades the body, it is most likely to harm the spleen’s yang, causing the spleen’s transportation and transformation functions to malfunction. According to Chinese medicine, “the spleen corresponds to the long summer”, which is the sixth month of the lunar calendar and is dominated by dampness due to more rain. Therefore, special attention should be paid to prevent dampness from attacking the body during long summer.
4.How to exercise for the spleen and stomach?
(1) sports and exercise: sports for the spleen and stomach health care can include a variety of sports, such as walking, jogging, hiking, swimming, etc.. Middle-aged and elderly people can choose their own sports according to their own physical condition, adhere to the exercise, persistent, very beneficial to the health care of the spleen and stomach.
(2) health care exercises to maintain the spleen and stomach.
① knead hidden white point: sit cross-legged, barefoot, with the left thumb press the right foot hidden white point (the root of the big toe nail inside), left rotation press 15 times, right rotation press 15 times, then press the left foot hidden white point with the right thumb, the same technique as before.
②Knead the Gongsun point: sit cross-legged, press the Gongsun point of the right foot (medial side of the foot, lower edge of the first metatarsal) with the left thumb, press it 15 times with left rotation and 15 times with right rotation, then press the Gongsun point of the left foot with the right thumb, the same technique as before.
(iii) rubbing the Sanyinjiao point: sitting cross-legged, press the Sanyinjiao point (3 inches above the tip of the inner ankle, at the posterior edge of the tibia) with the left thumb, rotate the pressure left 15 times, rotate the pressure right 15 times, then press the left Sanyinjiao point with the right hand, the same technique as before.
④Knead the Yinlingquan point: sit with your hands on both knees and press the Yinlingquan point (the lower edge of the inner tibial condyle) with your thumbs for 30 rotational presses.
⑤Knead the three epigastric points: in a lying position, place the palm of the left hand on the middle epigastric point (in the midline of the abdomen, between the Jiantu and the umbilicus, 1 inch above the middle epigastric point for the upper epigastric point and 1 inch below for the lower epigastric point), covering the upper, middle and lower epigastric points, and press the right hand on the back of the left hand. Rotate and knead 20 times to the left and 20 times to the right.
(6) press and knead the Tianshu point: lie flat, put both hands on both sides of the abdomen, press the middle finger on the Tianshu point (2 inches away from the umbilicus), and press up and down 30 times.
(vii) pushing the abdomen: lying in a flat position, press the palm of the left hand under the jaws of the sword, and press the right hand on the back of the left hand. Push from the top down to the pubic symphysis of the lower abdomen, pushing 50 times.
(8) Rubbing the foot Sanli point: in a sitting position, press the foot Sanli point (3 inches below the outer knee eye, outside the tibia) with the thumbs of both hands, rotating the pressure 30 times.
⑨ push the stomach meridian: press the thumbs of both hands on the foot Sanli point, push from the top down along the outer side of the tibia to the ankle joint, push 30 times.
⑩ whole body exercise: after doing the above health exercises, you can do squatting exercise 10 times and chest expansion exercise 10 times to promote the flow of Qi and blood throughout the body, more help the effect of spleen and stomach health exercises. This health exercise has to promote the spleen and stomach transportation, increase appetite and enhance the role of physical fitness.
5.What should I pay attention to in the diet for the spleen and stomach?
One avoid diet, two avoid diet, three avoid unclean diet.
Diet is the most important for the health care of the spleen and stomach. In daily life, a balanced diet of nutrients, a variety of food, and regular meals are beneficial to the maintenance of the spleen and stomach. The main cause of damage to the spleen and stomach is the inappropriate diet, which is called “injury caused by diet” in Chinese medicine. The injury caused by diet includes three aspects, one is uncontrolled diet, including hunger and satiety disorders and irregular diet; the second is biased diet, including biased diet, hot and cold disorders, over-eating fatty, sweet and thick flavors, biased diet and alcoholism, etc.; the third is unclean diet. Therefore, to prevent overeating, overfed, untimely meals, partiality, smoking and alcoholism, unhygienic diet and other bad habits.
Spleen and stomach food therapy.
(1) Yam Coix congee: 50 grams of yam, 20 grams of coix seeds, 100 grams of round-grained rice, cooked together into a porridge. It is suitable for middle-aged and elderly people with weak spleen and stomach due to loss of appetite, distention and fullness, loose stools, etc.
(2) lotus seeds and gravy porridge: 10 grams of lotus seeds, 10 grams of gravy, 5 grams of bone marrow, 100 grams of round-grained rice, cooked together into porridge. It is suitable for spleen and kidney deficiency caused by loss of appetite, bloating, cold limbs, weakness of the waist and knees, diarrhea, etc.
(3) Ginseng and jujube porridge: 10 grams of ginseng, 10 jujubes, 100 grams of round-grained rice, cooked together into porridge. It has the effect of strengthening the spleen and benefiting the qi, and is suitable for weakness, loss of appetite, bloating and fullness of the abdomen.
(4) poria cake: poria 10 grams, 100 grams of flour, poria washed and crushed into fine powder, mixed with flour, add sugar in the right amount, fermented and steamed cake to eat. Has a spleen dry damp, water and tranquilizing effect, suitable for spleen deficiency caused by dampness, fullness of the epigastric abdomen, less food, insomnia and dreaminess.
(5) lotus seeds and pork belly soup: lotus seeds 20 grams, pork belly 1, a little pepper, cooked into soup, eat after removing the pepper. It has the effect of warming the stomach and strengthening the spleen, benefiting the qi and replenishing the deficiency. It is suitable for those who suffer from loss of appetite, indigestion, cold diet and stomach pain due to weakness of the spleen and stomach.
(6) Hawthorn and malt porridge: 10 grams of hawthorn, 5 grams of malt, 100 grams of round-grained rice, cooked together into porridge. It is suitable for those who suffer from bloating, lack of appetite and indigestion caused by the accumulation of meat or rice and flour.
(7) Job’s tear and bean porridge: 20 grams of coix seeds, 20 grams of red beans, 100 grams of round-grained rice, cooked together into porridge. It has the effect of permeating dampness and water, strengthening the spleen and benefiting the qi. It is suitable for those who have little food and poor appetite, distended abdomen and swollen urine due to spleen deficiency and dampness.
(8) Eight treasures porridge: lotus seeds, gravy, barley, yam, cinnamon, red dates, white lentils 5 grams each, 100 grams of round-grained rice, cooked together into a porridge. It is suitable for those who are weak, have little food, and have a deficiency of qi and blood.
6.How can patients with spleen and stomach diseases treat themselves with Chinese herbs?
Common single prescriptions and traditional Chinese medicines for spleen and stomach are
(1) Single herbs and prescriptions.
Ginseng is cut into thin slices, put it in the mouth until there is no taste of ginseng and then chew it up and swallow it, 1~3 grams per day. It has the effect of nourishing the vital energy and benefiting the spleen and lung, and is suitable for those who are weak and have diminished spleen and stomach functions.
②C prince ginseng tea drink: 10 grams of prince ginseng, soak in boiling water for half an hour and drink. It has the effect of benefiting Qi and nourishing Yin, strengthening the spleen and benefiting the lung. It is suitable for those who are weak after illness, weakness of the spleen and stomach, weakness and spontaneous sweating, and reduced diet.
(3) Si Jun Zi Tang: 10 grams of Radix Codonopsis Pilosulae, 12 grams of Atractylodes Macrocephala, 10 grams of Poria Cocos, 5 grams of roasted licorice, taken with a decoction of water. It is suitable for weakness of the limbs, weakness of the stomach, poor appetite, fullness of the stomach and abdomen, and pallor of the face.
Ginseng and jujube soup: 6 grams of ginseng, 10 jujubes, decoction with water. It is suitable for the weakness, loss of appetite, pale complexion, insomnia and dreaminess caused by deficiency of blood in the spleen.
⑤ Strengthening the spleen and stopping diarrhea soup: 12 grams of Atractylodes macrocephala, 10 grams of yam, poria and white lentil each, decoction with water. It is suitable for middle-aged and elderly people with abdominal distension and diarrhea caused by deficiency of spleen and clear yang.
(6) Yixing Spleen Soup: 10 grams of Astragalus, 9 grams of Ginseng, 2 grams of Atractylodes Macrocephala, 3 grams of Glycyrrhiza glabra, taken with water. It has the effect of benefiting qi, tonifying deficiency and strengthening the spleen, and is suitable for those with weak spleen and stomach due to physical fatigue, poor appetite, and fullness in the abdomen.
(2) Commonly used Chinese patent medicines.
(1) Ginseng and Spleen Pill (composed of Ginseng, Atractylodes Macrocephala, Citrus Aurantium, Hawthorn, etc.): It has the effect of strengthening the spleen and stomach, eliminating food and resolving stagnation, and is suitable for the spleen and stomach weakness caused by stuffiness and fullness, tasteless diet, spleen deficiency diarrhea, etc.
Ginseng and Atractylodes macrocephala (composed of ginseng, poria, atractylodes, lotus seeds, etc.): it is used to strengthen the spleen and benefit the qi, harmonize the stomach and permeate the dampness, and is suitable for the weakness of the spleen and stomach due to the deficiency of qi and dampness, such as withered complexion, weakness of the limbs, poor diet and loose stools.
(③) Kaishei Jianshan Wan (composed of Radix et Rhizoma Ginseng, Pericarpium Citri Reticulatae, Atractylodes Macrocephalae and Radix et Rhizoma Stachybotrys): It is used to tonify the spleen and strengthen the stomach, benefit the qi and harmonize the middle.
Xiang Sha Liu Jun Zi Wan (composed of Si Jun Zi Tang plus Chen Pi, Han Xia, Mu Xiang and Sha Ren): It is used to strengthen the spleen and stomach, regulate Qi and relieve pain, and is indicated for painful distention and fullness of the abdomen, loss of appetite, belching, vomiting and diarrhea caused by deficiency of the spleen and stomach.
⑤ Ginseng and Atractylodis Macrocephalae Pill (composed of Ginseng, Atractylodes Macrocephalae, Poria, Paeoniae, etc.): It has the effect of strengthening the spleen and stomach, and is suitable for indigestion, abdominal distension and fullness, fatigue and fatigue caused by weakness of the spleen and stomach.
(6) Rizhong Pill (composed of Radix et Rhizoma Ginseng, Atractylodes Macrocephala, Radix et Rhizoma Ginger, Radix et Rhizoma Glycyrrhiza Uralensis, etc.): It has the function of warming the middle Jiao and dispersing cold, tonifying Qi and strengthening the spleen.