Diet, work and Rest
1. Improper Food and Drink
Food and drink are the sources of nutrients, and are the substances needed to maintain life activities. But the intake of improper, unclean, or preferential food and drink often is the cause of disease. Since food and drink are digested and absorbed by the spleen and stomach, improper food and drink mainly impair the spleen and stomach, and lead to dysfunction of ascending and descending of the spleen and stomach, causing the accumulation of dampness, formation of phlegm, transformation of heat or other problems.
1) Over-Hunger and Over-Intake
The amount of food and drink should be appropriate; and excessive or insufficient food and drink intake will cause disease. Over-hunger caused by insufficient food and drink intake can lead to a lack in the source of qi and blood. When qi and blood fail to get replenished for a long time, certain diseases will arise. Insufficient qi and blood cause weak human vitality, which leads to declined resistance against disease, producing various
medical problems.
On the contrary, excessive intake of food and drink can overwhelm the spleen and stomach and cause accumulation of the food and drink taken, resulting in an impairment of the spleen and stomach, which produces abdominal distension, eructating with fetid odor, acidulous nausea, loss of appetite, vomiting, and diarrhea. Chapter 43 in Plain Questions says: "Over-intake of food and drink can impair the intestines and stomach."
The spleen-stomach syndrome caused by improper intake of food and drink is often seen in children because their spleen and stomach are weaker than those of adults.
If hot food and drink accumulates for a long time in the body, it can be transformed into the heat evil, while the improper intake of raw and cold food and drink can lead to the accumulation of dampness and formation of phlegm. In children, long-standing accumulation of the food and drink taken can cause febrile malnutrition, producing internal heat in the palm and sole, restless crying, abdominal distension, pale and lean. Frequent over-intake of food and drink not only leads to indigestion, but also affects the flow of qi and blood, causing stagnation of the meridians and vessels, and producing dysentery or hemorrhoids. Chapter 3 in Plain Questions says: "Over-intake of food and drink causes the blood vessels to expand and the intestines to bleed, causing hemorrhoids. " The overintake of fat and sweet food is likely to lead to the transformation of internal heat, and even to carbuncles, gangrene and malignant sores. Chapter 3 also says: "Improper intake of fat and greasy food can raise malignant carbuncles and sores. "
2) Unclean Food and Drink
The intake of unclean food and drink can result in many diseases related to the intestines and stomach, with symptoms such as abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea and dysentery. It also may cause parasitic diseases such as ascariasis, oxyuriasis, and taeniasis, with various symptoms such as abdominal pain, paroxia, and a lean appearance. If ascarides run about into the biliary tract, drastic intermittent colic, helminthemesis, and cold limbs due to ascariasis will appear. If putrefactive and poisonous food and drink are taken, poisoning symptoms such as drastic gastralgia, vomiting, and diarrhea will occur; and in critical cases, coma or death may result. Synopsis of the Golden Chamber points out:"Putrefactive grain food, putrid meat and fish all do people harm ... All unnatural deaths of domestic animals are caused by pestilential evils: such dead bodies of domestic animalsare poisonous,and they should not be eaten as food. "
3) Food and Drink Preference
The intake of food and drink should be rationally adjusted, and food and drink pref erence should be avoided in order to obtain the different necessary nutrients. Intake of too much cold or hot food and drink, or intake of food and drink with a flavor preference,will lead to incoordination between yin and yang, or lead to diseases related to the lack a certain nutrient.
a. Food and drink being too cold or hot
Cold or raw food and drink preferences can cause impairment of yang-qi of the spleen and stomach, producing internal heat syndrome with symptoms such as abdominal pail and diarrhea. Pungent or hot food and drink preferences can lead to the accumulation heat in the stomach and intestines, producing symptoms such as thirst, abdominal distension with pain, constipation, or hemorrhoids.
b. Preference for particular flavors of food and drink
The essence, vitality, qi, and blood of human beings are all supported and maintained by the five flavors. There are relations of affinity between the five flavors and the five zang-viscera. Chapter 74 in Plain Questions says: "When the five flavors are taken into the stomach, each of them will act on a preferential zang-viscus. The sour flavor acts on the liver; the bitter flavor, the heart; the sweet flavor, the spleen; the pungent flavor, the lung; and the salty flavor, the kidney. " A long-standing preference for a particular flavor of food and drink will lead to hyperactivity of the relevant zang-viscus and visceral impairment, producing various diseases. Chapter 3 says. "An over-sour flavor leads to hyperactive liver-qi and hypoactive spleen-qi; an over-salty flavor leads to impairment of bones and qi, muscular contraction, and suppression of the heart-qi ; an over-sweet flavor leads to asthmatic fullness related to the heart, blackish complexion, and unstable
kidney-qi; an over-bitter flavor leads to malnourished spleen-qi, and overacting stomach-qi; an over-pungent flavor leads to loose tendons and vessels, and unfavorable influence on the essence and mental vitality. "
Chapter 10 in Plain Questions also says: "Over-intake of salty food and drink causes coagulation in the vessels and a color change of the vessels; over-intake of bitter food and drink causes rough skin and the loss of body hairs; over-intake of pungent food and drink causes tightened tendons and withered nails; over-intake of sour food and drink causes cornification of fresh and dry lips; and over-intake of sweet food and drink causes painful bones and the loss of hair. " Therefore, the five flavors of food and drink should be balanced appropriately; daily food and drink intake should be free of flavor preference; and patients should pay particular attention to their diet regulation. Intake of appropriate food and drink can help in the treatment of disease and can promote the condition of a patient;otherwise, the condition of a patient will suffer.
2. Impairment due to Overstrain and Over-Ease
Overstrain and over-ease refer to over-working and over-resting. Normal work and physical exercise can help the circulation of qi and blood, which can promote health. Neeessary relaxation can dispel tiredness and restore physical and mental strength. However,excessive work or rest is not healthy. Long periods of mental or physical over-exertion,excessive sex, or living without doing any work or physical exercise can lead to diseases.
1) Overstrain
Overstrain includes over-consumption of physical strength, Over-use of mental resources and indulging in too much sex.
Over-consumption of physical strength for a relatively long time can cause disease.This is because over-consumption of physical strength can impair qi,and as time passes,qi and strength will become deficient ,and the body will become vigourless and lean. Chapter 39 in Plain Questions says: "overstrain causes consumption of qi," and, "Overstrain causes shallow breath and sweating; as a result,both the exterior and interior of the body overwork, which leads to consumption of qi. " Chapter 23 further states: "Long periods of standing weakens bones; and walking for a long time impairs tendons. "
Over-use of mental resources means over-thinking and overworrying, both of which
cause impairment of the heart and spleen. Chapter 5 in Plain Questions says: "The
spleen is related with thinking. " Since the heart dominates the blood and stores the mind, over-consumption of mental strength impairs the heart-blood and spleen-qi,producing the syndrome of malnutrition of mental vitality, with symptoms such as palpitation,amnesia,insomnia, and dreaminess ;and the syndrome of the spleen's failure to play its transporting role normally, with resulting symptoms such as poor appetite, abdominal distension and diarrhea.
Having too much sex refers to overacting in one's sexual intercourse. The kidney
stores the essence and dominates health reservation; so the kidney-essence should not be overly consumed. When the kidney-essence is excessively consumed by too many sexual activities, symptoms such as painful and weak back and knees, dizziness, ringing in the ears, mental depression, miopragia, seminal emission, and prospermia, or even irnpotence, may result.
2) Over-Ease
Over-ease refers to one's inability or refusal to participate in any work or physical exercise at all. The human body needs a suitable amount of physical movement every day in order to keep qi and blood flowing smoothly. Not participating in any work and physical exercise for a long time is likely to cause abnormal flows of qi and blood, resulting in weakened functions of the spleen and stomach with symptoms such as poor appetite, general weakness, mental depression, flaccid limbs, edematous obese, heart palpitation, difficult breathing, and sweating, or other secondary problems. Chapter 23 in Plain Questions says: "Lying in bed over time impairs qi. "
