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Swollen tongue
My acupuncturist stated that i have a fatty tongue, what can cause this and what is suggested to help?
Traditional Chinese Medicine tongue diagnosis
Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners use tongue diagnosis to assess the patient in regards to digestive capabilities, Qi (energy), blood quality, nutrient assimilation and excretion. Tongue diagnosis is a tool used to assess a patients weaknesses and strengths. A practitioner will perform tongue diagnosis by looking at the color, shape and coating. A healthy tongue is a reddish/ grey color and should appear moist and clean after eating food. The tongue is an indicator of the state of the digestive system and the organs associated with digestion from the rectum to esophagus including the stomach, small intestines, colon (large intestines), pancreas, spleen, liver and gallbladder. It reflects the health and activity of the stomach and gastrointestinal tract.
Swollen tongue
A tongue which appears swollen, puffy or engorged can be related to a spleen qi deficiency and more commonly liver congestion and a decrease in its ability to actively detoxify wastes from the body. This results in an accumulation of wastes in the circulation and the tongue may swell due to congested blood. This causes the swelling of the tongue and is linked with excess heat/ fire production in the liver if it is burdened due to dirty blood.
Symptoms of a spleen deficiency - a pattern of illness in Chinese medicine linked to such symptoms as bloating, gas, and indigestion.
Symptoms associated with a decrease in liver function are skin inflammation, biliousness, indigestion, acid reflux and constipation.
For further information see the Ask a Naturopath.com webpage concerning liver detoxification