Blood According to Chinese Medicine

The concept of blood in Chinese medicine is similar to that of Western medicine. It is red liquid that travels inside vessels in order to moisten and nourish the body. In addition, it maintains vitality in the body. Chinese medicine also believes it is controlled by the heart and that the digestion of food plays a role in its production.

For a more in-depth look, continue reading. To learn more about how Chinese medicine can help you, choose from the following:

Table of Contents:
-The Formation
-Related Organs
-Relation to the Mind
-Nourishing Ability

The Formation
The spleen and stomach are in charge of transforming digested food and combining it with essential qi from the kidneys to form blood [血xue4]. You can think of this first part as a kind of irreversible chemical reaction. Once blood is formed, it can then be subdivided into two main components: nourishing qi and body fluid.

Related Organs
The organs involved in the movement of blood are:

-the heart, which controls
-the lungs, which oversee all the vessels, and
-the liver, which disperses.

Both the spleen, which can contain, and the liver, which stores the blood, are responsible for making sure there are no hemorrhages.

Nourishing Ability
There are many symptoms that arise from the inability to nourish different parts of the body.

For instance, malnourishment of
-head and eyes can lead to dizziness
-skin can lead to white face and lips
-fingernails can lead to pale white nails
-tendons and vessels can lead to numbness in the limbs, cramps
-hair can lead to dry hair, falls out easily
-female organs and meridians can lead to decreased frequency of menstruation, menses behind schedule, even no menstruation at all or infertility

Click to find out how qi, blood and fluids interact within your body.