Have you ever had the feeling as if your tongue is too broad and thick for your mouth? Possibly to the extend that you can see a clear imprint of your teeth on the sides of your mouth?
The tongue in Chinese medicine (CM) is, next to the pulse, the most important indicator of your overall health. The tongue, as a muscle, is governed by the Spleen, which, as attentive readers of my blog already know, is fancy CM speak for your digestive system. A weak Spleen causes weak Qi (energy), in other words, the body is too weak to maintain the body’s muscles in the desired shape.
A puffed tongue is also a sign of ‘Damp’, another beloved CM word. When body fluids are not moved around the body at the required speed due to lack of Qi, they start thickening– and Damp is created. The reason for sometimes daily changes in the shape of your tongue is usually caused by a particularly unhealthy, Damp-creating meal from the day before. That can be anything from very fatty food, increased alcohol intake, too much dairy etc. If your tongue is always in a bad shape, you might want to consider acupuncture and/or herbs to get you back on track 😊