BODY FLUIDS

I. DAMPNESS (A YIN EXCESS)

A. Organs Affected DAMPNESS ALWAYS INVOLVES SPLEEN

Also: Lungs, Kids ( Bladder, L.I.)

B. Etiology 1) hypofunction of Spleen leads to accumulation of damp:

a) Yang dysfunction; Qi illness (Kidney)


b) Yin diet: sugar, dairy, wheat,

c) Liver attacking Spleen

2) Climate; Dampness is one of Six Exogenous Evils: Exogenous dampness will aggravate interior dampness



C. Symptoms



GENERAL: FULLNESS, heaviness and slow progression; creates heat and combines easily with Hot or Cold; San Jiao function is diminished by Water Damp



SYMPTOMS: fullness in chest and abdomen, lack of thirst, obstruction of digestion, nausea, vomiting, loose stool, loss of appetite, heaviness of limbs, lethargy, excess salivation, sweetish taste in mouth





1) UPPER JIAO- Dampness obstructs Lungs:

COUGH, with copious phlegm, frothy or thick,

acc. respiratory sx: asthma, Difficult breathing

2) MIDDLE JIAO- Dampness obstructs Spleen:

Abdominal fullness, No hunger or thirst., nausea, heaviness, loose stools, cloudy senses



3) LOWER JIAO- Dampness leads to obstruction

of Kidney YANG: diarrhea, lower body edema,

urinary complaints, polyuria, dysuria, retention

of urine. Urine is typically turbid, cloudy,

Stool may contain mucus





Tongue: swollen, moist body, excess saliva

may have white frothy coating or thick sticky white



Pulse: Slippery (Rolling), soggy, or big but forceless



D. Treatment Principles:



1. Transform (Dry) Damp (Disperse)

2. Strengthen Spleen/Stomach

3. Regulate the Qi

4. Promote urination


E. Herbs Atractylodes (Bai Zhu). Atractylodes (Cang Zhu)

Magnolia ( Hou Pu), Pinellia ( Ban Xia )



F. Prescription Liu Jun Zi Tang

Six Gentlemen Decoction



Strengthens the Spleen, Transforms damp, stops vomiting


SI JUN ZI TANG plus ER CHEN TANG

( Citrus Chen Pi and Pinellia Ban Xia)

IA. PHLEGM (TAN)



Phlegm is Dampness that has been congealed: i.e., “baked or boiled” by depressed Fire into a thick turbid substance that is directly involved in the presentation of many complex diseases like stroke and epilepsy. It is said:



Phlegm is rooted in water and dampness. If these obtain Qi and fire, it leads to binding, making phlegm.



Blood and fluids flow together, so phlegm stagnation may lead to blood stagnation, and blood stagnation may lead to phlegm stagnation. Therefore, in complex diseases, in order to transform phlegm, it is necessary to treat the blood:



To treat phlegm, it is essential to treat the blood.

Quickening the blood leads to the transformation of phlegm.

- Zhu Liang-chun

II. DAMP HEAT



A. Organs Affected Spleen/Stomach, Liver Gall Bladder, L.I., U.B., Lung



B. Etiology Dampness tends to bind with heat (Law of Six Depressions)



1. Damp and Heat produce each other



Dampness leads to stagnation, stagnation leads to heat. Pure Yang cannot ascend.

(Damp Heat is Yang and damages Yin, Dampness

is Yin; this makes the combined entity difficult to

to resolve)



2. Exogenous Factors



Heat can be introduced into a stagnant situation by a toxin

Damp Heat pathogen can invade



3. Endogenous factors



a. Yin deficiency fire can provide heat to mingle with dampness. This is very tricky.

b. Yin Fire

c. emotional factors



4. Dampness and Heat can lead to Phlegm

C. Symptoms GENERAL:

Heaviness and local fullness ( “Oppression” or “uneasy feeling”, or “restlessness”) low grade fever comes on at mid-day, thirst with little desire to drink, scarceness and concentration of body fluids,



1. UPPER JIAO:



HEAT PHLEGM IN LUNGS

coughing, fever, or sensation of heat,

sputum is thick, sticky and difficult to expectorate, yellow, green, possibly blood tinged

depending on how much Fire there is. Phlegm creates sensation of fullness.

The thicker and more difficult the expectoration,

the more heat is present; e.g., Bronchitis, U.R.I.



2. MIDDLE JIAO:



The dynamic is Liver produces Fire when Excess, Spleen produces dampness when deficient.

The source of Heat in the middle burner is most often due to Liver Hyperfunction, or Stomach Heat. When Dampness traps Heat in the center and Spleen is unable to raise, Damp Heat is formed. Otherwise, Heat pathogen (Toxin) entering through the mouth disrupts Sp/St harmony. The stronger the pattern, the more likely it will involve heat from one of these sources; the weaker the pattern, the more Spleen QI deficiency and dampness is involved



a) Excess: Liver/Gall Bladder; Stomach



b) Deficiency: Spleen



Spleen damp heat tends to include more dampness than heat, thus more vacuity than repletion



. Sx include: abdominal fullness, discomfort or pain (may be anywhere on abdomen), heaviness of limbs, poor appetite, thirst w/o desire to drink, general feeling of heat, nausea, vomiting, loose stools with offensive odor, dull or dark yellow complexion ( as opposed to bright yellow), oily sweating which does not cool fever or heat, itchy skin or skin eruptions.

Tongue: red, with sticky yellow coating



3. LOWER JIAO: burning, painful, scanty urination, lower abdominal fullness, with

heaviness, and fever; cystitis



Tongue: Body may be red, coating may be yellow, moist, greasy, etc., Moisture depends upon chronicity and degree of heat; as always reflects damage to body

fluids.



Pulse: Rolling and Rapid, may be String Taut (Wiry)


D. Treatment Principles 1. Clear Heat/ Transform Damp

2. Regulate Organ function


E. Herbs Upper Jiao: Scutellaria (Huang Qin) for

Lungs; also St and L.I.

Middle Jiao: Coptis ( Huang Lian) Stomach also Heart



Lower Jiao: Phellodendron (Huang Bai)

NB: These herbs are very cold; watch out for spleen;

LIV/GB: Gentiana ( Long Dan Cao)

Jaundice: Capillaris (Yin Chen Hao)





F. Prescription Varies according to Jiao:

Er Miao San

TWO MARVEL POWDER

Clears Heat and Dries Dampness

Phellodendron (Huang Bai)/ Atractylodes (Cang Zhu)

For Lower Jiao: SAN MIAO WAN add Achyranthes ( Niu Xi)

III. WATER RETENTION





A. Organs Involved Lungs ( face), (trunk and limbs), Kidney ( lower body)

B. Etiology Damage to Yang and San Jiao

C. Symptoms Lung ( Invasion by Wind Water): Sudden swelling of eyes and face gradually spreading to entire body, bright shiny complexion.

Spleen: Interstitial swelling and fullness over entire body ( Similar to general bloating)

Kidney: Lower body edema----Usually accompanied by urinary retention



D. Treatment Principles 1. Transform Damp/ Dispel Edema

2. Tonify Yang

3. Promote Urination

4. Regulate Qi

5. Strengthen the Spleen

6. Diaphoresis

E. Herbs Ephedra ( Ma Huang) Excess edema,

Astragalus (Huang QI)Deficiency edema

Poria ( Fu Ling ) always

Alisma ( Ze Xie)



F. Prescriptions Generally from the Category: Promote Urination and leech out dampness; they will always include Qi regulating herbs because of the extreme Yin nature of the Pathogens, Qi obstruction occurs.



Wu Ling San

Five Ingredient Powder with Poria promotes urination, drains dampness, strengthens the Spleen, warms the Yang and promotes the transforming functions of Qi,
-Ze Xie, fu Ling, Zhu Ling, Bai Zhu, Gui Zhi

IV. DEFICIENCY OF FLUIDS (DRYNESS)


A. Organs Affected External Dryness: Lung ( from exterior pathogenic dryness

Internal Dryness: St., Kidneys, L.I., (Kids Yin Xu)



B. Etiology This is an intermediate Stage of Yin deficiency,

usually preceding Yin Xu, but sometimes reversible

in the Acute stage. A form of Yin Xu. May be combined with other factors



1. Yin Xu or severe, chronic, Blood Deficiency



2. Prolonged loss of BF (sweating, vomiting, diarrhea, hemorrhaging)



3. Dietary- insufficient fluid intake



4. Exogenous pathogen ( Wind/ Wind Heat)



C. Symptoms Lung: dry cough, dry skin, dry throat, mouth, nose



St.: Thirst, with “desire for small sips”, dry tongue



L.I.: Dry stools, constipation



Kids: scanty urination, dry scratchy throat



Pulse: Deficiency



Tongue: Dry





D. Treatment Principles 1. Moisten Dryness/Generate Fluids ( Often used when Repletion heat has scorched fluids)



2. Nourish Yin



3. Nourish Blood



E. Herbs Dendrobium (Shi Hu)

- generates fluids; for parched mouth, severe thirst

Ophiopogon ( Mai Men Dong)

-moistens lungs, augments stomach Yin, generates fluids





F. Prescription Mai Men Dong Tang (OPHIOPOGON DECOCTION)



-Mai Men Dong, Ren Shen, Da Zao, Ban Xia,



-Benefits the Stomach, generates fluids, and directs rebellious Qi downward