Chapter 44: The Spleen and Kidneys in Traditional Chinese Medicine

"Doctor Zhang, what on earth is going on with me? Why can't I ever seem to get completely cured?" Little Guizi looked at Zhang Jing with an expectant gaze.

"Here is the situation. Based on the data gathered from the four diagnostic methods, your condition is a combination of the Taiyin, Shaoyin, and Shaoyang syndromes, and your pattern is characterized by yang deficiency and dampness stagnation."

"What kind of yin and yang?" Little Guizi looked completely baffled.

"These are terms used in traditional Chinese medicine. Here, Taiyin mainly corresponds to your spleen, Shaoyin corresponds to your kidneys, and Shaoyang corresponds to your liver and gallbladder."

"Ah! Are all those internal organs broken? But I've had several checkups at the hospital before, and the doctors said they didn't find any problems!" Little Guizi was both shocked and suspicious.

"The five viscera—heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys—talked about in traditional Chinese medicine are not the same thing as the internal organs described in Western anatomical science. This is because traditional Chinese medicine mainly focuses on their functionality. To use a somewhat inappropriate analogy, imagine a second-hand bicycle. From the outside, it looks no different from a new one, and if you ride it around for a few laps, you won't notice any obvious problems."

"However, the bearings actually lack lubricating oil. If you continue riding it for a while longer without maintenance, the problems will likely surface. First, the bearings will wear out, which will then affect other components. Ultimately, it could lead to this second-hand bicycle being completely scrapped."

"Oh... oh... I think I'm starting to understand. Western medical exams only take a brief look at the exterior, equivalent to checking whether the main structures are damaged. Traditional Chinese medicine, on the other hand, goes deep into the most minute details, and often, if a minor issue isn't properly repaired, it can lead to severe consequences," Little Guizi muttered to himself.

"Very good, your comprehension skills are quite good," Zhang Jing praised sincerely.

Little Guizi scratched his head, grinning broadly with a somewhat bashful smile.

"Regarding the main functions of the spleen, kidneys, and liver and gallbladder: the spleen governs transportation and transformation, meaning that all the food you consume is primarily digested and absorbed by the spleen."

"Isn't the digestive tract responsible for digestion? Every time I go to the hospital, the gastroenterology doctors say so," Little Guizi was puzzled again.

"The digestive system discussed in Western medicine does indeed mainly involve organs such as the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and large intestine. However, to return to the previous point, the viscera and bowels in traditional Chinese medicine—such as the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, stomach, gallbladder, triple energizer, urinary bladder, large intestine, and small intestine—primarily refer to a set of functions and cannot be simply mapped to a single organ."

"In particular, the spleen in traditional Chinese medicine is completely different from the spleen in Western anatomy. Traditional Chinese medicine calls the spleen the root of acquired life because it governs the transportation and transformation of grain and nutrient essences, serving as the primary source of nutritional intake for the human body. This is roughly equivalent to the entire digestive system in Western medicine, especially most of the functions of the stomach and small intestine."

"Oh, I see," Little Guizi nodded, then immediately asked, "What about the spleen in Western medicine?"

"The spleen in modern anatomical science is an important lymphoid organ located in the upper left of the abdominal cavity. It is flat and oval, dark red, soft and fragile in texture, and prone to rupture and bleeding when subjected to localized blunt force trauma."

"I know about that. Last year, a fellow worker accidentally fell from a scaffolding and ruptured his spleen. Fortunately, he was rescued in time and saved his life. He stayed in the hospital for quite a while and recovered pretty well. However, the doctor said he can no longer do heavy physical labor, so he had to quit his job and go back home to grow vegetables."

"Right, now let's talk about the kidneys."

"Yes, yes! As a man, the thing I fear most is kidney deficiency. Is my kidney very deficient too? How should I nourish it?" Hearing this, Little Guizi immediately perked up.

Without answering directly, Zhang Jing continued popularizing the medical knowledge: "Corresponding to the spleen being the root of acquired life, traditional Chinese medicine holds that the kidneys are the root of pre-natal life. This is because the kidneys store essence, containing original yin and original yang within. They are the root of human growth and development, as well as the driving force behind the functional activities of the viscera."

"Oh, oh, oh! No wonder everyone says the kidneys are a man's lifeline."

Zhang Jing smiled slightly: "This applies to both men and women; a woman's kidneys are just as crucial."

"But Doctor Zhang, isn't it only men who have essence? Where would women get essence from?" Little Guizi was confused again.

"This essence is not that essence. Or rather, you can understand a man's as yang-essence, while a woman's is yin-essence," Zhang Jing explained.

"Mm, mm, mm. Doctor Zhang, you still haven't told me whether my kidneys are deficient or not!" What Little Guizi cared about most was still his own kidneys.

"Kidney deficiency is also divided into three types: kidney yang deficiency, kidney yin deficiency, and kidney qi deficiency. Simply put, kidney yang deficiency means an obvious aversion to cold; kidney yin deficiency means thirst and aversion to heat; and kidney qi deficiency mostly refers to the failure of kidney qi to secure and grasp qi."

"People with kidney yang deficiency often manifest as soreness and coldness in the waist and knees, aversion to cold and cold limbs, listlessness, impotence, shrinking of the genitalia, nocturnal emission, frequent urination with clear urine, frequent nighttime urination, clear and thin leukorrhea in women, and cold uterus causing infertility."

"People with kidney yin deficiency often manifest as soreness and weakness of the waist and knees, dizziness, tinnitus, insomnia, vivid dreams, night sweats, vexing heat in the chest, palms and soles, dry throat, sexual dysfunction, nocturnal emission, and premature ejaculation in men, and amenorrhea or metrorrhagia in women."

"Kidney qi deficiency manifested as the failure of kidney qi to secure refers to a syndrome caused by insufficient kidney qi, leading to a loss of the functions of containment and storage. It is mostly manifested as soreness and weakness of the waist and knees, frequent and clear urination, spermatorrhea in men, and habitual miscarriage and excessive clear, thin leukorrhea in women."

"Kidney qi deficiency manifested as the failure of the kidneys to receive qi refers to a syndrome caused by weakness of kidney qi, resulting in the inability to grasp qi. It is often manifested as shortness of breath upon exertion, more exhalation than inhalation, soreness and weakness of the waist and knees, fatigue and listlessness, pale complexion, pale tongue with white coating, and a deep, weak pulse. In severe cases of cough and asthma, it can manifest as cold sweat pouring down, a faint pulse verging on expiration; or shortness of breath with rapid respiration, flushed cheekbones, and dry throat and mouth."

After explaining this large section of basic traditional Chinese medical knowledge, Zhang Jing smiled and asked him, "So, you might as well diagnose yourself. Are your kidneys deficient or not?"

Little Guizi thought for a moment and said thoughtfully, "It seems I have a lot of those symptoms. Am I deficient in all of them?"

"Actually, no. You mainly have kidney yang deficiency. I diagnosed it right at the beginning: your condition belongs to the combined syndromes of Taiyin, Shaoyin, and Shaoyang, and the pattern is yang deficiency and dampness stagnation."

"Oh, oh, oh!" Little Guizi suddenly saw the light.

"Let me also popularize the functions of the liver and gallbladder for you."

"Great, great! Listening to your lecture is so interesting. Unlike an old Chinese medicine doctor I saw before, who kept talking to me about things like water and wood, and reciting some strange poems that I couldn't understand at all," Little Guizi said with a hint of emotion.

Hearing this, Zhang Jing chuckled inwardly: Wasn't he talking about Director Huang Biao? Just a moment ago, he claimed he didn't know him and had never seen a traditional Chinese medicine doctor before, but now he had slipped up.

However, to avoid awkwardness, Zhang Jing naturally wouldn't expose him on the spot.

Instead, he said calmly, "That is the Five Elements theory of traditional Chinese medicine, and the poems recited were probably formulas like the *Rhymed Formula of Decoctions*."

"Right, right, right! I remember now. It seemed to be those two things. Saying them was like not saying anything at all; they were completely useless," Little Guizi immediately took over the conversation.

"You can't say they are useless. Those are also part of traditional Chinese medicine knowledge; it's just that they are harder for outsiders to understand," Zhang Jing corrected factually.

"Um, Doctor Zhang, you'd better tell me about the liver and gallbladder quickly. I really want to hear about it," Little Guizi urged impatiently.

A thought flickered in Zhang Jing's mind. He truly hadn't expected that Little Guizi, a manual laborer at a construction site, would be so interested in traditional Chinese medicine knowledge. It was indeed very commendable.

Moreover, he felt that Little Guizi's comprehension ability was quite decent.

It was a real pity that he would spend his whole life doing only physical labor.

"Alright, then let's continue talking about the liver and gallbladder," Zhang Jing nodded with a smile.

However, right at this moment, a piece of loud, upbeat music rang out inside the consultation room.

Zhang Jing knew this definitely wasn't his own phone, because his old-fashioned basic phone didn't have that kind of ringtone at all.

Then, he saw Little Guizi hurriedly pull out an OPPO phone.

After glancing at it hastily, Little Guizi stood up somewhat flustered and said, "I'm sorry, Doctor Zhang, I need to go outside to take a phone call first."