What diseases can be seen from the tongue coating

During the process of TCM diagnosis and treatment, it is generally necessary to observe the tongue coating. This is because by looking at the specific condition of the tongue coating, it is possible to determine the problems the patient has. When health problems occur in many organs of the body, they will be reflected in the tongue coating in certain ways. So, what diseases can be seen from the tongue coating? The following will introduce this knowledge!

1. The presence or absence of moss

A normal tongue has a thin layer of white fur, which is caused by stomach qi. During the course of the disease, the tongue coating disappears from the surface, which is a sign of insufficient stomach qi and yin, and a gradual decline in vital energy. However, after the tongue coating peels off, a thin white coating grows back, which is a sign that the evil is retreating and the vital energy is regenerating, and stomach qi is gradually recovering.

2. Thickness of moss

If you can faintly see the tongue texture through the tongue coating, it is thin coating, while if you cannot see the tongue texture, it is thick coating. The thickness of the tongue coating can determine the strength of the positive and negative forces and the severity of the disease. Thin tongue coating indicates external symptoms of infection, as well as internal injury and qi stagnation. Thick tongue coating indicates phlegm, dampness, and stagnation. When the tongue coating changes from thin to thick, it means that the pathogenic factors move from the surface to the inside, and the disease progresses as the pathogenic factors are stronger; when the tongue coating changes from thick to thin, it means that the pathogenic factors move from the inside to the surface, and the disease progresses as the pathogenic factors prevail.

3. The moistness or dryness of the tongue coating can help us understand the changes in body fluids

If the tongue surface is moist, and the dryness and wetness are moderate, it is a normal tongue image. Although there is disease, the body fluids are not damaged. If it feels moist and slippery, it is called slippery tongue coating, which mostly indicates cold and dampness, or yang deficiency and water retention. If the tongue looks dry and there is no saliva when touched, it is dry tongue coating, which is mostly caused by excessive heat damaging body fluid, loss of yin fluid, or failure of qi to transform body fluid.

4. Greasy and rotten tongue coating and partial and complete tongue coating

Changes in the distribution of tongue coating on the tongue surface. The tongue coating covering the entire tongue is called full tongue. When the tongue coating is distributed partially on the front, back, left or right side of the tongue, it is called partiality. By observing the distribution of the tongue coating, one can determine the location of the lesion. The whole tongue coating indicates that the evil qi is scattered, which is mostly a sign of damp phlegm blocking the middle burner; the tongue coating is biased on one side of the tongue, which means that the evil qi is half-exterior and half-interior, or the disease is in the liver and gallbladder; the root of the tongue coating is thick and greasy, which is mostly phlegm or gastrointestinal stagnation.

5. The peeling and growth of tongue coating

Changes in the thickness and amount of tongue coating also reflect the progress of positive and negative forces. If the tongue coating changes from less to more, or from thin to thick, it generally means that the evil qi has worsened and the disease is progressing; if the tongue coating changes from thick to thin, or from more to less, it means that the positive qi has gradually recovered and the disease is retreating. If the tongue coating suddenly increases or decreases, it is usually a sign of a sudden change in the disease.