Geographic tongue is a condition that gets its name from a maplike appearance on the upper surface and sides of your tongue. Vertical crack on the tongue usually indicates the exhaustion of your body fluids specifically yin deficiency. Debris can sometimes get trapped in the cracks of deep grooves. If you find cracks on a pale tongue, it usually means that the qi and the blood is deficient. Fissured tongue in tcm tongue diagnosis tcm health. May 16, 2017 cracks on a red tongue surface these points to a fungal infection in the body, and is often accompanied by night sweats, sleeplessness and irritability if you like the video, give it a thumbs. The tongue has many relationships and connections in the body, both to the meridians and the internal organs. A cracked tongue indicating an oral thrush is caused by the accumulation of the candida fungus in the oral cavity or the lining of the mouth due to a weak immune. However, a cracked tongueof long term duration without any other symptoms can be considered normal. But in ayurveda, cracks on your tongue tell an important story. A window to other organs registered dental hygienist. We know that emotionally, the liver is the seat of anger, so oftentimes this. Diagnosis through tongue acupuncture and chinese medicine.
The mouth offers a plethora of diagnostic information for the chinese medical doctor. For example, dental researchers found that temporomandibular joint dysfunction causes scalloping of the tongue, tooth sensitivity, and muscle tenderness and pain. The normal tongue in traditional chinese medicine has a light red or pinkish. If your tongue could talk, what would it say about you.
Typically, the tongue is swollen in this state and the pressure causes cracking. A healthy tongue looks like a piece of freshly killed meat. Inspection and tongue study methods in tcm shennong. The tongue body refers to the muscular tissue of the tongue. Practical diagnosis in traditional chinese medicine, 1e. The tongue reflects the health of the internal organs and blood circulation. Feb 01, 2014 a central short crack in the middle of the tongue often indicates stomach yin deficiency 15 fig. In traditional chinese medicine tcm, the tongue is considered a very important sign for both the meridians and the internal organs of the body. Most causes of a cracked tongue are not linked to actual disease or infections, but there are a few outliers that bear mentioning.
Tongue assessment in traditional chinese medicine tcm. Jan 25, 2017 vertical crack on the tongue usually indicates the exhaustion of your body fluids specifically yin deficiency. Your tongue tells a story about your body and your health. According to the principles of tcm, analyzing the appearance of an individuals tongue can provide a greater understanding of his or her overall health. Since heat rises, we need to look at where the heat is rising from and thats usually the liver. Cracks or lines down the center of the tongue also indicate a potential heart function issue. Discover what a tongue diagnosis of cracks on your tongue means and how to remedy a cracked tongue with ayurveda. As mentioned initially, a cracked tongue can be a symptom of a thrush infection, which is brought about by an overgrowth of candida fungus, which is naturally found on the tongue. Your tongue plays a unique role in understanding your bodys constitution. Sometimes called a plicated or scrotal tongue, this condition is often harmless. It will often be necessary to crossreference several or all of these aspects to establish a full picture. What your tongue says about your health eu yan sang.
In some cases, the cracks may cause burning sensation while consuming specific food type or may leave you tasteless too. Tongue diagnosis is an integral part of taking a medical history in chinese medicine. Biotin is a vitamin b commonly utilized by the body in metabolism and fat synthesis. Oct 03, 2019 fissured tongue is a benign condition that affects the surface of the tongue. Causes of papillae hypertrophy or inflammation include, for example. Examining your tongue can tell you everything about your organs and the state of your health.
However, most fissures occur in the middle of the tongue. Swollen tongue if one part only of the tongue is swollen, that suggests problems in that area, which may be damp but more likely also suggest heat. If there is no tongue fur over the crack or fissure, the fissure belongs to pathologic changes. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Once the underlying issues have been addressed, the fissuring should begin to diminish. The treatment of diseases with acupuncture and chinese herbs, 2e. Heat rising to the heart this can manifest as irritability, restlessness, racing thoughts, insomnia, and anxiety. The symptoms of a fissured tongue are cracks on top surface of the tongue. Nov 21, 2019 fissured tongue causes a person to develop one or multiple grooves on their tongue. It is not usually a serious condition but can lead to some mild complications. The tongue has a special relationship with the heart, in that.
Jun 24, 2017 cracked tongue is a condition in which the top visible surface of your tongue gets cracks or fissures. Tongue cracks are hereditary, and rarely cause and problem. Chronic yin deficiency leads to emptyheat and we know in this case that the blood stasis derives from heat as the tongue is a. Observation of the tongue, also known as tongue diagnosis, is an important procedure in tcm examination.
How tongue diagnosis works by transformational acupuncture. The tongue is a map of the body in chinese medicine. This is a method for tcm physicians to understand and predict the. Indicates the quality of blood, reflecting blood andor qi deficiency or cold. Read on to learn what these cracks mean, how they look in pictures, causes including vitamin deficiency plus gluten. In the tcm view, barbecuing or frying foods adds a lot of heat to the essence of foods and when these foods are eaten frequently, they can cause a buildup of excess heat in your stomach. The appearance of a white coating is caused by debris, bacteria and dead cells getting lodged between the enlarged and sometimes inflamed papillae. This may help remove debris that has built up in deep fissures, causing irritation.
This may cause speech abnormalities such as slurring or mumbled speech. So if cracks appear towards the front of the tongue in the chest area, lung yin deficiency might be a problem. A weak immune system can be as a result of vaginal yeast infection, cancer, and diabetes. Cracks in a red tongue indicate deficient yin or heat injuring the fluids. Bruxism is one of the main causes of cracks in the tongue. Consumption of hot, spicy, or acidic food, tobacco, alcohol, dried, salty nuts, and smoking cigarettes could burn or irritate the tongue causing swelling and eventual cracking.
Tcm doctors rely on tongue diagnosis to differentiate one syndrome from another, and use variations in the tongues colour, texture, shape and coating to evaluate a patients condition. It is a problem in which it squeezes and grinds teeth without hardly realizing it, which happens mostly while we sleep. Tongue diagnosis is a practice long used in traditional chinese medicine a system of alternative medicine that originated in china. A cracked tongue is a benign condition with multiple small but furrows, fissures or grooves visible on the dorsal of the tongue. As your health changes, the condition of your tongue will change as well. The deeper the crack, the more chronic the condition of the tongue.
Most causes of a cracked tongue have distinctive and telltale symptoms, so a visual inspection followed by a medical history can accurately determine most culprits. Aug 10, 2017 reddish purple is related to stagnation of heat. According to the traditional chinese medicine tcm, ra falls into the category of impediment disease bi syndrome, that is, poor circulation of qi and blood stasis. It includes observing the tongue and any coating it may have. It has a look of aliveness and is supple not stiff. As you look at your tongue then, check the following regularly, note their location on the tongue, as well as any changes over time. Fissured tongue causes a person to develop one or multiple grooves on their tongue. The fissures or grooves vary in sizes and can either be deep or shallow and may be as deep as six millimeters. Cracks on a red tongue surface these points to a fungal infection in the body, and is often accompanied by night sweats, sleeplessness and irritability if you like the video, give it a thumbs. Colour of the tongue body, including red prickles or black dots coating on the tongue surface colour, thickness, dryness or moistness of the coating shape of the tongue fissures cracks in the tongue.
Crack down center, depending on length, can indicate severity of disease and progression. Learn more about how docmisha uses a traditional chinese medicine diagnosis to. White tongue is the result of an overgrowth and swelling of the fingerlike projections papillae on the surface of your tongue. A normal tongue is pink in color, medium thickness, no cracks, ulcers, no teeth marks and with a light white moist coat with root on it. But if the tongue is pale and cracked, deficient qi or xue is present. The appearance of multiple small cracks all over the tongue is a clear indicator of a strong, chronic vata derangement such as high anxiety, fear, insomnia, and possibly a nervous system disorder. In tcm, the tongue is believed to be connected with many organs through the. If you have fissures in your tongue, its likely no cause for concern. Fissured tongue can also cause irritation, mouth sores or pain. Jun 14, 2016 the tongue is a map of the body in chinese medicine.
In some cases, tongue fissures do not cause any pain and go unnoticed. Fissured tongue is a benign condition that affects the surface of the tongue. Researchers havent yet pinpointed the precise cause of fissured tongue. If the tongue body also has cracks and there is little or no tongue coat, this usually indicates deficient heat due to internal injury. A cracked tongue diagnosis usually involves looking at the tongue to see what else is occurring alongside the cracks. There is no movement quivering, trembling, sidetoside motion, curling or shifting to one side. This article explores the many different causes of scalloped tongue and what this means for your. Tongue coating in the first place, the properties of tongue coating should be examined. Chinese tongue diagnosis is an essential tool used by tcm practitioners.
Pale red tongue with white glossy coating, red tongue with fissures. If the tongue body is also moist, tender, and swollen, this can indicate yang cold. There is no other known reason for tongue cracks by virtue of its anatomical position. When a chinese practitioner carries our his diagnosis through tongue session, he would take notes of the following. Alyse shockey, a naturopathic practitioner, states in the registered dental hygienist magazine that with chinese medicine and integrative approaches, possible health issues that may need monitoring can be derived from the tongues status. Sjogerns syndrome is caused by environmental factors, genetics, and an existing viral or bacterial infection in your body.
Taking into account swelling of the tongue body your teeth marks it confirms the yin deficiency in the spleen and accumulation of damp. The four examinations, part 2 tongue diagnosis in chinese. However, its rarely a good idea to diagnose yourself. Changes in the tongue color usually reflect chronic illness. Here is what a yellow tongue may tell us, according to tcm. The tongue is the sense organ related to the heart. Observing it can give clues as to the energetic functioning of the heart. These tongue cracks might go unnoticed because of their benign effects, but they change the tongue appearance. Colour of the tongue body, including red prickles or black dots coating on the tongue surface colour, thickness, dryness or moistness of the coating shape of the tongue fissurescracks in the tongue. A cracked pale tongue indicates insufficiency of yin and blood. Use of tobacco and alcohol chewing and smoking tobacco causes inflammation and enlargement of the papillae which can lead to various infections that causes cracks on the tongue.
Cracked tongue is a condition in which the top visible surface of your tongue gets cracks or fissures these tongue cracks might go unnoticed because of their benign effects, but they change the tongue appearance. If the cracks are only located on one area of the tongue, this may reveal chronic high vata in that correlating organ i. If you find cracks that are horizontal, that almost always means yin insufficiency. For our herbalists, the tongue helps us select the proper herbal formula. For example, low thyroid hormone levels, sleep apnea, vitamin deficiencies, and anxiety are all known to cause wavy tongue or scalloped tongue. Heat patterns are caused by invasion of external pernicious heat influence, the. Tongue diagnosis is an important method of tcm to detect blood stasis. Tongue diagnosis is a primary method in chinese medicine for understanding whats happening inside the bodyits the other mri of traditional medical systems. The cracks, they might be congenital, otherwise they mean something has eaten up the fluids. Sep 27, 2018 your tongue tells a story about your body and your health. The demarcations that you look for are cracks or raised areas. The tongue coating fur refers to a layer of moss over the tongue surface, which is produced by the stomach qi.
Treatment for irritation include vitamin and zinc supplements, and treatment for pain include pain revilers and antiinflammatory drugs. Deep cracks on the tongue indicate dryness that may be caused by excess. It is therefore very useful and important during inspection for confirming tcm diagnosis. A tongue with a thick and yellow coating or swollen taste buds will indicate excess heat or an interior heat pattern. In fact, certain types of grooves or cracks are considered simply a variation of a normal tongue. A central short crack in the middle of the tongue often indicates stomach yin deficiency 15 fig.
Cracks on the tongue with deep red color indicate excessive heat. A central short crack in the middle of the tongue often indicates stomach yin deficiency. Tongue fissure can be sensitive to spicy food and cause pain or burning sensation while eating. Mar 25, 2016 a cracked tongue diagnosis usually involves looking at the tongue to see what else is occurring alongside the cracks.
What your tongue coating is telling you the body ecology. It is likely that the yin deficiency preceded the blood stasis. Cracks in on tongue, fissured,causes, vitamin deficiency. If a fissured tongue causes any symptoms, your dentist may encourage you to brush your tongue. A tongue without cracks is frequently soft and supple. Tongue diagnosis in chinese medicine by giovanni maciocia. Chronic yin deficiency leads to emptyheat and we know in this case that the blood stasis derives from heat as the tongue is a reddishpurple colour. Cracked tongue pictures, causes, diagnosis, treatment. Disorders such as oral neuropathies are very common in diabetic people, so it could become one of the causes of the cracks in tongue. Thermal sensory and pain thresholds in the tongue and chin change with age, but are not altered in burning mouth syndrome. Tongue diagnosis is a practice long used in traditional chinese medicine a system of. Tongue diagnosis and analysis natural health techniques.
These indications are always a part of a larger diagnostic picture and are rarely definitive as standalone indications of a specific imbalance. In traditional chinese medicine, its an ancient practice to read the tongue. So she believes that this condition would not be genetic in nature, but more environmental in most cases. There are several shapes such crack and fissure on the surface of tongue, which differ in depth and numbers. The tongue is totally peeled without coating and with many cracks, both signs of chronic yin deficiency. Hiv, traditional chinese medicine, tongue, acupuncture. Tongue diagnosis of traditional chinese medicine for. Cracks in or on your tongue is for sure a scary condition. Quite a number of individuals suffer from this condition. Sjogerns syndrome causes your body to produce glands which can lead to dry mouth and cracked tongue. It can present strong visual indicators of a persons overall harmony or disharmony. Learn more about the symptoms, causes, risk factors, diagnosis, and. The lumpy, white lesions can spread to the gums or elsewhere in the oral cavity and can cause pain or throw off your sense of taste. Extending the tongue for longer may cause changes in tongue shape and.
Geographic tongue usually accompany cracked tongue. The coating, called fur, depends on many factors and changes more quickly than the tongue body. The condition may be genetic, as its often seen in higher concentrations within families. A scalloped tongue isnt a disease in itself but an indication of an underlying health condition. This disorder can also lead to joint pain, fatigue, as well as itching and burning eyes. Possible causes include food allergy, biting the tongue, malabsorbtion of vitamin b, colon imbalance and other factors. Most people dont even notice the cracks on their tongue. Also a habit of grinding the teeth while a sleep can subject the tongue to a friction that causes cracks over a long time. A normal tongue is pink in color, medium thickness, has no cracks, ulcers, or teeth marks and has a light white coat on it. The cracks mostly occur in the middle of the tongue and they may come in various sizessmall and largebig. Red, little or no fur, yin deficiency causing virtual fire, deficiency in qi vital energy and yin. In chinese medicine, each type of tongue quality relates to a chinese diagnosis, as well as particular physical and mentalemotional symptoms.
1096 275 1096 814 233 941 1381 1221 1219 1470 244 685 129 1472 764 563 874 442 812 437 989 117 583 142 566 440 860 606 1008 269 209 1200 1160 1227 1 959 360 855 1326 150 544 756 109 1288 851 1150 815 861