“Winter is the golden season for replenishing deficiencies and adjusting the body constitution. Recently, many articles have been published on winter supplementation, but many friends have commented that they have a Yin deficiency constitution, often experiencing excess heat. Many supplementation recipes are not suitable for them, so I hope to provide some nourishing soups suitable for those with Yin deficiency and excess heat. Today, I will recommend three methods to nourish Yin, moisten dryness, and reduce heat, which are most suitable for those with Yin deficiency and excess heat. Let’s take a look together.”
01
Prone to Excess Heat, Irritability, and Vivid Dreams
Beware of Yin Deficiency and Excess Heat Constitution
To address the issue of Yin deficiency and excess heat, we must first understand the essence of “Yin deficiency and excess heat” and what causes it. Only then can we fundamentally prevent and adjust it.
Yin deficiency and excess heat are generally caused by staying up late, indulging in spicy and barbecued foods, and excessive desires, leading to the excessive consumption of the body’s “water,” which refers to body fluids and Yin blood.
Yin and Yang are mutually restraining. When Yin is deficient, Yang appears “excessive,” leading to the occurrence of excess heat, but this “heat” is “false heat.”
(Essence of Yin Deficiency and Excess Heat: When Yin is deficient, Yang appears excessive)
In other words, those with Yin deficiency and excess heat do not actually have “heat” that needs to be removed; rather, they should nourish Yin fluids to clear the internal false heat.
How can one determine if they have Yin deficiency? You can refer to this self-check table:
Self-Check Table for Yin Deficiency and Excess Heat
✔ Skin is dry and lacks luster, complexion is poor;
✔ Prone to excess heat, often has canker sores, short yellow urine, and dry stools;
✔ Red tongue, little coating, quick fatigue, dizziness;
✔ Normal body temperature, but feels hot, with warm palms and soles;
✔ Easily irritable, emotionally unstable, difficulty concentrating;
✔ Menstrual flow is scant, bright red, and may arrive early;
✔ Dry mouth and throat, insomnia with vivid dreams, easily wakes up at night…
In addition, those who appear energetic (e.g., bright eyes, loud voice, good appetite, and strong libido) but are physically thin, have insomnia, night sweats, and are irritable, often also exhibit the false prosperity of “Yin deficiency and excess heat.” Thin individuals are often Yin deficient, and long-time thin individuals can self-check.
Moreover, those who feel heat or excess heat after consuming slightly dry foods, such as sunflower seeds, barbecued meat, lamb, or chicken, are generally suffering from “Yin deficiency and excess heat!”
In addition to Yin deficiency, many individuals with excessive dampness also easily experience excess heat. How can we distinguish whether the excess heat is caused by excessive dampness, Yin deficiency, or real heat?
The most reliable method is to observe the tongue.
02
Correctly Assessing “Yin Deficiency Constitution”
The Most Important Points to Consider
Many people think that a red tongue indicates Yin deficiency, but this is not necessarily true. A red tongue does indicate the presence of “heat,” but it does not mean it is definitely the “heat” of Yin deficiency.
Specifically, two points can be observed to assess the constitution of Yin deficiency and excess heat (The following content is selected from Director Yan Yuhong’s “14-Day Tongue Diagnosis Training Camp;” for more information, please scroll to the end).
① Thin and Long Tongue: Indicates Yin Deficiency
Why is a thin and long tongue a characteristic of Yin deficiency? We say that Yang is formless, while Yin is form. In other words, “Yang transforms into Qi, and Yin forms shape.” The tongue body is a tangible part, so the thin and long appearance of the tongue body indicates insufficient Yin Qi. Therefore, a thin and long tongue is one of the main criteria for assessing Yin deficiency.
② Red Tongue with Little Coating: Indicates Yin Deficiency and Excess Heat
Yin deficiency easily leads to “false heat,” so the entire tongue body will appear red, and the tongue coating will be relatively thin because false heat “burns dry” the body fluids. Thus, a red tongue with little coating is one of the characteristics of the tongue appearance in Yin deficiency and excess heat.
Of course, there are also cases where the tongue is red but has a thick coating, indicating both Yin deficiency and dampness.
Additionally, there are two other conditions that also indicate Yin deficiency but may also be related to blood deficiency, Yang deficiency, and other issues, so more detailed study is needed to distinguish them. Here, we will briefly understand:
③ Tongue with Cracks: Often Indicates Yin Deficiency or Blood Deficiency
The appearance of various deep and shallow cracks on the tongue indicates Yin deficiency or blood deficiency.
If the tongue has cracks and is deep red or crimson, it suggests that real heat has damaged Yin, indicating severe Yin deficiency, often occurring during high fever or severe illness; additionally, the elderly often exhibit this cracked tongue appearance due to the gradual decrease of body fluids with age, leading to this Yin deficiency constitution.
④ Geographic Tongue: Often Indicates Spleen and Stomach Yin Deficiency
The tongue coating is like moss on the ground, requiring moisture from the earth to grow abundantly. If the body fluids are insufficient, the tongue coating cannot receive adequate “nourishment,” and it will naturally begin to shed.
This is geographic tongue, characterized by certain areas of the tongue lacking coating, exposing the red tongue body, commonly seen in children, often indicating dysfunction of the spleen and stomach, i.e., spleen and stomach Yin deficiency.
Yin Deficiency Harms Children and Women
Prone to Irritability, Dryness, Excess Heat, Night Sweats, Insomnia
If you have determined through the above methods that you or your child has a Yin deficiency constitution, you will likely find that both children and women are prone to irritability.
In fact, a bad temper and Yin deficiency with excess heat are mutually causal.
I have seen children who hit their parents in public. Part of this is due to improper upbringing, but on the other hand, it is also because the child’s body is unwell, leading to such irritability. Therefore, parents should not only reflect on themselves but also pay attention to adjusting their child’s body; otherwise, it will affect the child’s character for life.
Many women in menopause also experience this, finding it hard to control their emotions and often picking fights, which is also due to Yin deficiency; thus, TCM treatment for menopausal syndrome usually starts with adjusting Yin deficiency.
03
Three Nourishing Methods,
Simple and Convenient, Suitable for Adults and Children
Whether you have a Yin deficiency constitution or are experiencing short-term symptoms such as excess heat, dry mouth, dry skin, irritability, and insomnia, you can try these three nourishing methods, which have clear preventive and therapeutic effects and can be used by men, women, and children alike.
1. Nourishing Yin Soup: Three Jade Soup for Moistening Dryness
Dietary Recommendation
Three Jade Soup for Moistening Dryness
Ingredients:
50 grams of fresh lotus seeds (20 grams of dried lotus seeds), 7 fresh water chestnuts, 1 fresh lily from Lanzhou, appropriate amount of pork, 3 slices of ginger, and 1 jujube.
Effects:
Nourishes Yin and moistens dryness.
Preparation:
Cut the pork into pieces and blanch; wash the lotus seeds and water chestnuts (do not peel the water chestnuts); simmer with ginger and jujube for about 1 hour; add the fresh lily 5 minutes before serving, and season with salt to taste.
Usage:
Generally, women should consume it once a week for daily health maintenance. Women with Yin deficiency and excess heat, especially those with dry skin, should consume it more frequently. If you often feel dry mouth and throat, night sweats, flushed cheeks, dry skin, short yellow urine, dry stools, tongue body and oral ulcers, pale red tongue, and dry tongue surface, you can consume it 2-3 times a week.
Contraindications:
Use with caution for those with spleen and stomach deficiency and cold.
Lotus Seed
+
Lily
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Three Jade Soup for Moistening Dryness
Reminder for Women:
• Can be used during pregnancy;
• Can be used during menstruation;
• Can be used during breastfeeding;
• Women with hyperplasia, fibroids, or cysts can use it.
The copyright of the soup recipe belongs to “Yan Yuhong Women’s Health”
Unauthorized use will be pursued.
For more dietary therapy recipes, please refer to
“Yuyuan Dietary Therapy Recipes”
This is my experience recipe, shared with everyone. In this soup, water chestnuts clear heat and generate fluids, resolve phlegm and eliminate accumulation; lilies nourish Yin, moisten the lungs, and calm the heart; lotus seeds nourish the spleen, kidney, and heart, and also help with sleep. Therefore, this soup can nourish Yin, moisten dryness, clear heat, and reduce fire, effectively addressing issues such as dryness, night sweats, dry skin, irritability, and insomnia related to Yin deficiency.
2. Nourishing Acupoint: Yongquan (Kidney 1)
In addition to the nourishing soup mentioned above, you can also frequently massage this nourishing acupoint—Yongquan.
Location: On the sole of the foot, at the depression in the front part of the foot when curling the toes, approximately at the junction of the front 1/3 and back 2/3 of the line connecting the tips of the second and third toes with the heel.
Functions of Yongquan:
Yongquan is an acupoint on the Kidney meridian, known as a well point. The term “well” refers to a deep hole dug into the ground to access water, symbolizing the source of water, and also metaphorically represents the origin of meridian Qi.
Yongquan, as the starting point of the Kidney meridian Qi, can not only nourish Kidney water and restrain excess fire but also helps to descend and gather the rising Yang, guiding heat downward, specifically treating conditions of Yin deficiency and excess heat, and true Yin deficiency.
Individuals with Yin deficiency can massage the Yongquan acupoint for 5-10 minutes after soaking their feet, feeling a sense of soreness, numbness, or distension; or before bedtime, lie in a warm bed and rub the sole of one foot with the heel of the other foot, alternating.
3. Nourishing Chinese Patent Medicine: Zhi Bai Di Huang Wan (available at pharmacies)
Zhi Bai Di Huang Wan is based on Liu Wei Di Huang Wan, with the addition of two herbs: Zhi Mu and Huang Bai, along with Shu Di Huang, Shan Zhu Yu, Mu Dan Pi, Shan Yao, Fu Ling, and Ze Xie, working together to nourish Yin, tonify the kidneys, clear false heat, reduce false fire, and replenish essence and marrow.
Specifically:
Shu Di Huang nourishes Yin and blood, benefits essence and fills marrow, commonly used to treat liver and kidney Yin deficiency, soreness in the lower back and knees, tidal fever, night sweats, premature greying of hair, etc.; Shan Yao tonifies the spleen, nourishes the stomach, generates fluids, benefits the lungs, and is an excellent ingredient for nourishing Yin, strengthening the spleen, and tonifying the kidneys; Shan Zhu Yu benefits the liver and kidneys, astringes essence, and is an important herb for tonifying the liver; while Mu Dan Pi, Fu Ling, and Ze Xie can clear the evil Qi from the liver, spleen, and kidneys.
Of course, the most important aspect of Zhi Bai Di Huang Wan is the addition of Zhi Mu and Huang Bai.
Zhi Mu is bitter and cold, clearing heat, draining fire, and generating fluids; its main action points are the lung and kidney meridians, effectively addressing false heat caused by lung heat and kidney essence deficiency; Huang Bai is also a bitter and cold herb, primarily acting to clear damp-heat in the lower jiao.
In summary: The Three Jade Soup for Moistening Dryness and the Yongquan acupoint are suitable for addressing dryness, excess heat, dry mouth, irritability, and insomnia caused by Yin deficiency. If the degree of Yin deficiency and excess heat is severe, leading to symptoms such as dizziness, tinnitus, toothache from false heat, five-center heat, soreness in the lower back and knees, nocturnal emissions, tidal fever, night sweats, flushed cheeks, dry throat, red tongue, and significant cracks, then Zhi Bai Di Huang Wan can be tried.
That’s all for today’s content. If you feel that you often have excess heat, a bad temper, frequent insomnia with vivid dreams, and dry mouth and throat, quickly check your tongue in the mirror to see if you have a Yin deficiency and excess heat constitution!
The tongue appearance is a holographic image of the body’s organs; learning to observe the tongue can help understand the issues of various organs, allowing for more accurate assessment of your and your family’s constitution, thus guiding adjustments more accurately for better results.
Scan to learn about the “14-Day Tongue Diagnosis Training Camp”
Yan Yuhong • Women’s Health
