Ultimate Guide to Spleen Qi Deficiency: Diet Tips and Recipes

Feed your spleen and discover the way to health and happiness.

Did you know that your food choices can hurt your spleen? In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) the spleen is responsible for digestion. Your gut is your power core to health and happiness. When your spleen is running like a well-maintained engine, you feel great. When you have failed to do the basic maintenance, you are going to start to have engine trouble and feel unwell.

In this ultimate guide, you will discover the fundamentals of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), essential tips for a spleen qi deficiency diet, and nourishing recipes to keep your digestive system functioning smoothly.

What Our Readers Say: Spleen Qi Journey

“Okay, wow. This article was so helpful. Never realized how important it was to have a healthy spleen - we ignore it so much in day-to-day life. Surprisingly, I have quite a few of the symptoms mentioned here. Gosh, need to go through all these recipes and try them out as well as follow all the tips here. Bookmarking this for later - definitely going to come back to this post!”

“The two acupuncturists I've seen have told me the same thing, that I have too much dampness, but I just didn't know what that meant, they did tell me I should stay away from cold foods but didn't explain any further, now after reading your article, it all makes sense!!! Wow, it's amazing to see how everything is connected. Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge, I will be making adjustments in my daily diet to nourish my spleen.”

This spleen qi deficiency diet article was originally created on August 16, 2018. It has been updated in March 2024 to include new infographics, sources and make it easier for you to navigate and jump ahead to the information you need.

How Does Your Spleen Work?

To better understand why a Traditional Chinese Medicine Diet is important for health, we are going to discuss how your spleen holds many important functions in both Western and Eastern Medicine.

Your spleen is located under your ribcage and above the stomach in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen. We know you are trying to find that right now on your body but unless your spleen is abnormally enlarged, then you should not be able to palpate it.  If your spleen is so LARGE you can palpate it, close your computer and head to the ER.

In Western Medicine, the spleen is responsible for many supportive functions in the body. Your spleen works to both filter and store your blood and plays a role in the immune response system. (1)

In Eastern Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the spleen holds a very important role of governing and transportation, water metabolism, controlling the blood, dominating the muscles and four limbs, and opening into the mouth and manifestation on the lips. (2) We will discuss how each of these functions is affected by your diet later in the article.

Quick Facts About Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)

We know it is very difficult to get your arms around TCM, especially if you are already trained in Western Medicine or are new to alternative therapies. We know exactly how you feel. Our writers were trained and worked in the Western Medical field for 25 years before training in TCM. You need to essentially let go of all your preconceived knowledge of Western Medicine and just let this information sink in. We will go slow and high level, so you are not overwhelmed.

Background of TCM

Traditional Chinese Medicine has been around for over 2000 years and has been preventing and treating ailments successfully. We believe that there is importance in both Eastern and Western Medicine. Each play an integral part in keeping you healthy. There are many occasions when Western Medicine falls short and that is when Eastern Medicine really shines.

TCM plays an important role in prevention of illness and PREVENTION is the KEY!  Traditional Chinese Medicine is built on a foundation of centuries of medical research and uses various forms of Chinese herbal medicine, acupuncture, tu nai (massage), qi gong (exercise) and dietary therapy. We are going to home in on the dietary therapy.

The Concept of Yin and Yang

TCM is built on the concept that our bodies need to be in balance and extremes in Yin or Yang can cause illness. Yin and Yang are a philosophical conceptualization. It is a means to generalize the two opposite principles which may be observed within the natural world.

Yin, for example, represents cold, downward, damp/moist, female, moon and inside. Whereas yang represents, hot, upward, dry, male, sun and outside. There is an interdependence of both yin and yang. Yin could not exist in isolation without yang and nor can yang exist without yin. An EXCESS of either yin or yang can cause illness. A DEFICIENCY of Yin or Yang can cause illness.

How Raw and Cold Foods Affect the Spleen

An unbalance of yin and yang can occur by eating an abundance of “yin” cooling foods or the Raw Foods Diet. Raw foods are very cooling. The spleen does not like raw foods and nor does it like cold drinks with ice.  

The reason the spleen does not like raw foods is that your body must heat up food to your body temperature for the Spleen to extract the Qi from the food. If your Spleen is already deficient, eating raw food or many cooling foods will take up precious energy that the body can’t afford. By the time the food is heated up, there is even less digestive power. This is when you start to feel unwell.

What is Qi?

Qi is a life energy, or life spirit, a vital force that flows through all living things. The meridians and collateral are pathways which the qi and blood flow. (3) The qi also connects to the zang fu organs (one of them happens to be the spleen) networking our body. (4) If there is a disruption in the flow of qi, we can get sick. The spleen is responsible for transforming food and water and converting it into new qi energy and new blood with the help from the heart and kidney.

The Five Elemental Qualities in TCM

Traditional Chinese Medicine states that all phenomena in nature can be broken down into five elemental qualities. These are the five elemental qualities.

1. Wood
2. Fire
3. Earth
4. Metal
5. Water

Each of these five elements has a relationship between the zang- fu organs. The spleen is correlated to middle, sweet, yellow, transformation, dampness, late summer, earth, stomach, mouth, muscle, and worry.

The infographic below explains the "Five Categories of Things According to the Five Elements: Nature and Human Body". The yellow section of the chart represents the SPLEEN. (5)

Copy the code below to embed this infographic on your website:

Holistic Care: TCM's Focus on Body and Mind

TCM framework treats the person holistically. The mind, body and emotions are all intertwined and there are connections that can either keep the body healthy or cause the body harm. In addition, your surroundings, the time of day, geographical location, and the foods you eat can also affect your health. Your body has the potential to keep balance and to heal itself.

TCM believes that prevention is the best cure and keeping your body in harmony can prevent illness.

Common Causes of Spleen Qi Deficiency

• Excessive worrying or overthinking
• Overeating
• Eating too much raw and cold foods
• Congenital issues or spleen removal due to illness or injury.

How Excessive Worry Creates Imbalance

Did you know that “worrying” can stress out your spleen? How many of you are worry warts?  Hands up, if you are a parent, student, teacher, director or have a job - you have worry.

We all have stress in our lives, but we need to process it differently and not obsess about it. The reason being is when you have excessive worry the spleen decides to essentially stop performing it basic function of digestion. An important role in healing the spleen is to keep stress or your reaction to it under control. One simple way to reduce stress, is using acupressure. Please try our easy 4-point acupressure tutorial and video on our Love Your Liver self-care article.

As you can see from the infographic above, each organ is responsible for an emotion. The spleen is directly related to our capacity for thinking.  Excessive worry will damage the Spleen Qi. 

Have you ever had Brain Fog or the inability to think clearly? Then you may have spleen qi deficiency. A deficient Spleen can weaken the mind and our capacity to think clearly and focus. We are then more susceptible to worry. It is a vicious cycle and just think with a slight tweak in your diet we can make you feel better and think clearer.

An Overview of TCM Patient Assessment

TCM uses tongue assessments, pulse assessments, a health physical, emotional health history and a thorough visual assessment of the patient to determine the diagnosis and suggestion for treatment. It is rare for any one patient to have textbook classic signs and symptoms, with only one issue. Most often, patients have a combined deficiency or excess.

Tongue Assessment: Insights into a Patient's Health

How many times has your general practitioner asked you to see your tongue or throat unless you were complaining of a sore throat or upper respiratory issue? Did you know that your tongue assessment (color, form, coatings, and properties) can help determine the cause of health issues? Really! 

Take a quick look at your tongue now. Is your tongue pink and moist or swollen, pale and with teeth marks around the edges? Is it dry and have deep cracks or dark spots? These characteristics along with other findings leave clues on what is going on inside your body.

A classic symptom of spleen qi deficiency with dampness is a pale swollen tongue with teeth marks around the edges. The spleen is responsible for transportation and transformation of water. If your spleen qi is deficient and can’t do its job, then there can be excess fluid and this excess fluid can be manifested as a swollen tongue. The teeth marks are there because the tongue is so swollen that your teeth are resting on the sides of your tongue.

Signs Your Spleen is Not Working Properly

As we discussed, the spleen holds a very important role of governing and transportation and transformation of water and food into essential substances. The role of the spleen is important for digestion and absorption of nutrients by your body. The spleen, according to TCM, is the main zang organ manufacturer of blood and qi for the body.

When your spleen qi is normal, your digestion and the absorption of nutrients is normal. If you have spleen qi deficiency, you may have abdominal distension, loose stools, poor appetite, and fatigue. This is because even though you are getting the nutrients orally your body cannot process the nutrients.

The spleen controls water metabolism. The spleen is responsible for transporting the excess fluid out to the meridians and out of the body. If you have spleen qi deficiency, it can lead to internal dampness such as edema, diarrhea, excess phlegm, and a swollen tongue with teeth marks around the edges.

Spleen Qi Deficiency Symptoms

• poor digestion
• low appetite
• gas/bloating
• acid regurgitation
• loose stools
• undigested food in the stools
• weakness in arms and legs
• fatigue
• poor muscle development
• abdominal distension
• blood spots under the skin
• easy bruising
• lack of sensation of taste
• prolapsed organs
• frequent bleeding
• obsession
• worry
• anemia

My Personal Journey with Spleen Qi Deficiency

For years were plagued with these symptoms but could not figure out the root cause in Western medicine or how to fix them. We tried everything under the sun in Western Medicine such as iron supplements, gas pills, changing our diet to a low-fat diet but nothing worked. We felt ill, tired and had stomach issues all the time.

The Western Diet can cause many imbalances in our bodies, not only weaken our spleen but can cause issues with other organs. Today, we are discussing how it affects the spleen but stay tuned as we will also be discussing how our diet affects our liver, kidney, and heart and how we can change our diet to restore balance.

Whilst studying TCM at Hong Kong University, we were studying TCM tongue assessments. The professor walked around the classroom and asked to look at each of our tongues. She stopped, looked at me in horror and instructed me to make an appointment immediately at her TCM clinic. Diagnosis – severe Spleen qi deficiency and blood deficiency. It was at that very moment in time the healing had begun, and it all started with a change in our diet.

Spleen Qi Deficiency Diet: How to Nourish Your Spleen

In our article, Introducing the Five Energies of Food by Cindy Mai (Root and Spring) we discussed that there are cold, hot, warm, cool and neutral types of foods. The spleen is weakened by cold and damp foods.  The best choices for someone with a Spleen Qi Deficiency would include warming and drying foods.

Foods to Avoid on a Spleen Qi Deficiency Diet

• Raw Foods - Cold
• Iced and cold drinks and food - Cold
• Dairy – Dampening
• Gluten – Dampening
• Sugar and Refined Carbohydrates – Dampening
• Greasy and oily foods - Dampening

The Impact of Raw Foods on Spleen Health

Raw foods are very cooling. Your body must heat up food to your body temperature for the Spleen to extract the Qi from the food. If you have spleen qi deficiency, eating raw food will take up your body’s energy that it needs to perform other functions. By the time the food is heated up, there is little food that is digested properly, and you are more apt to have digestion problems.

We know that in the summer you crave a good salad and a good ice cream. However, if you want to overcome your digestive health issues, we have some alternative delicious meals just for you to promote spleen healing. Feed Your Spleen with warmed and nourishing foods like soups, stews, stir fries with warming vegetables and spices. Crack out that Instant Pot/slow cooker as we have lots of recipes coming your way.

The Effects of Iced and Cold Foods on Digestion

Avoid iced cold drinks that come straight from the refrigerator or drinks with ice. A better option may be a little warmed ginger tea or hot water (or room temperature beverages) or bone broth. If we can break you of one bad habit, this would be the first step. This one simple easy change can really make a difference on your body’s ability to work more efficiently because it does not have to work so hard heating up the food/drink to extract the nutrients.

Have you ever been to a Chinese restaurant and been served a glass of ice water to drink? If you have, you should just get up and leave. An authentic Chinese restaurant would never ever do that. In a traditional Chinese restaurant if you asked for a glass of water, it might even be served to you steaming hot.

Yep, that’s right - a cup of hot water. We used to always think they boiled all the water before consumption in Asia because of disease prevention. Well, they do, but the main reason is to protect your spleen qi. We are not saying that all your beverages need to be consumed steamy hot. However, it is much better if served at room temperature vs iced cold, so it is not such a shock to your body.

The Role of Dairy, Gluten, Sugar, and Greasy Foods

Dairy, gluten, sugar, and greasy foods can cause increased dampness. The six exogenous factors are wind, cold, summer heat, damp, dryness, and fire. These are the six climates in nature. These six types of climates will only cause problems if climatic changes are sudden or if the bodies’ resistance is low.

Dampness is a predominant qi of late summer or whenever it is hot and rainy. Symptoms of dampness may display as soreness and pain in joints, turbid scanty urine and stools containing mucus. 

Understanding the Spleen's Preference for Dryness

The spleen likes dryness and dislikes dampness.  Dampness can impair the spleen and can cause distention and fullness of the abdomen, poor appetite, and loose stools. Like we have discussed before, most people have a mixed condition so it may also be common to have IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) with alternating diarrhea and then constipation.

Meal Planning: Foods That are Good for Your Spleen

This Feed Your Spleen Meal plan is going to fill you up with warm, nourishing, and easy to digest foods. Your spleen is going to love you. In addition, you will feel more energetic, less sluggish, less bloating, less brain fog, stronger and ready to tackle your day. For all those who have spleen qi deficiency and to prevent spleen qi deficiency this meal plan will keep your motor running smoothly.

Cooked and warming or neutral foods are best loved by the spleen.

Best Warming Foods for Spleen Health

• Cooked Vegetables: squash, pumpkin, yams, leeks, onions, chives, mustard greens
• Fruits: Apricot, Cherry, Chinese Red Dates, black dates, Guava, longan, lychee, mandarin orange peel (dried), cooked peaches, raspberries.
• Nuts: Coconut meat, Coconut milk, chestnut, pine nuts, pistachio nuts, walnuts
• Spices: Caraway seed, basil, black pepper, brown sugar (in very small amounts - excess sugar can cause dampness), chili peppers, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, fennel seed, garlic, ginger, ginseng, turmeric, nutmeg, and rosemary.
• Grains: glutinous rice, oats
• Proteins: chicken, lamb, ham, venison, shrimp, mussels, butter, and shrimp.

Neutral Foods are safe to consume for all body types as they are neither warm nor cold.

• Examples of neutral foods are figs, goji berries, plums, carrots, turnips, mushrooms, string beans, kidney beans, rice, peas, pork, and fish.

Essential Diet Tips for a Healthy Spleen Qi

• Your food should always be eaten slowly and chewed well.
• It is best to eat like a king for breakfast, a prince for lunch and eat dinner like a pauper.
• Aim to eat breakfast when the spleen and stomach are at their peak between 7-9am according to the Chinese Medicine clock.
• Spleen and stomach are at their lowest digestive power after 7pm. Eat dinner before 7 pm.
• Eat at regular intervals and do not snack all day long or graze as your spleen does not like it.
• Don’t eat snacks after dinner. This allows time for the stomach and spleen to strengthen while you sleep.
• Soups, stews, curries, congee, and broths are best tolerated by a weak spleen qi (spleen qi deficiency).
• Stop eating when you are 80% full.
• Promote the best sleep hygiene to allow the spleen to heal while you are resting.
• Reduce worry and stress with adequate exercise (Tai Chi, walking, etc.) and meditation.

Spleen-Boosting Breakfast Meal Ideas

Choosing foods that are good for the spleen does not need to be difficult. As a matter of fact, we are all about meal prepping or bulk cooking breakfasts for the week so all you need to do is reheat and eat. Some examples of nourishing breakfast ideas for a spleen qi deficiency diet include…

• Cooked warm oatmeal with dates, cinnamon, walnuts, and a drizzle of coconut cream or dairy free milk.
• Congee topped with favorite toppings. (one cup rice to 8 cups water (chicken broth) cooked in an instant pot for about 15-20 minutes and flavor and top with whatever your heart desires; chives, cooked chicken, cooked vegetables) 
• Glutinous rice prepared on the stove top with fresh ginger, coconut milk and topped with lychee, nectarines, cherries, raspberries, or fruit in season. (Avoid bananas and pears as these are cooling)
• Make a large kettle of your favorite soup to enjoy throughout the week.
• Warmed up leftovers rock!
• Baked sweet potatoes topped with egg, roasted garbanzo beans and green onions.
• Running low on time, slice an apple and sprinkle with cinnamon. Microwave on high for 3 minutes. Drizzle with natural peanut butter and top with toasted walnuts.

Herbs for Spleen Qi Deficiency

In TCM, it is widely believed that a great combination of herbs can work wonders. The best-known traditional formula in TCM for benefitting the spleen is Gui Pi Tang. In fact, this formula (or a modification of it) is prominently featured in virtually every text that mentions the herbal treatment of disorders associated with spleen qi deficiency. In some books on formula applications, Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang is also said to be effective in supporting the spleen.

These two formulas have the following herbs in common: astragalus, ginseng (with codonopsis often used in modern China as a substitute), atractylodes, licorice. This basic combination of four herbs tonifies qi. You can get either formula at root + spring, a reputable online Chinese Medicine shop that has a selection of trusted herbal supplements They also specialize in herbal soups and teas.  Please always consult with your primary care physician BEFORE starting any new herbal preparations.

Conclusion and Key Takeaways

TCM is a process that works but it a slower and it takes time and patience. You will not eat just one nourishing meal and go back to your naughty ways of eating raw cold foods and iced drinks and feel better. It’s a process.

We want you to feel super! Start by making some small changes. Include some of our tips and tricks for foods/drinks to avoid and start incorporating some nourishing foods into your meal plan for the week. Your spleen is going to love you!

The Chinese Medicine framework is holistic, addressing not just the physical aspects but also emotional and lifestyle factors to promote overall well-being. It's essential for you to work closely with your local qualified TCM practitioners who can tailor treatments to your specific conditions.

The Ultimate Guide to Spleen Qi Deficiency: Diet Tips and Nourishing Recipes was written by the Healthy World Cuisine Team with over 25 years’ experience working in the medical field. Bachelor of Science of Nursing, Clinical Educational Coordinator, Nursing Supervisor and Diploma in Acupuncture.

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Sources

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2. Chung, Y., Chen, J. and Ko, K. (2016) Spleen Function and Anxiety in Chinese Medicine: A Western Medicine Perspective. Chinese Medicine, 7, 110-123.

3. Aileen Chan, Chapter 8.5 - Tai chi, Qigong and breathing, Editor(s): Leon Chaitow, Dinah Bradley, Christopher Gilbert, Recognizing and Treating Breathing Disorders (Second Edition), Churchill Livingstone, 2014, Pages 267-274, ISBN 9780702049804.

4. Liao, Weilong, Dang, Cuijiao, Pan, Weidong, 2017/02/08, The Brief Theory of Viscus and Its Manifestations in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Integrative Medicine International

5. Huang Wei Ling. “Constitutional Homeopathy of the Five Elements based on Traditional Chinese Medicine". Acta Scientific Medical Sciences 4.7 (2020): 57-69.