Dr. Sang (Damanpal) Nguyen, L.Ac.
Tongue examination is a common method of diagnosis in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Ayurveda, and Esogetic Holistic Medicine (EHM). The tongue is one of the tools used to read your internal health pattern. It reflects the internal organs and their meridian channels' balance or imbalance. TCM practitioners focus on the shape, color, and coating of the tongue.
Tongue according to TCM:
Shape: round, swollen, thin, short, contracted, cracked, deviated, rigid, flaccid, teeth-marks
It reflects the constitution, aging, qi and blood, excess, and deficiency of the entire body.
Color: red, deep red, crimson, purple, pink, pale, red dots
It reflects of qi, blood, and the yin organs: Liver, Heart, Spleen, Lungs & Kidneys
Fur/Coating: moist/dry, thin/thick, sticky/powdery, peeled, turbid, glossy
It reflects the stomach and the yang organs: Stomach, Gall Bladder, Large Intestine, Small Intestine, Bladder, and Triple Burner.
Coating color: white, yellow, grey, black, brown
It reflects on Pathogenic Factors: heat, cold, and damp
There are certain foods, drinks, and pharmaceutical drugs which will change the tongue coating.
Food and drink have a shorter effect on tongue color and coating:
Coffee and Tea: yellow dry coating
Diary and Cheese: whitish yellow sticky coating
Sugary Food: thick white, or yellow sticky coating
Medication long term used can have a significant effect on the tongue color and coating:
Antibiotics: Black and hairy tongue coatings
Anti-Neoplastics: Thick brownish to black tongue coating
Anti-Inflammatory: Red dots and peeling coating
In Ayurvedic, to keep the tongue healthy, it is recommended that the tongue be scraped daily with a tongue scraper made from either copper or stainless steel. Follow by brushing and flossing the teeth. This process is to remove the overnight bacteria and toxin build-up.
It is your choice to do daily tongue cleaning. However, make sure to observe the tongue first before doing so. Keep the tongue in its original coating when visiting a TCM Practitioner is recommended.
It is a good idea to observe your tongue daily, especially early in the morning, before brushing your teeth. The healthy tongue that we are striving for has pinkish-red color, a thin white coat, and the least amount of cracks. If there is a thick tongue coating and many cracks, look into your diet, hydration level, emotions, stress level, and lifestyle. You can visit a Traditional Medicine practitioner and/or Ayurvedic practitioner have it check out.