Blood Supplementation: Chinese Medicine's Approach to Women's Health

January 23, 2024

Chinese medicine often talks about "deficiency of qi and blood" in women. If a person is deficient in blood, they will also be deficient in qi. This is because "qi" is responsible for transporting blood to various parts of the body, and blood is the material basis of qi. Let me help you with "blood supplementation".


Chinese Medicine Explanation

Unlike men, women have special physiological activities related to reproduction such as menstruation, pregnancy, childbirth, and lactation. During these "special" times, women should pay more attention to nourishing their bodies. Chinese medicine suggests that women should be selective when supplementing during these four periods, focusing on blood supplementation and less on qi supplementation. This is because women consume a lot of blood during these four periods, and at the same time, qi tends to be excessive, leading to symptoms such as heat and dryness.

Specifically, although menstrual blood is produced by blood deficiency, it requires normal yin blood as a foundation. Therefore, symptoms such as delayed menstruation, reduced menstrual flow, and amenorrhea are often seen in cases of blood deficiency. Pregnant women need yin blood to nourish the fetus, and those with blood deficiency often experience abdominal pain during pregnancy, restless fetal movement, miscarriage, and even infertility. Bleeding occurs during childbirth, and the milk secreted during lactation also comes from blood. Women often have insufficient yin blood during these physiological activities, resulting in symptoms such as dizziness, pale complexion, dry throat, and dry mouth.

Chinese Medicine Recommends the Following Four Chinese Medicines for Blood Supplementation

1. Danggui (Chinese Angelica)

The primary function of Danggui is to nourish blood and regulate menstruation. It also has the effect of moisturizing and beautifying the skin, playing an extremely important role in protecting women's health.


2. Shudi (Rehmannia)

It can help with pale complexion, dizziness, and irregular menstruation in women. When combined with Danggui, it can enhance the blood-supplementing and blood-circulating effects.

3. Chuanqiong (Ligusticum Chuanxiong)

Chuanqiong is not only a major medicine in gynecology, but also an effective remedy for headaches. It can also affect the endocrine system, alleviate premenstrual symptoms such as breast discomfort, anxiety, and depression.

4. Baishao (White Peony Root)

"Tang Bencao" states that it "supplements women's blood." Modern Chinese medicine believes that it can nourish blood and soothe the liver, and has good therapeutic effects on irregular menstruation.

What to Pay Attention to When Women Have Insufficient Qi and Blood

1. Drink Less Coffee

Many people nowadays consume too much caffeine, especially white-collar workers. Throughout the day, we drink coffee, tea, cola, and sports drinks, all of which contain varying amounts of caffeine, while drinking less plain water. Excessive caffeine intake can lead to anxiety, accelerated heartbeat, and insomnia, indirectly affecting our complexion. It is recommended to drink more water, eat more fruits, and reduce the intake of caffeine.


2. Comb Your Hair Regularly

Smooth qi and blood circulation can lead to a better complexion, and combing your hair more often can help with this. The head is an important area where the body's meridians converge and acupoints are rich. Combing your hair not only helps dispel rheumatic pathogens in the head, promote qi and blood circulation in the head, and nourish the hair, but also reduces white hair and prevents hair loss. It also has special effects on dizziness caused by hypertension and arteriosclerosis.

3. Enjoy Midday Beauty

More and more studies have found that taking a nap at noon has short-term and long-term benefits for health. Even a short nap at the office can help maintain energy in the afternoon. A midday nap allows the brain and body to rest and rejuvenate, resulting in a better complexion.

4. Eat More Blood-Supplementing Fruits

Hawthorn has obvious effects on reducing serum cholesterol, lowering blood pressure, diuresis, and sedation. Drinking a cup of hawthorn tea every day can strengthen the heart, increase coronary blood flow, dilate blood vessels, and improve complexion. In addition to hawthorn, classic fruits for women such as dates and figs can also be eaten as daily snacks.

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