How to nourish your spleen

In TCM, your Spleen is part of your digestive system - not only for digesting food, but also for information and stimulus. All the information you are exposed to has to be processed. When you eat in front of the TV, constantly look at your cell phone, work on your computer or tablet, you are constantly exposing your Spleen to overload.

When your Spleen is imbalanced, you might have symptoms of digestive upset - nausea, loose stools, low energy, weakness in your limbs, bruising, anaemia, poor appetite, organ prolapse, feeling cold, anxiety.

Your Spleen controls your muscles and limbs. It is responsible for making blood and storing the blood in the vessels. Chewing your food properly is necessary for extracting nutrients from your food. When Spleen energy is deficient, your taste buds may be dulled and instead of having moist red lips, they may be pale from lack of nourishment.

Certain foods can hurt the Spleen, especially if it is already imbalanced. If you are at this stage then it is best to avoid foods that are cooling in the body, such as: dairy, wheat, cold or raw food, processed foods, deep fried foods, peanuts and peanut butter, bananas and avocados.

Foods that help to nourish your spleen are: pumpkin, mushrooms, radish, brown rice, oats, legumes, raspberry, peach, strawberry, walnuts, lean organic meats. Warming spices like black pepper, cinnamon bark, clove, ginger, sage, rosemary, tumeric and nutmeg are great for stimulating your digestion.

Tips for a healthy Spleen:

- Do one thing at a time - if you are eating, just eat. No TV or books at the same time.

- Avoid cold food and drinks - these make your digestive system sluggish.

- Eat slow cooked meals like soups and stews as these are more warming and easy to digest.

- Take a break - go for a walk outside (without your phone!) and meditate often. Your Spleen will work better, you will feel calmer and more at peace :)