What this pattern means
Earth governs the Spleen and Stomach. Its climate is Humidity, and its work is the transformation of food. When Humidity pools in the middle of the body and Heat joins it, the two climates make something thicker than either alone: Damp-Heat. Traditional medicine says the Damp-Heat "invades" the Spleen because it is usually brought in from outside, through rich, oily, sweet and spicy food, alcohol and a hot, humid climate.
The pattern is written Humidity-Heat. Humidity is the heaviness and the sluggishness; Heat is the acidity and the burning. A member with this pattern often describes feeling heavy and hot at the same time.
Signs traditionally associated with this pattern include acidity, heaviness, burning in the feet and palms, and a sluggish metabolism. The burning in the palms and soles is a classic sign of Heat that has nowhere to go; the heaviness is the Humidity that holds it in.
How it shows in a Nadiswara report
- Your main patterns. The app may show Spleen or Stomach as the Main focus with the chip "Earth element" and, for the Stomach, "Yang", with a level chip of Mild, Moderate or High.
- Five elements. On a pulse session's "Five Elements" card, Humidity and Heat may both stand out. A sample report's pulse explanation described exactly this combination: "a dynamic tension between excessive internal Heat, Dampness accumulation, and the depletion of vital fluids", from a pulse that was Slippery (Dampness) and Full Rapid (Heat), and read "Lung/LI heat due to Spleen/stomach heat".
- Wellness at a glance and body balance. Digestion may sit under "Needs support", and the fluid-balance and elimination sliders may sit away from the middle.
- Food tab. "Food metabolism" may describe a strained fat or protein metabolism, and the food guide may favour Cooling and Neutral foods with spicy, oily and fermented foods under "Avoid".
Nadiswara points
For trained practitioners
- SP2
- K10
Diet and lifestyle
The corrections for Damp-Heat clear the Humidity and cool the Heat at the same time. From the sample reports, a practitioner may consider:
- "Avoid spicy, hot, oily, fermented, and salty foods", alcohol and long hours in the sun.
- "Reducing salt, avoiding high-water-content fruits, and limiting buttermilk, ghee, curd, mutton, and fish help prevent damp stagnation."
- "Avoiding sugar, greasy foods, and late-night meals."
- Prefer cooling foods such as berries and purple grapes, but cooked meals rather than raw ones when digestion is weak.
- "A daily walk is essential to stimulate Qi circulation, clear dampness."
- "Meditation, pranayama, and moonlight walks", and the cooling pranayama the report lists.