Meaning of deficiency in TCM

[wintersky]

I have noticed that alot of people here has no idea what is meant by deficiency in the Eastern sense. It is a common misconception that when deficiency is talked about, everyone tends to think of deficiency in the common Western dictionary definition, for instance a lack of mineral, vitamin or energy in general. This is a totally wrong concept. "Deficiency" in Eastern/TCM meaning has an entirely different meaning. "Deficiency" in the TCM definition also produces "Excess". It is so complicated that i shall not explain here but give a link which gives you a start to The start of the Eastern outlook of "Deficiency" causing (but not all) illnesses, along with "Excess".

http://www.shen-nong.com/eng/principles/application2yinyang.html

For a Beginner view into TCM and it's principles, one would take it further and read on your own until the part whereby "Deficiency Causes Excess" Principle. I would be lying if i say that i can even condense a beginning understanding for Eastern medicine when it has more than 3,000 years history of documented medical texts and practice in Asia. Good luck on your long reading journey ahead

 

[Effi]

thanks for sharing, @wintersky ! I was into macrobiotics for a while (before I got sick) so I'm familiar with the concept of yin deficiency/yang excess and vice versa. The yin-yang balance is something you can apply to pretty much everything in life (not just health and nutrition). The perfect yin-yang balance is pretty much unattainable as far as I can remember, so it's like a lifelong balancing act...