Description of the Blood Deficiency Pattern

Blood nourishes and moistens our organism. It is the material basis for our psyche and spirit.

When we have enough blood, we have healthy joints, tendons and bones and have no problems with movement; blood nourishes our sensory organs, we have a fresh complexion, good vision, and no problems with bowel movements.

Symptoms of the Blood Deficiency Pattern

Blood deficiency manifests as pale, dry and dull skin, pale lips, heart palpitations, dizziness inside the head, blurred vision, dry eyes, photophobia, headaches, cramps, tingling, fatigue, hair loss, dry and brittle hair and nails, constipation with dry and pebble-like stools, etc.

Blood deficiency also manifests significantly in the psychological sphere. We suffer from insomnia, restlessness, easy excitability, depression, mental instability, poor memory, etc.

If we want to strengthen the blood through diet, a higher proportion of animal proteins and a method of preparation that supports the replenishment of blood and fluids is important.

Strengthening exercises and exhausting workouts are not suitable. Neither is a vegan or vegetarian diet.

Blood deficiency mostly occurs mainly in women. Through poor diet and the omission of meat and eggs from the menu, they can cause themselves more serious illnesses, even infertility.

General Dietary Principles for the Blood Deficiency Pattern

To strengthen the blood, it is necessary to absorb nutrients that are directly involved in haematopoiesis. A healthy Spleen helps the most effective absorption of nutrients. The principles associated with maintaining good Spleen function are therefore also valid for haematopoiesis.

In addition, haematopoiesis requires a higher intake of protein. Proteins of animal origin are most suitable, especially chicken and beef. It is possible to strengthen haematopoiesis even with a vegetarian diet, but the results appear much more slowly. The old wisdom applies here that "40 parts of Qi are needed to create 1 part of blood", and the best foods in terms of haematopoiesis are those with concentrated yin - animal proteins. Broths or soups can be prepared from BIO chicken and beef bones, which release pure yin from the marrow. If the intake of animal proteins is not suitable, supplements in the form of tablets or extracts can help, at least in the short term.

Meat should be of BIO quality, or at least without added chemicals. However, it is true that where such is not available, it is better to settle for lower quality meat than to omit it from the menu entirely. Liver, however, must be of BIO quality, as chemical additives from feed are concentrated in it.

Leafy vegetables, i.e. those rich in chlorophyll, have particularly beneficial effects, as they contain not only iron but also other components that help both in its absorption and utilisation, as well as in haematopoiesis itself.

The quality of the blood is also directly affected by the amount of artificial additives in food, especially hormones and excess salt or sugar.

It is good to follow the same basic approaches as in the case of Spleen Qi deficiency (because haematopoiesis takes place in the Spleen): foods rich in iron and protein, folic acid and vitamin B12. With a strictly vegetarian diet, vitamin B12 must be supplied in the form of tablets.

Preferred method of food preparation: stewing, steaming, boiling in water, blanching, in the summer season raw leafy vegetables with cooked food, in the winter season sprouted legumes.

Recommended Foods

High-value proteins, meat (especially chicken and broths, beef and pork liver and pork trotters), pigeons, oysters, mussels, shark, eel, broth, marrow, eggs, legumes, black beans, leafy vegetables, wheat sprouts, spinach, carrots, beetroot, parsley, molasses, fermented beans, miso, tempeh, seaweed, spirulina, black sesame seeds, lychee, coconuts, rice, red wine, top-fermented dark beer, Guinness beer, yeast spreads like Vegemite and Marmite, cherries, plums, apricots, raisins, pomegranate, black sesame, sunflower seeds, coconut, pine nuts, edible chestnut, rosehip and hibiscus tea.

Liver Blood Deficiency

As in the case of general blood deficiency and additionally Goji berries (cooked with chicken or in rice porridge).

Avoid

The same foods as in the case of Spleen Qi deficiency, plus bitter, sour, salty and spicy/hot foods, refined sugars, chemical additives, hormones.

Clinical Notes

The basis of a menu focused on strengthening haematopoiesis is green leafy vegetable matter (roughly 30-40%) and high-value animal proteins, preferably in BIO quality (roughly 20-30%), together with approximately 30-40% complex carbohydrates (rice, wheat, oats, starchy root vegetables, etc.). As the blood begins to replenish, the proportions of individual components can be brought closer to the values prescribed for overall Spleen strengthening.

Recipes

Chicken Soup with Reishi

(replenishes blood, strengthens and calms the liver, for nervousness and sleep problems)

What we need: 2 chicken carcasses, 2 tablespoons of chopped ginger, 2 tablespoons of dried Reishi, 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1/4 celeriac, green leek or spring onion tops, 4 peppercorns, 2 bay leaves, Shoyu soy sauce, salt.

How to do it: put all ingredients into a pot, cover with water so that all ingredients are submerged, and bring to a boil. Then turn down to a minimum and cook for 3 hours. Strain, pick the meat off the carcasses and put it into the broth, season with salt, pepper and Shoyu soy sauce. When serving the soup, prepare vegetables according to the current season and you can use noodles or rice noodles as a garnish. You can sprinkle with parsley or chives.

Prepare a fragrant sachet to support haematopoiesis and apply it directly under the navel. You can also do this, for example, in the period before menstruation or during menstruation if you suffer from lower abdominal pain.

Recipe for the sachet:

100g Himalayan coarse salt, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 teaspoon of ginger. Roast all this in a pan, pour into a handkerchief or a piece of cloth, tie it up, test the temperature and apply under the navel. If you have sleep problems, you can swap the cinnamon for lavender.

BLOOD DEFICIENCY CAN BE DEEPENED BY LIVER BLOOD DEFICIENCY

In this case, the following are added to the above-mentioned problems: blurred vision, sensitivity of the eyes to light, sleep disorders, brittle nails, muscle cramps, tingling, psychological problems, gynaecological problems, heart palpitations, missed menstrual cycle.

Prepare a black sesame cure

Pour a sachet of black sesame into a heated pan and roast for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Store in a sealable jar. In the morning and evening, 15 minutes before a meal, take a teaspoon of the prepared sesame, grind well and chew in the mouth and swallow. Those who have a mortar at home can grind it in the mortar and then eat it.

If you want to strongly support haematopoiesis, you can add 1 teaspoon of pine nuts, you do not need to crush them.