Now I will talk about overweight and obesity from the perspective of Chinese medicine. Overweight is a symptom induced by your body disorder. The disorder is most likely caused by four main factors: 1.Qi deficiency, 2. Improper diet, 3. Lack of exercise, and 4. Constitutional factors. Deficiency of qi happens for many reasons. The final result is damage to the spleen qi. The spleen is in charge of transportation and transformation of food and air into qi in order to provide the energy for body functions. When the spleen starts to dysfunction, there will be an accumulation of dampness and phlegm in your body, which causes your weight gain. If you eat too much greasy or rich foods, overtime your spleen qi and stomach qi will become injured and damaged. The result of eating too much greasy foods is an accumulation of damp-heat and phlegm. The dampness and phlegm stay in your body and turn into fat, and it is very difficult to get rid of them. Moreover, lack of physical exercise can cause poor circulation within the body. If qi and blood cannot flow smoothly in the body, stagnation will result. The stagnation of fluids in the body also can form dampness and fat. Finally, constitutional factors are inherited from parents and past generations; it is the most difficult situation to be changed.
©Dr.Li Zhang