A soft organ about the size of a fist, the Spleen weighs 200 grams on average and is located to the left of the Stomach, in the abdominal cavity.
It is part of our immune system, contributing to cellular immunity; it can expand to a weight of up to 1.5 kg during infections when there is an excess of white blood cells.
It also plays an important role in the maturation of red blood cells and the purification of blood (eliminating "waste products" from the blood). In the fetus, it also participates in the formation of blood cells ("hematopoiesis"), a function later taken over by the Liver, and then the bone marrow after birth.
While it is possible to live without a Spleen, its absence or functional incapacity can cause serious infections (especially in children) and will have a considerable impact on life expectancy, which is reduced. Not to mention that its functions are not yet fully understood...
The TCM Perspective
The Spleen is the organ of the Earth element. The climate associated with it is humidity, the season is the "inter-season" (transitional periods between each of the 4 traditional seasons), the sense is taste (opening = the mouth), the emotion is worry, and its paired organ is the Stomach. The tissues governed by the Spleen are the flesh and the muscles.
In TCM, the primary function of the Spleen is considered to be the production of Qi and Blood. Just as the Lungs capture energy from the air, the Spleen extracts energy from food by assisting the Stomach (its paired organ) in digestion. This energy is then used to produce Blood, which occurs in the Heart.
Another equally important function of the Spleen is "transporting and transforming substances." Therefore, any blockage due to poor evacuation/elimination can be linked to an impairment of this organ's function:
- On a physical level: any abnormal presence of phlegm, edema, pimples, warts, cysts, lipomas, fibroids, etc. ... and more generally any fatty body, mass, growth, or aggregate of matter, which is referred to by the term "Tan". Cancer is also part of this (although it is a special case)!
- On a psychological level: difficulty concentrating, a feeling of being lost, of being in a thick fog with an uncertain exit, as if dragging a weight behind you, causing a state of general weakness. This is known as "Immaterial Tan."
Excessive worry and overthinking, emotional states that negatively affect the Spleen's energy, often explain the occurrence of such symptoms. Finally, the Spleen keeps the Blood in the vessels. A Qi deficiency of this organ can be characterized (among other things) by easy bruising or even repeated hemorrhages.
An energy blockage or deficiency of the Spleen can cause:
- Psychological issues (brooding, rumination, dementia, obsession with the past, melancholy, feelings of heaviness, general weakness, etc.)
- Appetite disorders (bulimia, anorexia, constant snacking, food tasting bland, etc.)
- Blood-related disorders (poor healing, edema, hemorrhages, epistaxis, metrorrhagia, late periods, etc.)
