Here are the most common body signs to look out for to assess the state of your health. Each one is followed by information on what it means, plus pointers on what to do about them. Follow them and you’re on a sure-fire path to good health.
THE TOP BODY SIGNS
THE TONGUE
The tongue is an important indicator of health so I’d like to start by focusing on it in some detail.
I always think of the tongue as being like a window to the organs. The extreme tip correlates to the heart, the bit slightly behind is the lungs. The right side shows what the gallbladder is up to and the left side the liver. The middle indicates the condition of your stomach and spleen, the back, the kidneys, intestines, bladder and womb.
A healthy tongue should be smooth, supple and slightly moist. It should be pale red in colour with a very thin, white film. The most common tongue indicators I look out for are cracks, ravines, coatings (i.e. yellow/furry/thick/white), lines, swellings, patches of red and cuts.
Crack down the middle
- » A midline crack not reaching the tip seems harmless enough but if you have one, it means you have a weak stomach and your digestion is not what it should be. You are most likely nutrient-depleted. And I bet you are often bloated after eating and maybe even a victim of energy slumps in the middle of the day, especially after lunch. You are certainly not as energized as you could be. But then again, most people have no idea how well they could really be.
Solutions:
- » Learn how to food combine – this means avoiding eating certain food groups at the same time .
- » Take a digestive enzyme with meals – this is a supplement which helps to break down food during digestion .
- » Eat soups, stews and blends – foods that are easy to digest. Millet porridge would be good for you.
- » Don’t guzzle fizzy drinks and don’t drink liquids at mealtimes.
- » See Foods to Nourish the Tummy, below.
Foods to Nourish the Tummy
Artichokes
Avocados
Carrots
Millet sprouts
Parsnips
Rice
Squash
Sweet potatoes
Tofu
Turnips
Yams
Teas/herbs:
fennel,
peppermint,
liquorice
Teethmarks round the sides
- » Teethmarks round the sides of the tongue are a sign of nutritional deficiency. The likelihood is that your digestion is also impaired and you have a spleen deficiency.
Sluggish spleen function is very common. Around 70 per cent of the patients I meet for the first time suffer from it. If your spleen is weak, you probably put up with gas and bloating.
Solutions:
Eat foods which nourish the spleen:
- » Aduki beans
- » Yellow squash
- » Mung beans
- » Kidney beans
- » Alfalfa
- » Lychees
- » Barley
- » Millet
- » Beetroot
- » Oats
- » Carrots
- » Parsley
- » Celery
- » Parsnips
- » Chicken
- » Pumpkin
- » Fennel
- » Root vegetables
- » Fish
- » Sweet potatoes
- » Turnips
- » Yams
Food high in chlorophyll:
- » Leafy greens
- » Algae
- » Kale
- » Chard
Herbs and Spices to Nourish the Spleen
Garlic
Black pepper
Ginger
Cayenne pepper
Ginseng
Cinnamon
Horseradish
Dill seed
Pau d’arco
Astragalus
Science bit
The spleen is a small organ that has many functions. It works in tandem with your stomach for the uptake of nutrients from the foods you eat and is responsible for getting rid of worn-out red blood cells by recycling them and transforming them into iron to build the blood. It also neutralizes unhealthy bacteria, so helps prevent colds and flu when it is strong. Yours is not doing this effectively if you have teethmarks round the side.
Sore tongue
A sore tongue is a sure sign of a nutrient deficiency – often iron, vitamin B6 or niacin.
Solutions:
- » Take liquid mineral supplements and start to drink nettle teas, which are high in these much-needed minerals.
- » Get your iron levels checked. Iron deficiency can sometimes be caused by vitamin Β12, folic acid or copper deficiencies. See a nutritionist for advice.
Burning tongue
A sign that the stomach is lacking in gastric digestive juices. You may also experience tummy trouble if you have this symptom.
Solutions:
- » Try taking a teaspoon of Swedish Bitters daily. It will really help to increase your gastric juice secretions.
- » Drink a cup of dandelion tea twice a day.
- » Take a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar before each meal.
- » HCL (hydrochloric acid) tablets can help to adjust the gastric juices in the stomach.
Swollen tongue and/or thick white coating
These are indicators that there is too much mucus in the body. They are also signs of a lack of beneficial bacteria and also, possibly, an elevation of yeasts.
Solutions:
- » Cut down on dairy products. These foods are mucus-producing and your inner organs are too damp to deal with them.
- » Read the section on superfoods . Introduce one green superfood into your life.
- » Read about yeast control.
- » Get Acidophilus powder or capsules from a health store to replenish your body with healthy bacteria. You will need a six-month course.
- » Drink pau d’arco tea (pronounced poh darko), available from health stores. This is a superb way to lower the yeasts in your body.
- » The homeopathic remedy Bryonia (available from health food shops) may help, especially if your mouth is dry and you are quite thirsty.
Horizontal cracks, small cracks/grooves
Sometimes referred to as a geographic tongue. Cracking on the tongue is a sign of malabsorption, especially of B vitamins, and is often accompanied by a lack of energy. Most overweight patients I see for the first time are deficient in this vital nutrient. The deficiency is likely to have been over a lengthy period of time – cracks like this take a long time to develop.
Solutions:
- » Add vitamin B Complex (50mg a day) to your diet.
- » Take a digestive enzyme supplement with meals .
- » Change your diet to include foods that are high in food enzymes and easier to absorb
- » Take echinacea tincture (20 drops daily for two weeks) – to help move lymph and eliminate toxins that are impeding nutrient absorption.
- » Drink slippery elm or peppermint teas to help calm the stomach.
- » Nettle tea will help fortify the body with B vitamins.
- » Drink 2 tablespoons of aloe vera juice before meals.
Thick yellow coating
A thick yellow coating on the tongue indicates excess heat in the gut. It also means you don’t have enough healthy bacteria in your body. If the coating is at the back of the tongue, you need to pay attention to your colon. Your bowels are not working as well as they should be.
Solutions:
- » You may be run down from doing too much, so start to take things easier.
- » Cool yourself down with 2 tablespoons of aloe vera juice before meals.
- » Start eating the foods in Chapter 3 The Diet of Abundance and these problems should ease.
- » Drink sage tea (2 cups a day for a month). Alternate with camomile tea.
Red tip
A red tip on the tongue indicates emotional upset or emotional stress. It could be something from the past that you are still unconsciously holding on to, or due to present circumstances. A red tip on the tongue can also indicate emotional strain in your body.
Emotional upset disturbs the normal energy balance within the body, causing your inner energy to stagnate, especially if the strain is prolonged. You may have an excess of stress hormones flowing through your system.
Some people are better than others at dealing with upset. A young woman in her early thirties once came to see me. When I looked at her tongue, I noticed a very red tip so I asked her if she had experienced any emotional upheavals in her life. She quickly snapped back that she hadn’t. But about five minutes later, she burst into tears and explained that she had just broken up with her boyfriend of seven years and was heartbroken. It showed… on her tongue.
Solutions:
HEAD
Dandruff on the scalp
This can be due to yeast overgrowth and/or deficiencies of EFAs, vitamin B6 and/or selenium.
Solutions:
- » Take 2 dessertspoons of flax oil a day.
- » Take the anti-fungal herb pau d’arco, either in the form of tea (2 cups a day) or capsules (3, taken twice a day) and immediately reduce the amount of sugary foods you eat.
- » Eat foods high in food enzymes .
- » Add the following hair-nourishing supplements to your diet every day: selenium (200mcg), biotin (600mcg), and 1 Reishi mushroom capsule.
- » Wash your hair with camomile or tea tree shampoos. After washing, rinse with 1 cup of cider vinegar and 10 drops of peppermint oil.
FACE
Veins close to surface on cheeks/raised capillaries
A sign of digestive enzyme insufficiency or low stomach acid.
Solutions:
- » Take HCL supplements (1 tablet before your largest meal of the day) and a digestive enzyme supplement, taken with a sip of water halfway through the meal. One dessertspoon of apple cider vinegar before meals can help too.
- » Be aware that your body is screaming for food enzymes . You need to eat more sprouted seeds, sprouted grains, raw fruits and raw veggies.
EARS
Cracks behind the ears
Cracks behind the ears are a sign of a zinc deficiency. Zinc deficiencies can take a long time to correct – at least six months to a year.
Solution:
- » Start with 1 teaspoon of liquid zinc supplement mixed in juice daily, then move on to zinc citrate capsules (25mg a day).
- » Eat pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and papayas.
Wax oozing from the ears
You have an EFA deficiency – a very common problem in this country. Too many people avoid fats in an effort to lose weight. The mistake they make is they avoid good fats as well as bad. Then, when they want a treat, they usually opt for the bad fat treat instead of the good.
Solutions:
- » Drizzle 2 tablespoons of flax oil or linseeds over your salads.
- » Take extra evening primrose oil, borage oil, Omega 3 or SLA (1000mg a day).
- » Cut down on cow’s milk products.
HANDS
Breaking/splitting/chipping nails
These are an indication that your liver needs help. They may also be a sign of calcium, zinc, or EFA deficiencies, or low stomach acid.
Solutions:
- » Take the herb milk thistle (2 capsules a day).
- » Eat broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, whole grains, amaranth, chicory, seeds and the sea vegetable nori.
- » Drink 2 cups of nettle tea a day. Nettle tea is a panacea for delivering nutrients to the body. I love it.
White spots
White spots on the nails are a sign of zinc deficiency. By the time the white spots reach your nails, your zinc levels are pretty low, and you need to do something about it soon
Solutions:
- » Start taking 1 teaspoon liquid algae and 1 tablet of zinc supplement daily.
- » Snack on pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds.
Cracks on the skin/tiny blisters on the fingertips
A sign of zinc deficiency.
Solution:
- » See Solutions, above, for White Spots.