bubble_chart Concept

BelchingSuwen refers to it as "yi". The "Cold-Damage Disease Treatise" refers to it as "belching".Jingyue Quanshu·Miscellaneous Syndrome Treatise states: "Yi is a taboo after overeating, which is belching." Belching, with a sour and pungent odor, is called ai fu.

Belching is different from hiccup; belching has a deep and prolonged sound, as the gas rises from the stomach; hiccup has a rapid and short sound, originating from the throat.

bubble_chart Pattern Analysis

1. Food Stagnation in the Stomach︰Belching with a sour and putrid odor, the sound of belching is muffled or accompanied by nausea, belching occurs intermittently, chest and gastric stuffiness, loss of appetite, stool has a sour and putrid odor or is constipated, tongue coating is thick and greasy, pulse manifestation is slippery and solid. Belching due to food stagnation in the stomach is caused by improper diet, stagnation in the stomach cavity, obstruction of middle energizer qi movement, and stomach qi ascending counterflow, hence presenting with muffled belching, along with chest and gastric stuffiness, loss of appetite, belching with a sour and foul odor, and stool also having a sour and putrid odor, which are characteristic of the pattern of dyspepsia. Treatment involves promoting digestion and removing food stagnation, regulating qi and harmonizing the middle energizer, using the formula Harmony-Preserving Pill.
2. Liver-stomach Disharmony︰Frequent belching, loud eructation, chest tightness, dull pain in the hypochondriac region, thin white tongue coating, and wiry pulse. Liver qi invading the stomach causes belching due to worry, anger, and liver qi depression, which transversely counterflows to attack the stomach, leading to stomach qi ascending counterflow, hence loud eructation and frequent belching. Due to liver qi depression and the stomach failing to descend, symptoms such as chest tightness, dull pain in the hypochondriac region, and wiry pulse appear. Treatment involves soothing the liver and regulating qi, as well as descending counterflow and harmonizing the stomach, using Bupleurum Liver-Soothing Powder.
3. Spleen-stomach Weakness︰Belching is intermittent and weak, with vomiting of clear water and loss of appetite. The complexion is pale or slightly yellow, the tongue is pale with a thin white coating, and the pulse is weak. Due to constitutional weakness or post-illness imbalance, spleen and stomach qi deficiency leads to impaired digestion and stomach qi disharmony, resulting in intermittent and weak belching. This condition has a history of prolonged illness and physical weakness. The main treatment is to tonify the spleen and stomach, using Jianpi San (Spleen-Fortifying Powder).

The symptom of belching can be categorized into deficiency and excess. The excess type is commonly caused by food stagnation and liver depression, while the deficiency type is mainly due to spleen-stomach weakness. In the excess type, the belching sound is loud and strong; in the deficiency type, the belching sound is low and weak, which can be distinguished through listening and smelling.

bubble_chart Documentation

1. Leizheng Zhicai-Belching: "It often occurs in patients after illness or elderly individuals with weak spleen and stomach. However, there are also cases where liver qi rebels upward, causing sour belching, fullness, and persistent hiccups with a hard sensation below the heart. Zhongjing (Zhang Zhongjing) attributed this to stomach deficiency and rising guest qi, which must be subdued with heavy descending herbs (Inula and Hematite Decoction). There are also instances where lung qi fails to descend, leading to belching (Perilla Fruit Qi-Descending Decoction minus cinnamon, with additions like Bitter Apricot Seed and Fritillaria Bulb). For belching caused by stomach deficiency and qi stagnation (Ten-Ingredient Harmony-Preserving Decoction). ... If it results from spleen-kidney deficiency-cold and decline of life-gate fire, causing turbid yin to fail to descend, leading to stuffiness and belching (Modified Yin-Regulating Decoction). For belching due to phlegm-fire in the stomach (Pinellia and Gardenia Decoction). When it stems purely from spleen-stomach yang deficiency and middle qi being obstructed by yin pathogens, harmonizing the middle is essential (Spleen-Fortifying Powder)."