bubble_chart Concept

Infant internal damage from milk and food, stagnation in the stomach, accumulation over time without digestion, leading to qi stagnation, is called retention of food.

This condition, Xiao'er Yaozheng Zhijue refers to as "pi," and later generations of medical practitioners have also recorded terms such as "food stagnation," "milk stagnation," "not eating milk," "retained food," "food accumulation," and "milk dyspepsia."

Pi has been discussed extensively by medical practitioners throughout history, with varying concepts. For example, Xiao'er Yaozheng Zhijue states: "Infant pi disease is caused by undigested milk and food, lying dormant in the abdomen." The "Ying Tong Bai Wen: Fu Zhong You Pi" states: "Pi is when blood membranes wrap around water, leaning to the side of the ribs, causing intermittent pain." It is evident that the concept of pi is broad. This section only discusses the symptoms of retention of food caused by improper feeding, and does not elaborate on the pi syndrome.

bubble_chart Pattern Analysis

1. Improper Diet in Infants︰This condition is further divided into food injury (dyspepsia) and milk injury. Milk dyspepsia with stagnation: vomiting milk curds, a sour milk odor in the mouth, reluctance to suckle, and abdominal distension. Food injury (dyspepsia) with retention of food: vomiting food, abdominal pain that resists pressure, belching with acid regurgitation, loss of appetite, restless sleep at night, feverish feeling in palms and soles, either constipation or passing foul-smelling stools, thick and greasy tongue coating, slippery and rapid pulse, and purple stagnant finger venules. Improper feeding leading to food retention is often caused by excessive breastfeeding, frequent feedings, or overconsumption of greasy and rich foods in infants, resulting in impaired digestion and stagnation in the stomach. This belongs to the excess heat pattern. Characteristics include abdominal pain that resists pressure, afternoon tidal fever, restless sleep at night, possible sleep talking, either severe constipation or passing foul-smelling stools, thick and greasy tongue coating, slippery and rapid pulse manifestation, and purple stagnant finger venules. Treatment principle: For food stagnation, promote digestion and remove food stagnation, selecting Aucklandia Root Major Stabilizing Pill; for milk injury, resolve and guide stagnant milk, selecting the Milk-Resolving Pill.
2. Excessive Consumption of Cold and Raw Foods︰complexion pale, reversal cold of limbs, vomiting food, belching with acid swallow, loss of appetite, abdominal distension and pain, pain leading to diarrhea, relief after diarrhea, watery and foul-smelling stool, tongue coating white and greasy, pulse manifestation deep and slow, red and stagnant finger veins. Overeating raw and cold food leading to food retention, often caused by children consuming excessive raw and cold fruits, unable to digest, cold pathogen congealing in the stomach, this belongs to a deficiency pattern with excess. Characteristics include lingering abdominal pain, pain leading to diarrhea, relief after diarrhea, stool resembling clear water, exceptionally foul-smelling, tongue coating white and greasy, pulse manifestation deep and slow, red and stagnant finger veins. Treatment should focus on warming the middle to stop diarrhea, prescription selection Middle-Regulating Decoction, for stopping diarrhea Chebula Powder can be used.
3. Spleen-stomach Weakness︰The complexion is sallow, the body is fatigued and weak, with nausea and vomiting, abdominal distension and fullness after eating that prefers pressure, undigested stool, a white and greasy tongue coating, a deep and slippery pulse, and pale blue finger venules. This belongs to a deficiency pattern. There are two causes of the disease: one is congenital insufficiency with weak spleen qi deficiency, and the other is prolonged illness depleting original qi, leading to spleen-stomach disharmony. The key diagnostic points are: (1) fatigue and weakness; (2) lack of appetite for milk or food; (3) abdominal distension and fullness after eating; (4) nausea and vomiting; (5) abdominal distension, fullness, and pain. The pain is characterized by a lingering dull ache that prefers pressure and is relieved by warmth; accompanied by undigested stool, a white and greasy tongue coating, a deep and slippery pulse, and pale blue finger venules. Treatment should focus on strengthening the spleen and nourishing the stomach, while also promoting digestion and removing food stagnation. The recommended formula is Ginseng Qi Pi Wan.

The condition of food retention is caused by children's irregular breastfeeding and indulgence in greasy, sweet, raw, cold, and all hard-to-digest foods. The mechanism of the disease is the accumulation of food in the middle burner, injuring the spleen and stomach. Therefore, the clinical manifestations are often a mixture of deficiency and excess or excess with deficiency. Hence, it is essential to consider the child's constitution and condition, and adopt methods such as eliminating first and then tonifying, tonifying first and then eliminating, or a combination of both elimination and tonification, to achieve a comprehensive strategy.

bubble_chart Documentation

1. Xiao'er Yaozheng Zhijue．Abdominal mass: "Children's abdominal mass is caused by undigested milk and food, which accumulates in the abdomen, causing alternating chills and fever, thirst or coughing, similar to tidal fever. If not treated early, it will lead to malnutrition. Due to the mass, the child refuses to eat, leading to spleen and stomach deficiency and heat, thus causing excessive drinking of water, which washes out the intestines and stomach, leading to loss of body fluids. The spleen and stomach cannot transform and transport water and food, the pulse becomes deep and thin, further reducing appetite, spleen and stomach deficiency worsens, limbs become weak, and various evils arise, rarely not becoming thin and malnourished."
2. 《Infant and Child Hundred Questions．Retention of Food》: "Children with retention of food have yellowish puffiness on the face, abdominal heat and distending pain, sleepiness, crying without eating, or large intestine constipation, urine like oil, or uncontrolled bowel movements, white and sour-smelling feces, these are all signs of retention of food. However, there are milk dyspepsia and food accumulation, which must be clearly distinguished. Vomiting milk, diarrhea with a sour smell, this is caused by feeding the child while still crying, leading to stagnation and indigestion, this is milk dyspepsia. Hard abdomen with heat, thirst, diarrhea or vomiting, this is caused by excessive eating and overeating, sleeping immediately after eating, this is food accumulation. Abdominal pain and crying, diarrhea like crab foam, this is caused by disturbing the qi, disharmony of the defensive and nutritive qi, prolonged over time, this is qi accumulation. Use Aucklandia Root pill, Areca Seed pill can also be used, for constipation diseases, Shenxiong pill is very effective, also use Qi-pushing pill, for cold syndrome use Xiaji pill, Wuzhen pill can also be used."