In Chinese medicine the Stomach receives food and drink, begins breaking it down, and sends the result downward. It's paired with the Spleen, belongs to the Earth element, and the two together are described as the root of everything the body builds after birth.
A quick note on spelling. We capitalize Stomach when we mean the Chinese medicine system and use lowercase for the anatomical organ. This is one of the closer overlaps in the twelve, but the division of labour is different. The Chinese medicine Stomach does the receiving and the ripening, and the Spleen does the transforming and the sending upward. Neither one alone corresponds to the Western organ.
The pairing matters more here than anywhere else in the system. Stomach qi is supposed to descend and Spleen qi is supposed to ascend. Almost every traditional Earth pattern is a description of one of those two directions going the wrong way.
On this page. At a glance · What it does · The meridian · Common patterns · Herbs · Questions
At a glance
The Stomach is the yang organ of the Earth element, paired with the Spleen. In the twelve channel cycle it comes third, immediately before the Spleen.
| Chinese name | 胃 (Wèi) |
| Element | Earth |
| Yin or yang | Yang (fu) |
| Paired organ | Spleen (Pí) |
| Season | Late summer |
| Color | Yellow |
| Climate | Dampness |
| Flavor | Sweet |
| Emotion | Overthinking and worry. In balance, steady, settled attention. |
| Opens into | The mouth, shared with the Spleen |
| Governs | Receiving and ripening food |
| Qi moves | Downward |
| Peak hours | 7 to 9 a.m. |
| Meridian | Foot Yangming, 45 points (ST1 to ST45) |
What does the Stomach do?
It receives and ripens. The classical phrase is that the Stomach rots and ripens food. It takes in what is eaten, holds it, and begins the breakdown that lets the Spleen extract what is useful. The texts call it the sea of food and fluid.
Its qi descends. This is the defining direction. Everything the Stomach handles is supposed to move downward and onward to the Small Intestine. The traditional patterns in this organ are mostly descriptions of that direction failing, qi that should go down going up instead.
It works against the Spleen, on purpose. The Stomach is described as preferring moisture and disliking dryness; the Spleen prefers dryness and dislikes damp. The pair is built as a balance, and a formula for one usually has to account for the other. This is why so many classical digestive formulas contain herbs that look like they are working at cross purposes.
Its channel is the richest in qi and blood. The Yangming is described in the classical texts as having more of both than any other level, which is why ST36, below the knee, is one of the most used points in the whole system.
The Stomach meridian
The Stomach channel begins at ST1, directly below the eye. It runs down the face to the jaw, sends a branch up to the forehead, and descends the front of the neck and through the chest.
From there it runs down the abdomen, out to the front of the thigh, and along the outside edge of the shin, which is why it is easy to locate on yourself. It passes ST36 just below the knee, crosses the ankle and the top of the foot, and ends at ST45, at the outer corner of the second toenail.
Forty-five points. It is the only channel of the twelve that runs down the front of the body from the face to the foot.
Where it falls in the organ clock
| Hours | Organ |
|---|---|
| 5 to 7 a.m. | Large Intestine |
| 7 to 9 a.m. | Stomach |
| 9 to 11 a.m. | Spleen |
The Stomach takes the hours of an ordinary breakfast and the Spleen takes the two hours after. That sequence is the traditional argument for eating earlier rather than later in the day.
Common Stomach patterns
These are traditional pattern descriptions, not diagnoses. Working out a pattern is a practitioner's job.
| Pattern | Traditional signs |
|---|---|
| Food stagnation | Fullness after eating, a sour taste, a thick tongue coating, no appetite for the next meal |
| Stomach qi rising | A sensation of qi moving upward rather than down, belching, hiccups, discomfort after eating |
| Stomach heat | Constant hunger, thirst for cold drinks, a red tongue with a dry yellow coating, a strong pulse |
| Stomach yin deficiency | A dry mouth without wanting to drink much, a peeled or mirror-like tongue, hunger with no desire to eat |
| Stomach cold | Discomfort eased by warmth and pressure, a preference for warm food and drink, a pale wet tongue |
Herbs and formulas traditionally associated with the Stomach
Chinese herbal medicine describes each herb as entering certain channels. The ones below are traditionally described as entering the Stomach channel, grouped by their traditional action.
These are not recommendations for the patterns above. The sections are separate on purpose.
Traditionally used to move food along
| Product | Traditional description |
|---|---|
| Preserve Harmony (Bao He Tang) | The classical formula for food that has not moved on. The name means to preserve harmony. Enters Stomach and Spleen. |
| Po Chai Pills | A long-established Hong Kong formula, traditionally taken after a heavy or unfamiliar meal. |
| Hawthorn Berry (Shan Zha Tang) | Enters Spleen, Stomach and Liver. The single herb most associated with moving rich and fatty food along, and the lead herb in Bao He. |
Traditionally used to warm and settle the middle
| Product | Traditional description |
|---|---|
| Healthy Stomach (Xiang Sha Yang Wei Wan) | Named for the organ. Aucklandia and cardamom lead it. Traditionally used where the texts describe cold and damp sitting in the middle. |
| Culing Digestion Pills | A traditional combination taken for the fullness the classical texts describe after eating. |
Traditionally used as food
| Product | Traditional description |
|---|---|
| Dried Ginger | Enters Spleen, Stomach and Lung. Warming, and one of the oldest kitchen herbs in the materia medica. |
Questions people ask
Where does the Stomach meridian run? It starts just below the eye, runs down the face and jaw with a branch up to the forehead, down the front of the neck and chest, down the abdomen, along the front of the thigh and the outer edge of the shin past ST36, across the top of the foot, and ends at the outer corner of the second toenail. Forty-five points.
Which organ is paired with the Stomach? The Spleen. They are the yang and yin organs of the Earth element and share the same associations, which are late summer, yellow, dampness, the sweet flavor, and the mouth.
What is ST36? It is a point on the Stomach channel just below the knee, on the outer edge of the shin. It is among the most used points in Chinese medicine and is traditionally associated with the Earth organs and with general strength.
Why do the Stomach and Spleen move in opposite directions? Because the pair is built as a balance. The Stomach sends what it has received downward; the Spleen sends what it has extracted upward. Most traditional Earth patterns are a description of one of those directions reversing.
What does Yangming mean? It is one of the six levels in the classical framework, made up of the Stomach and Large Intestine channels. The texts describe it as the level richest in qi and blood.