Nausea

噁心 / 恶心

Sensation of queasiness or urge to vomit, often linked to Stomach disharmony, phlegm-damp or Qi rebellion.

Quick Facts

Health Topic	Digestive Health
Also Known As	Feeling sick, Queasiness, Urge to vomit, Sick to the stomach, Nauseous feeling
Common Symptoms	A queasy sensation in the stomach with an urge to vomit that may or may not lead to vomiting. It can appear with motion, certain smells, after meals or on an empty stomach, and often reduces interest in food.
Related TCM Patterns	Qi Stagnation · Yin Deficiency · Dampness · Summer Heat · Yang Deficiency · Phlegm-Dampness · Spleen Qi Deficiency · Shaoyang Syndrome
Related Classical Formulas	Huo Xiang Zheng Qi San · Wu Zhu Yu Tang · Xuan Fu Dai Zhe Tang · Xiang Ru Yin · Mai Men Dong Tang · Ban Xia Xie Xin Tang · Sheng Jiang Xie Xin Tang · Zhu Ye Shi Gao Tang · Xiao Chai Hu Tang · Ju Pi Zhu Ru Tang · Er Chen Tang · Wen Dan Tang · Ban Xia Bai Zhu Tian Ma Tang · Xiang Sha Yang Wei Tang · Xin Jia Xiang Ru Yin · Chai Hu Gui Zhi Tang · Da Chai Hu Tang · Mu Xiang Shun Qi Wan

Nausea in Traditional Chinese Medicine

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, nausea is not read as a single fixed problem. In the current formula set it is particularly associated with dampness, though other patterns can also present with a queasy stomach. Differentiation looks at whether there is a greasy tongue coating, bodily heaviness, poor appetite, or vomiting of clear fluid, and whether the nausea follows rich food or humid weather. Classical formulas are matched to the broader pattern rather than to the queasy feeling alone.

TCM Patterns Associated With Nausea

The same presentation may be understood through more than one pattern. Pattern differentiation weighs the accompanying signs, not the symptom on its own.

Pattern	Common Features	Related Formulas
Qi Stagnation氣滯證Stagnation Patterns	Distension, tightness or a constrained feeling in the chest, flanks or abdomen that comes and goes with emotion or stress. Frequent sighing, a sense that emotions are hard to move, and in women premenstrual breast or lower abdominal discomfort are common. Symptoms often ease after movement, expression or belching. Tongue may be normal or slightly dusky; pulse wiry.	Xuan Fu Dai Zhe Tang Ban Xia Xie Xin Tang Sheng Jiang Xie Xin Tang Xiao Chai Hu Tang Ju Pi Zhu Ru Tang Mu Xiang Shun Qi Wan
Yin Deficiency陰虛證Deficiency Patterns	Dry mouth and throat, night sweats or warm palms and soles, a thin body frame, and restlessness that is worse in the afternoon or at night. Sleep may be light, and there is often a preference for cool drinks. Symptoms feel empty rather than forceful. Tongue red with scant coating; pulse thin and rapid.	Mai Men Dong Tang Zhu Ye Shi Gao Tang
Dampness濕阻證Damp Patterns	A heavy, sluggish body feeling, abdominal fullness, sticky sensation in the mouth, and reduced appetite. Stools may be sticky or incomplete, and the person often feels worse in humid weather. There can be oedema of the limbs or a greasy facial sheen. Tongue with a thick greasy white coating; pulse soft or slippery.	Huo Xiang Zheng Qi San
Summer Heat暑熱證Exterior Patterns	Fever or a strong sense of heat after exposure to hot weather, heavy sweating, thirst, and fatigue or heaviness of the body. There may be irritability, scanty dark urine, and a preference for cool drinks. Symptoms often start in high summer. Tongue red with a dry yellow coating; pulse rapid and possibly soft or large.	Xiang Ru Yin Xin Jia Xiang Ru Yin
Yang Deficiency陽虛證Deficiency Patterns	Aversion to cold, cold limbs, preference for warm drinks and clothing, and low energy that worsens in cold weather. There may be loose stools, clear copious urine, a pale puffy face, and reduced libido or lumbar weakness. The person feels better with warmth and worse with cold exposure. Tongue pale and possibly swollen with a white coating; pulse deep and weak.	Wu Zhu Yu Tang
Phlegm-Dampness痰濕證Phlegm Patterns	Copious white or sticky phlegm, a heavy chest or head, and a greasy tongue coating. There may be nausea, poor appetite, and a foggy or heavy mental feeling that worsens in damp weather or after rich food. Coughing brings up phlegm that is hard to clear completely. Tongue pale with a thick greasy white coating; pulse slippery.	Er Chen Tang Wen Dan Tang Ban Xia Bai Zhu Tian Ma Tang
Spleen Qi Deficiency脾氣虛證Deficiency Patterns	Poor appetite, loose or unformed stools, fatigue that worsens after meals, a pale or sallow complexion, and a soft or low voice. There may be abdominal fullness after eating, easy bruising, or a tendency toward thin white phlegm. The person often feels better with rest and simple warm food. Tongue pale with a thin white coating; pulse weak or empty.	Xiang Sha Yang Wei Tang
Shaoyang Syndrome少陽證Exterior Patterns	Alternating chills and fever, fullness and discomfort in the chest and rib-side, a bitter taste in the mouth, dry throat, dizziness, poor appetite and nausea, and an irritable or restless mood. Tongue with a thin white coating; pulse wiry.	Chai Hu Gui Zhi Tang Da Chai Hu Tang