Acupuncture for Indigestion (Functional Dyspepsia)

How Chinese medicine understands indigestion

In Chinese medicine, the Stomach “receives and ripens” food, and the Spleen turns it into energy and moves it on. Indigestion is seen as that process slowing down or getting stuck: food sits too long, the upper belly feels full and sore, and the Stomach’s Qi may rise as nausea or belching.

The common patterns are:

• Food stagnation. Fullness and discomfort after overeating or eating late, with sour belching and a thick tongue coating. Often short-lived, but it can become a habit.
• Liver Qi invading the Stomach. Pain and fullness that flare with stress, sighing, belching, and discomfort that spreads under the ribs.
• Spleen and Stomach Qi deficiency. Feeling full after only a few bites, tiredness after meals, a poor appetite, and a stomach that prefers warm food and gentle pressure.
• Stomach Yin deficiency. A dull burning, a dry mouth, hunger but little appetite, and symptoms worse in the evening.
• Damp-Heat. A heavy, full feeling with a bitter or sticky taste, often after greasy food or alcohol.

The pattern decides the treatment. Clearing a stomach that is blocked is different from building up one that is weak.

What treatment involves

Your first visit includes a lot of questions: when the discomfort comes, how much you can eat, what you eat, your bowels, sleep and stress. I also look at your tongue and take your pulse, then explain your pattern in plain terms.

Acupuncture commonly uses points on the upper belly, forearms, lower legs and back, chosen for your pattern. The aim is to help the stomach move food on, ease pain and fullness, and settle the stress that often sets it off. For a weak or cold pattern, moxibustion can warm the belly.

Chinese herbal medicine is often central for digestive problems. You take a formula written for your pattern between visits. It is dispensed at the clinic and changed as your symptoms change.

If swelling and gas are your main problem, the bloating page may fit better. Treatment at the clinic in Keswick works alongside your family doctor. Research on acupuncture for functional dyspepsia is still developing. Plan on 5–10 treatments to judge progress.

Between visits

• Eat smaller meals at regular times, and stop before you feel full.
• Slow down. Sit to eat, chew well, and avoid working or scrolling through meals.
• Leave two to three hours between your last meal and bed.
• Talk to your doctor about anti-inflammatory painkillers such as ibuprofen or naproxen if you take them often. Do not stop a prescribed medicine without advice.
• Go easy on alcohol, coffee and smoking, which irritate the stomach.

When to see your doctor first

Indigestion that is new, or has lasted more than a few weeks, should be assessed by your doctor. See your doctor promptly if you have:

• Trouble or pain swallowing.
• Vomiting that keeps coming back, or vomiting blood or material like coffee grounds.
• Black, tarry stools.
• Weight loss you cannot explain, or feeling full so fast that you are eating much less.
• Symptoms that start after age 55, or a family history of stomach cancer.
• Signs of anaemia, such as unusual tiredness or paleness.

Upper belly pain can come from the heart. If you have pain or pressure with shortness of breath, sweating, or pain spreading to the arm, jaw or back, call 911.