Okay, so maybe you’ve never asked yourself this specific question. But it’s an important one to ask! Your face (and your body) is constantly giving you little insights into your overall health and wellness.
Now, this is not a tool for diagnosis, as we are not medical professionals (unless, of course, you are). However, paying attention to signs that your own body is giving you can help you better understand where it needs some TLC.
“But how do I do this?” I’m so glad you asked!
Your Face
Grab a mirror! Your face is a great place to start when looking for clues in the case of your health. Let’s start with the basics: Are you noticing a predominant color – a tint of red, yellow, or purple? Are you pale? I mean, like, abnormally pale – not just mid-January-I-need-a-Bahamas-getaway pale. Here’s some insight on what these colors could be hinting at:
- Red tint: cardiovascular imbalance (high blood pressure)
- Yellow tint: a liver or a fungal issue
- Purple tint: poor circulation leading to a lack of oxygen
- Very pale: anemia or dehydration
Next, let’s focus on the different areas of the face. Discoloration, markings, and wrinkles can actually be a cry of internal distress, and we can use their locations to narrow down where support is needed. Here is a map used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) that outlines where the organs “communicate” on the face:
I personally used this map to correlate my random forehead breakouts with intestinal distress. They have drastically decreased since I began supporting my digestive system with better nutrition and herbal supplements.
Now you try! Are you seeing redness or breakouts on your nose? Try giving a little love to your stomach (hint: Start here). Or maybe you are experiencing odd symptoms on your ears – it may be worthwhile to support your kidneys (hydration, cranberry juice, or parsley may help). The takeaway: It’s likely that any facial symptoms you are experiencing are not just random, but linked to an organ in distress!
Your Tongue
Say, “ahhh.” Your tongue can also tell you a little bit about what’s going on inside your body. There are a few tongue attributes that are more common than others:
- Scalloped edges: your digestive tract needs love! (often, the spleen)
- Shiny & swollen: check your B vitamin levels, as this could indicate a B-12 deficiency
- Distended, dark veins on the underside: poor circulation or high levels of high metals
- A crack down the middle: again, digestion!
- Heavy coating (white or yellow): may indicate yeast overgrowth in the body
- Red tip: cardiovascular imbalance
Your Nails
No, they aren’t part of your face, but they fit right in by providing evidence on the status of our overall health. As we did with the face, we’ll start by focusing on color.
Your nails should be a healthy pink color and be strong, but flexible. Yellow or orange nails most commonly mean infection or fungus, but they can also signify a vitamin or mineral deficiency.
Other nail findings include:
- White nails: liver imbalance
- Nail is half pink, half white: kidney imbalance
- Pale nail bed: anemia
- Red nail bed: cardiovascular imbalance (heart)
- Thick, yellow nails: lung imbalance
- Yellowish with pink at the base: Diabetes
Your turn!
Pull out the mirror and take off your nail polish to learn a thing or two about how your organs are doing. What did you find? And, more importantly, what are you going to do about it? Please feel free to share the love below!