{ "slug": "liver-yin-deficiency", "name": "Liver Yin Deficiency", "pinyin": "Gan Yin Xu", "chinese": "肝阴虚", "organ": "Liver", "nature": "deficiency", "family": "yin-deficiency", "summary": "The Liver has lost its cooling moisture. The eyes are dry and gritty, the nails brittle, the muscles twitchy or crampy, the mood dry and short, and there is a dull ache under the ribs. It is a warmer, drier cousin of Liver blood deficiency and often sits on top of Kidney yin deficiency.", "picture": "The Liver is a tree. Blood is its sap and yin is the water in its roots. A tree short of water goes brittle at the twigs first, which is why the eyes, nails, and tendons are the first to complain.", "signs": { "key": [ "Dry, gritty, tired eyes", "Brittle nails, dry hair", "Muscle twitches, cramps, or stiffness", "Dull ache under the ribs, worse with tiredness", "Short-tempered in a dry, hot way" ], "common": [ "Dizziness, tinnitus", "Blurry vision, floaters", "Afternoon warmth, red cheeks, night sweats", "Dry mouth and throat", "Scanty or late periods", "Insomnia with dreams" ], "tongue": "Red with little coat, often redder at the sides.", "pulse": "Thin, rapid, wiry." }, "causes": [ "Long emotional strain, especially held anger", "Blood loss or a long illness", "Years of late nights and screen work", "Kidney yin deficiency reaching the Liver", "Alcohol and heating food" ], "tell_apart": [ { "slug": "liver-blood-deficiency", "how": "Blood deficiency is pale and cool: pale nails, pale face, light periods, a pale tongue. Yin deficiency is red, dry, and warm with night sweats." }, { "slug": "liver-and-kidney-yin-deficiency", "how": "Add the sore back, the ringing ears, and the dry mouth at night, and the Kidney is in it too. Most Liver yin deficiency ends up here, and the formulas are the rehmannia family." }, { "slug": "liver-yang-rising", "how": "When the dry Liver can no longer hold its yang down, the signs go loud: pounding headache, red face, dizziness, rage, high blood pressure. The treatment adds anchoring herbs." } ], "formulas": [ { "slug": "yi-guan-jian", "role": "primary", "when": "Dry rib pain, acid, a dry mouth, and a red tongue. The classic Liver yin formula.", "pinyin": "Yi Guan Jian", "_links": { "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formula/yi-guan-jian", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/formula/yi-guan-jian" } }, { "slug": "qi-ju-di-huang-wan", "role": "with eye signs", "when": "The eyes are the main complaint and the Kidney shares the deficiency.", "pinyin": "Qi Ju Di Huang Wan", "_links": { "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formula/qi-ju-di-huang-wan", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/formula/qi-ju-di-huang-wan" } }, { "slug": "er-zhi-wan", "role": "gentle", "when": "Mild signs: early grey hair, dizziness, dry eyes.", "pinyin": "Er Zhi Wan", "_links": { "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/formula/er-zhi-wan", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/formula/er-zhi-wan" } } ], "herbs": [ { "pinyin": "Bai Shao", "role": "White peony nourishes Liver yin and blood and relaxes cramps.", "herb_slug": "white-peony-root", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/white-peony-root", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/white-peony-root" } }, { "pinyin": "Gou Qi Zi", "role": "Goji feeds Liver and Kidney and the eyes.", "herb_slug": "fruit-of-chinese-wolfberry", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/fruit-of-chinese-wolfberry", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/fruit-of-chinese-wolfberry" } }, { "pinyin": "Sheng Di Huang", "role": "Raw rehmannia cools and nourishes yin.", "herb_slug": "fresh-rehmannia-root", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/fresh-rehmannia-root", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/fresh-rehmannia-root" } }, { "pinyin": "Mai Dong", "role": "Ophiopogon moistens.", "herb_slug": "root-of-dwarf-lilyturf-3", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/root-of-dwarf-lilyturf-3", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/root-of-dwarf-lilyturf-3" } }, { "pinyin": "Nu Zhen Zi", "role": "Privet fruit, a gentle Liver and Kidney yin tonic.", "herb_slug": "fruit-of-glossy-privet", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/fruit-of-glossy-privet", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/fruit-of-glossy-privet" } }, { "pinyin": "Han Lian Cao", "role": "Eclipta cools the blood and nourishes yin.", "herb_slug": "eclipta", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/eclipta", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/eclipta" } }, { "pinyin": "Sang Shen", "role": "Mulberry fruit for dizziness and dry eyes.", "herb_slug": "mulberry-fruit", "_links": { "herb": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/herb/mulberry-fruit", "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/herb/mulberry-fruit" } } ], "conditions": [ "blurred-vision", "hypochondriac-pain", "dizziness", "insomnia", "menstrual-irregularities", "yin-deficiency" ], "habits": [ "Screens off an hour before bed; the Liver stores blood at night and refills the eyes from it.", "Goji tea, black sesame, mulberries, dark greens, eggs.", "Stretch the tendons gently each morning.", "Alcohol, coffee after noon, and spicy food dry a Liver that is already dry.", "Find a daily outlet for frustration that does not involve a screen." ], "watch": [ "Dry eyes and the short temper ease within a month.", "Cramps and twitches settle as the blood and yin return.", "The rib ache fades over one to two months.", "The tongue grows a thin coat back." ], "sources": [ { "title": "Maciocia, The Foundations of Chinese Medicine, 3rd edition", "note": "Liver yin deficiency." }, { "title": "Bensky, Scheid, Ellis and Barolet, Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas and Strategies, 2nd edition", "note": "Yi Guan Jian." } ], "meta": { "status": "published", "last_updated": "2026-10-12", "reviewed_by": null }, "_links": { "html": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/pattern/liver-yin-deficiency", "self": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/pattern/liver-yin-deficiency", "index": "https://www.naturalherblibrary.com/api/v1/patterns" } }