Sweetness enters the spleen

Sweet things act upon the spleen. Agents that enter the spleen include ginseng (Ginseng Radix, 人参 rén shēn), codonopsis (Codonopsis Radix, 党参 dǎng shēn), white atractylodes (Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma, 白朮 bái zhú), poria (Poria, 茯苓 fú líng), licorice (Glycyrrhizae Radix, 甘草 gān cǎo), dioscorea (Dioscoreae Rhizoma, 山药 shān yào), astragalus (Astragali Radix, 黄芪 huáng qí), coix (Coicis Semen, 薏苡仁 yì yǐ rén), jujube (Jujubae Fructus, 大枣 dà zǎo), barley sprout (Hordei Fructus Germinatus, 麦芽 mài yá), longan flesh (Longan Arillus, 龙眼肉 lóng yǎn ròu), malt sugar (Maltosum, 饴糖 yí táng), cimicifuga (Cimicifugae Rhizoma, 升麻 shēng má), Chinese angelica (Angelicae Sinensis Radix, 当归 dāng guī), and star anise (Anisi Stellati Fructus, 八角茴香 bā jiǎo huí xiāng). The spleen is the source of qì and blood formation and the root of later heaven (i.e., the acquired constitution). These functions correspond in some measure to modern notions of production of energy from carbohydrates contained in sweet substances.