Lungs affect the brain and emotions: revealing the surprising discoveries of Chinese and Western medicine

There is another saying in traditional Chinese medicine that is not easy to understand, which is “the lungs govern all the meridians”. All the meridians refer to all the blood vessels and meridians, which are the channels for blood circulation and energy flow. “Chao” means to manage, which is equivalent to the emperor going to court. In other words, the lungs govern the circulation of qi and blood throughout the body, affect the whole body by regulating blood vessels, and are also crucial to the blood and oxygen supply to the brain.

Immune function

There is a theory in Chinese medicine called “the lungs govern the skin and hair”, which means that the lungs are responsible for the health of the skin and hair, and manage the body’s defense function through the skin. The skin is regarded as our first line of defense against external pathogens.

Modern immunology points out that the lungs not only protect themselves from infection by secreting surfactant proteins SPA and SPD, but also have a great impact on the body’s immune activity.

Lung-brain axis

The connection between the lungs and the brain is called the lung-brain axis . You have heard of the gut-brain axis, but there is also an axis between the lungs and the brain. Lung health is related to neuroinflammation and multiple sclerosis, and is also closely related to the immune function of the brain.

The study also found that severe acute pneumonia often causes neurological disorders, which is related to the transfer of bacteria from the lungs to the brain. During severe pneumonia, the lung-blood barrier and blood-brain barrier are damaged, lung bacteria invade the brain, causing inflammation of the brain, and glial cells that can remove waste from the brain are also disturbed and cannot function normally.

Modern medicine has confirmed the connection between the lungs and the brain. Studies have found that a decline in lung function is often accompanied by a decline in cognitive ability. Vice versa, patients with acute brain injury often also suffer from acute lung injury .

Emotional Health

Traditional Chinese medicine says that “the lungs store the soul”. According to TCM theory, there is a spirit residing in every organ. The spirit of the lungs is called the soul, which manages the body’s form and spirit and represents our instinctive and emotional reactions.