My aunt originally had only one or two spots on her face, which were too small to be noticed. However, she used to throw tantrums easily. I have seen her refusing to eat when I was a child. At that time, whenever she was unhappy, she would shut herself up in her room reading magazines. As time goes by, freckles gradually appear on her face. After I started to study Traditional Chinese Medicine, I realised that this was the result of liver depression attacking the spleen, caused by the loss of appetite from emotions. As she grew older, the specks quietly climbed onto her face. Whenever she had a fit of anger or suffered from insomnia, the specks darkened. Even if she stayed in the sun for a little while, the spots would also darken.

Why do spots form?

Facial spots are annoying to many women. In fact, apart from emotions, ageing and changes in marriage relationship will also trigger the formation of spots on face.

Women in their fifties will gradually reach menopause and go through a series of physiological changes. Symptoms like palpitations, fidgety and irritability would gradually appear. At the same time, they may become hot-tempered, strained and anxious because they feel that their prime years are slipping away. Age spots would start to develop as a result of the imbalance between "Yin" and "Yang", functional disorders and metabolic disruptions.

Women in their forties have been dedicated to support their family and children. Frequently after a long day of work, they still need to worry about their children's studies and can rarely spare time for themselves, resulting in the withering of their vitality and yellowing of their faces. If unfortunately coupled with the suffering from insomnia, bad dreams, depression and anxiety arising from family issues and frustration at work, endocrine dysfunction will be induced and accumulation of melanin in skin cells will result, rendering the skin to look dull and lack of liveliness. Furthermore, bad moods will often induce other diseases, dishearten people, lead to nutritional deficiencies in the skin and metabolic imbalance, which gradually lead to chloasma.

Young women usually complete delivery in their thirties. If they do not have proper postpartum care or if they are physically weak innately, it may cause an imbalance of progesterone and estrogen, leading to the formation of butterfly rash and gestation spots. Women in this age group are also embarking on their career path, and may have to work extremely hard for their jobs. Consequently, they are very likely to become over-fatigued, strained, vexed and are more vulnerable to insomnia, thus resulting in a dull, bleak and haggard look.

Emotional coordination is important to control spots

Apart from age, another important factor to control spots is to coordinate one's emotions. According to theories in Chinese Medicine, liver has a close reciprocal relationship with one's emotions. If one's emotion is unstable, it will affect normal functioning of liver, leading to an increased chance of developing freckles on the face. Vice versa, the imbalance between "yin" and "yang" of liver will also have a negative impact on emotions, causing the formation of spots.

Not only is liver closely related to emotions, menstruation, nails, eyes and tendons, it also affects skin health. Liver stores blood and kidney stores essence. Essence, or refined substances, are carried in the bloodstream, thus the saying, "the liver and the kidney have the same origin". Together, the liver, the kidney, essence and blood play a moisturizing role for the body, skin and hair of humans, also maintaining the balance of "Yin" and "Yang". Deficiency in liver and kidney is the main reason for deterioration with age, which makes people look haggard and old, dark and gloomy, causes hair loss, weakened hearing, dim eyesight and blurred vision, and results in the weakening of loins, knees, and joint flexibility. Weak liver and kidney also damage appearance and result in progressive symptoms such as weight loss, dry and dull skin, hair loss and dryness, irritability and insomnia, dark eye circle and chloasma.

The formation of pigments and spots are related to the level of harmony of internal organs, blood and body fluids, so apart from soothing liver and regulating mood and emotions, food therapy is also effective in removing spots.

Here are some recipes for removing spots: (please consult your family Chinese medicine practitioner before serving)

Black Fungus and Red Date Soup
Ingredients: 30g black fungus; 20 red dates; 5 bowls of water.
Instructions: Soak and clean the black fungus and remove seeds from the red dates. Add water and boil for around 1 hour into 2 bowls. A little honey may be added for better taste. Suggest serving twice a day, in the morning and evening.
Effects: Invigorates the spleen and promotes blood circulation to dispel hematoma.
Applications: Facial chloasma and pigmentation with irregular menstruation, hematoma and blood clots, menstrual pain, darkened or ecchymosis on the tongue, etc.

Mung Bean
Ingredients: 30g mung bean; 15g adzuki bean; 15g lily buds.
Instructions: Clean all ingredients and pour them into a pot. Add 500ml of water and boil with low fire into about 300ml. Enjoy 100ml per serving.
Effects: Nourishes the lungs and promotes blood circulation.
Applications: Lung deficiencies, combination of fire and dryness, dry skin and facial chloasma, etc.

Chloasma Remover
Ingredients: 30g walnuts; 200ml milk; 200ml soya bean milk; 20g black sesame seeds
Instructions: Grind walnuts and black sesame seeds into powder with a blender. Pour them into a pot and boil with milk until bubbling. Add a pinch of sugar. Suggest serving twice a day, in the morning and evening.
Effects: Invigorates the liver and the kidney, moistens the skin and removes skin spots.
Applications: Liver and kidney deficiencies, essence and blood loss, lack of skin care, skin dryness, darkening of chloasma, emaciation, dry mouth and throat, constipation, etc.

Let's remember to develop good working and resting habits, maintain a joyful mood, try the spot-removing recipes above and get rid of those nasty spots!

Yim Yiu-kin
Registered Chinese Medicine Practitioner
National TCM Practitioner, China
National Senior Beautician, China
National Chiropractor, China
Bachelor in TCM, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine
Master in Acupuncture, Moxibustion and Massage, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine
PhD in Acupuncture, Moxibustion and Massage, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine

(This article is the personal opinion of the author, and does not necessarily reflect the views of Hong Kong Registered Chinese Medicine Practitioners Association or Hong Kong Housing Society.)