Q Why does my child only want to eat certain foods?
A It may reflect liver-qi overacting on the stomach (gan-qi-fan-wei) or a spleen-stomach qi deficiency. When digestive energy weakens, the very ability to accept new foods declines.
Detailed Answer
Severe picky eating is not simply a matter of bad habits. From a Korean medicine perspective, the root cause is often liver-qi overacting on the stomach (gan-qi-fan-wei) — where emotional tension suppresses stomach function — or a spleen-stomach qi deficiency in which digestive energy is lacking. When the spleen and stomach are weak, the child becomes sensitive to new textures and smells, and a defensive eating pattern that allows only a few familiar foods becomes fixed.
Korean Medicine Clinic Perspective
At Dongjedang, we use pulse diagnosis at the first visit to assess the child's constitution and digestive strength, distinguishing whether the picky eating is the liver-qi-overacting type or the spleen-stomach deficiency type. Depending on the cause, we design a prescription oriented toward soothing the liver and strengthening the spleen (so-gan-geon-bi) or reinforcing the spleen and stomach, helping the child gradually broaden their food acceptance without any forcing.
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