Tongue color changes within a menstrual cycle in eumenorrheic women

Abstract

Tongue color (舌色 shé sè) has been used to diagnose abnormal body conditions for thousands of years in traditional Chinese Medicine (中醫 zhōng yī). However, it is not clear whether tongue color alters with physiological changes within a normal menstrual cycle (月經周期 yuè jīng zhōu qī). This study investigated difference in tongue color between the follicular phase and luteal phase in eumenorrheic women. Tongue surface photographs were taken in the follicular phase and the luteal phase of thirty-two volunteers with biphasic basal body temperature. Color values on five areas of the tongue surface were examined and comparisons of color values were made between the two phases according to the red–green–blue (RGB), hue–saturation–brightness (HSB), luminance-a-b (Lab), and cyan–magenta–yellow–black (CMYK) models. Based on the RGB model, the values of green and blue in the tip area were larger in the follicular phase than both in the luteal phase. The values of magenta and yellow based in the CMYK model were smaller in the tip area in the follicular phase than that in the luteal phase. The saturation in the tip area was smaller in the follicular phase than that in the luteal phase. Based on the Lab model, b value in the middle area was smaller in the follicular phase than that in the luteal phase. The data revealed that tongue color varied within a eumenorrheic menstrual cycle, suggesting that tongue color differences between the follicular and luteal phases need to be considered while practicing tongue diagnosis (舌診 shé zhěn) or performing clinical studies among childbearing women.

Reliability of Potential Pain Biomarkers in the Saliva of Healthy Subjects: Inter-Individual Differences and Intersession Variability

“…[31,32] The sample sizes were 12, 7 and 4 for follicular phase, luteal phase and hemorrhagic phase, respectively, in the first collection and 14, 6 and 3 respectively in the second collection.…”

Differences in the Tongue Features of Primary Dysmenorrhea Patients and Controls over a Normal Menstrual Cycle

“…Therefore, it is thought that tongue features change in the presence of several diseases, including anemia, appendicitis, cancer, diabetes, immune hepatic injury, and gastrointestinal disease [12, 13, 26]. For example, a reddish-purple tongue and thin tongue coating usually indicate blood stasis syndrome or blood stagnation [14, 15]. …”

“…Hsieh et al found that the greatest differences in color values between the follicular phase and the luteal phase were observed in healthy subjects with normal cycles [ 14 ]. Zhang et al found that the color of the tongue varied from darker red to pink during the menstrual cycle [ 27 ].…”

“…Physiological parameters change throughout a menstrual cycle and depend on the presence or absence of menstrual pain. Therefore, studies of adolescent girls and women of reproductive age should consider the effects of these factors [ 14 ]. Previous research studies have compared the tongue colors of healthy subjects in the luteal and follicular phases [ 14 ].…”

“…Therefore, studies of adolescent girls and women of reproductive age should consider the effects of these factors [ 14 ]. Previous research studies have compared the tongue colors of healthy subjects in the luteal and follicular phases [ 14 ]. However, no published reports exist regarding the differences in tongue features between healthy subjects and PD patients across the menstrual cycle.…”