Dieting as a Pancreotonia: A Big Appetite, Strong Digestion, and a Hurried Mind

In Korean Traditional Medicine (KTM), the traditional healing system of Korea also known as Hanbang (한방), and within Eight Constitution Medicine (ECM), the Pancreotonia constitution (토양체질) comes with an above-average appetite and above-average digestion — a combination that cuts both ways when you are trying to lose weight. The most useful lever for this type turns out not to be a food list at all, but the pace of the mind.

The Shape of the Problem

Pancreotonia has outstanding digestive power. Under a dip in stamina or a stretch of stress, appetite is easily heightened, and this type’s capacity to store nutrients is excellent too — so obesity is a fairly common outcome. That said, it is not the constitution in which obesity appears most. Activity level, muscle mass, and metabolic rate all run comparatively high in this type, which offsets a good deal. (The constitution with the most obesity is Hepatonia.)

The Lever That Isn’t Food: Slow Down

Here is the point I would most want a Pancreotonia to take away. Rushing and hurrying has a bad effect on this constitution’s health, so it is best to live at an unhurried pace, with a mind that has some room in it. This is not merely temperamental advice — a hurried mind raises appetite. Reduce the hurry even slightly and you will find appetite regulates well and weight comes down more readily. For this type, ease is a weight-management tool.

Alongside that, keep alcohol and spicy food at arm’s length. Both stoke the appetite and generate the false hunger that undoes a diet — the sensation of needing to eat when the body does not.

What Suits and What Doesn’t

Beneficial: pork, egg white and beef among meats; barley, red bean, soy and adlay among grains; most seafood — shrimp, oyster, sea cucumber, crab, clams, herring, salmon, octopus, squid, eel, catfish and most fish; cooling fruits such as Korean melon, pear, kiwi, watermelon, banana, pineapple, melon, persimmon and strawberry; and perilla, perilla oil, tofu, yam, milk, pumpkin, chestnut, pine nut, walnut, mushrooms (reishi especially), goji-berry tea, cucumber, cabbage, lettuce, radish, bellflower root, water parsley, bean sprouts, lotus root, burdock and deodeok.

Harmful: chicken, dog, lamb, goat and venison — the heating meats; glutinous rice, brown rice, potato and corn; seaweeds such as gim, miyeok and dashima; and the whole family of heating, pungent foods — spring onion, onion, ginger, mustard, pepper, curry, garlic and the like (all spicy food is unhelpful here). Also apple, citrus, black grape, mango and tomato; sesame and sesame oil, corn oil, cinnamon, jujube, royal jelly, cabbage-family items like broccoli, and lactic-acid drinks. Overcooking food or eating it piping hot does not suit this type either.

Exercise: sweat-raising exercise is good for this constitution, while exercise that cools the body — swimming, cold-water rubs — is harmful.

Two Practical Notes

First, a small but useful one: because brown rice is unsuitable for this type while barley is beneficial, barley is the grain to reach for when you mix something into your rice. Second, Gastrotonia (토음체질) is a rare type about which less information exists — for dieting purposes, following the Pancreotonia guidance above is a reasonable approach.

How Strictly Should You Follow This?

Less strictly than you might think. If you are not ill and have no active disease, eating small amounts of the foods on the harmful list is perfectly fine, and can even do you good. These lists matter most during illness, in recovery, or when you are correcting a specific problem. For a healthy person, treating them as prohibitions turns eating into a source of anxiety — and that anxiety does more damage than the food. Manage your diet as far as your circumstances allow, and no further.

In Summary

Pancreotonia gains weight through a strong appetite meeting strong storage, but is saved somewhat by a high metabolic rate and good muscle. The distinctive lever is not on the plate: slow the hurried mind and the appetite settles. Keep alcohol and spicy food away because they manufacture false hunger, favour cooling foods and barley over brown rice, and take exercise that raises a sweat rather than exercise that chills you. Hold the food lists lightly when you are well — and if weight, appetite, or blood sugar concerns are significant, have them assessed properly rather than managed by diet alone.

Related reading: The Pancreotonia Constitution · Stress and False Hunger

This article reflects the clinical observations and teaching practice of Professor Seungho Baek, Professor of Korean Medicine at Dongguk University College of Korean Medicine, specializing in Pathology and Oncology.