黄帝曰∶外不劳形于事，内无思想之患，以恬愉为务，以自得为功。形体不敝，精神不散，
可寿百数矣。
彭祖曰∶凡人不可无思虑，当渐渐除之。身虚无，但有游气。气息得理，百病不生。又曰∶
道不在烦，但能不思衣，不思食，不思声色，不思胜负，不思得失，不思荣辱，心不劳，神不极，
但尔，可得千岁。
庚桑楚曰∶全汝形，抱汝生，无使汝思虑营营。
《灵枢》曰∶思虑怵惕则伤神。神伤则恐惧自失，皮烂脱肉，毛悴色夭。
书云∶思虑过度，恐虑无时，郁而生涎，涎遂转升而不降，为忧气劳思五噎之病。思虑则心虚，外邪从之，
而积气在中，时减于食。又云∶思虑伤心，为吐衄，为发焦。谋为过当，饮食不敌，养生之大患也。
诸葛亮遣使至。司马不问戎事，但以饮食及事之繁简为问。使曰∶诸葛公夙兴夜寐，罚二十
以上皆亲览焉，饮食不数升。懿曰∶孔明食少事烦，其能久乎？后果然。
张丞节云∶劳，经言瘵证，有虫，患者相继，诚有是理。只譬如俗谈不娩事，人害相思也，
与一女人情密，勿经别离，念念不舍，失寝忘餐，便觉形容瘦悴，不偿所愿，竟为沉 。
士人有观书忘食，一日有紫衣立前曰∶公不可久思，思则我死矣。问其何人。曰∶我谷神也。
于是绝思而食。是故盖思则气结，伏热不散，久而血气俱虚，疾至夭枉也。
黄帝说：对外不使身体因事务而劳累，对内没有思虑忧患的困扰，以恬淡愉悦为追求，以自得其乐为成效。形体不致衰败，精神不致耗散，就可以活到百岁。
彭祖说：人不可能完全没有思虑，应当逐渐地消除它。身体处于虚空状态，只有游移之气。气息调理得当，百病就不会产生。又说：道不在于繁琐，只要能做到不思穿衣、不思饮食、不思声色、不思胜负、不思得失、不思荣辱，心不劳苦，神不极度消耗，仅仅做到这样，就可以活到千岁。
《灵枢》说：思虑惊恐会损伤神气。神气受损则会出现恐惧且自我丧失（或指行为失常），皮肤腐烂肌肉消脱，毛发憔悴面色枯槁。
书籍记载：思虑过度，忧虑无时，郁结而生出涎液，涎液随即上升而不下降，导致忧气、劳思等五噎之病。思虑会导致心气虚弱，外邪随之侵入，积气停留在中焦，时常减少食欲。又记载：思虑损伤心脏，会导致吐血、鼻衄，头发干枯焦黄。谋划事情过分，饮食与体力不相称，是养生的大患。
诸葛亮派遣使者前往。司马懿不过问军事，只询问诸葛亮的饮食情况以及处理事务的繁简程度。使者说：诸葛公早起晚睡，二十杖以上的刑罚都亲自审阅，饮食不过几升。司马懿说：孔明吃得少事务繁杂，他能长久吗？后果然应验。
张丞节说：劳损，医经中称为瘵证，有虫，患者相继死亡，确实有这种道理。只比如世俗谈论的“相思病”，人害了相思病，与一个女子感情亲密，不要经过离别，念念不忘不舍得，失眠忘记吃饭，就会觉得容貌消瘦憔悴，不能实现愿望，最终成为沉疴重症。
有位读书人看书忘记吃饭，一天有个穿紫衣的人站在面前说：您不可以长时间思虑，思虑的话我就会死。问他是什么人。回答说：我是谷神。于是停止思虑并进食。所以大概思虑会导致气机郁结，伏热不散，久而久之气血都虚弱，疾病到来导致早夭。
The Yellow Emperor said: Externally, do not exhaust the body through affairs; internally, have no worries of thought. Make tranquility and joy your pursuit, and self-contentment your achievement. If the physical form is not worn out and the spirit is not scattered, one can live to be a hundred years old.
Peng Zu said: It is impossible for ordinary people to be without thoughts and considerations; one should gradually eliminate them. When the body is empty and void, only wandering Qi remains. If the breath is regulated properly, a hundred diseases will not arise. He also said: The Dao is not complicated; as long as one does not think about clothing, food, sounds and colors, victory or defeat, gain or loss, honor or disgrace, the heart is not labored, and the spirit is not exhausted, merely by doing so, one can live to be a thousand years old.
Gengsang Chu said: Preserve your form, embrace your life, and do not let your thoughts and considerations be in constant turmoil.
The *Ling Shu* (Spiritual Pivot) states: Thoughts and fears injure the Shen (Spirit). When the Shen is injured, there is fear and loss of self-control; the skin decays, flesh wastes away, hair becomes brittle, and the complexion turns dull.
Books record: Excessive thinking and constant worry lead to depression and the production of phlegm-fluids (Xian). These fluids ascend but fail to descend, causing disorders such as the Five Sieve (Wuye) diseases attributed to sorrowful Qi and laborious thoughts. Thinking weakens the Heart; external pathogenic factors then invade, causing stagnant Qi to accumulate in the middle Jiao, leading to reduced appetite. It is also recorded that excessive thinking damages the Heart, resulting in hematemesis (vomiting blood), epistaxis (nosebleed), and dry, brittle hair. Over-planning and dietary intake mismatched with physical capacity are major hazards to health preservation.
Zhuge Liang sent an envoy. Sima Yi did not ask about military affairs but inquired only about Zhuge's diet and the complexity of his tasks. The envoy replied: Lord Zhuge rises early and sleeps late, personally reviewing all punishments of twenty strokes or more; his food intake is less than a few sheng. Sima Yi said: Kongming eats little and has burdensome affairs; can he last long? This indeed came true later.
Zhang Chengjie said: Exhaustion, referred to in medical classics as Zhai syndrome (consumptive disease), involves parasites, and patients die in succession; this is indeed plausible. Consider the common talk of "lovesickness." A person suffering from lovesickness, who is intimately attached to a woman and experiences separation, constantly cherishing memories and forgetting sleep and meals, will feel their appearance become thin and emaciated. Unable to fulfill their desires, they eventually fall into severe chronic illness.
A scholar once read books to the point of forgetting to eat. One day, a man in purple robes stood before him and said: You must not think excessively; if you do, I will die. The scholar asked who he was. He replied: I am the Gu Shen (Grain Spirit). Thereupon, the scholar ceased excessive thinking and ate. Thus, it is generally believed that thinking causes Qi stagnation, latent heat fails to dissipate, and over time both Qi and Blood become deficient, leading to disease and premature death.