This article begins with the investigation into the source of the meaning of the fundamental Chinese medicine terms dispersion-thirst (xiao ke), dispersion exhaustion (xiao dan), and the three dispersions (san xiao). It then proceeds to discuss the relationship between both the symptoms of dispersion-thirst and the disease itself, according to traditional Chinese medicine, and the modern medical definition of diabetes. Clinically doctors often use the idea of “three excesses and one deficiency” as the basis for beginning to diagnose diabetes. However the symptom “one deficiency”, which refers to becoming emaciated, is often the focus of investigation for many an article due to the fact that modern medicine considers being overweight an important factor in causing diabetes. So, is there an area of contradiction between the two diseases or not? In this article I will offer my humble opinion in order to reach a more reasonable explanation.