Doctors from a branch of Shuguang Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital in Zhangjiang, Pudong District in Shanghai, have started to visit nearby office buildings to write prescriptions for and sell a popular winter medication.
About 500 employees from four to five big companies located near the hospital have invited doctors to stop by and put their prescription pads to use.
With the arrival of winter, many Chinese take gaofang, which is usually a mixture of herbs, donkey-skin gum, deer-ear gum, crystal sugar and honey to prevent and fight off chronic diseases. People normally take it from before "winter solstice" on the lunar calendar to mid January.
A prescription is needed to buy the concoction, and pharmacies can custom-tailor the medication based on their prescription. After boiling the concoction and letting it cool, the final product is cut to an appropriate size and packaged.
"When we announced we would offer gaofang prescriptions in our out-patient department two weeks ago, many office workers expressed interest but complaining about their tight schedules," said Wang Yue, a Shuguang official.
"Many office workers complain about fatigue, bad appetites and sleeping disorders due to unhealthy lifestyle and high pressure. TCM is known for its gradual and gentle effects to renovate the entire physical system and has begun to gain popularity among young people in recent years."
A full season of gaofang treatment cost about 500 yuan (US$61.73), and can rise to 2,000 yuan if precious ingredients are added.
Zhang Qiujuan, president of Shanghai Yueyang Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, said it sold about 8,000 gaofang treatments last year, half of which were for people between 35 and 45 years old.
"I started to take gaofang last year. Since TCM has no strong side effects and the rehabilitation is mild, many of my colleagues are keen on it," said Lily Xu, a 35-year-old woman.
"In addition, acupuncture for women's diseases and weight loss and medical massage for neck and waste pain are also very popular among people of my age."
(Source: Shanghai Daily)
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Producer:Duan
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