The 100 bronze vessels at Shanghai Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine began to make gaofang on Monday.

The first batch of Chinese herbs, having being soaked for over six hours, were put into the 100 bronze vessels at the Shanghai Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine on Monday as it began to make gaofang, a seasonal herbal paste tonic.

Monday is this year's lidong, the 19th solar term in China's solar calendar which means the start of winter.

Under traditional Chinese medicine theory, taking gaofang can enhance health, especially for the elderly and people with weak immunity and chronic diseases. It also helps young and middle-aged people with strong work pressure, irregular life pace and unhealthy lifestyle.

While other hospitals hire pharmaceutical companies to produce gaofang, Yueyang is the only one in the city to maintain tradition by having a special plant with 100 bronze vessels to make the tonic.

Gaofang is a herbal paste made of condensed liquid herbal medicines chock full of ingredients like honey and brown sugar. Each paste is tailor-made according to a doctor's prescription.

Yueyang has more than 40 years of history in gaofang prescription and production. Some 10,000 people have made reservations at its gaofang clinic this year.

"Gaofang is not only a TCM therapy but also an intangible Chinese cultural heritage. We have set up a special exhibition hall to showcase gaofang-making skills and promote TCM culture and health education on disease prevention and control," said Dr Zhou Jia, president of Yueyang hospital, which makes about 20,000 prescriptions of gaofang each year.