As we explore in our newest magazine issue, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) recommends that mothers rest at home for an entire month following the birth of their newborn. This recovery time, called yuezi in Chinese, includes other edicts on the mother’s behavior, such as a diet marked by the consumption of “hot” foods and a lack of immersion in cold water (read: bathing). Although some of these traditions are no longer followed religiously, those who can afford it now have the option of yuezi centers that are specifically designed to cater to mothers and their infants within the recommendations of TCM.
Fu Rong International Puerperium Care Club, a yuezi center that closely resembles a 5-star hotel, serves its recovering mothers three full meals and four snacks each day, helping to keep up energy for the regular breast feedings required by newborns. However, such pampering does not come cheap. A 28 day stay can range from RMB 28,000 to RMB 100,000, but for some new mothers “the experience [is]worth the high price tag, given the difficulty in finding proper care during such a delicate time.”
To learn more about yuezi centers, check out Global Times’ article here.
Photo from http://www.globaltimes.cn/www/english/metro-beijing/lifestyle/health&food/2010-08/559037_2.html.
