Let’s face it — over the last few years, “wellness” has become impossible to escape. Many get‑together now turns into a mini health conference — some suddenly an expert on supplements, sleep trackers, biohacking, and whatever the latest AI health gadget is.
And honestly, it’s not hard to see why.
Health is shaping up to be the next big money maker—right after beauty and food, and easily hitting trillion‑yuan territory.
Take China: the wellness economy hit 10 trillion yuan in 2025, with nearly 500 million people actively using platforms like Tmall Health and JD Health. And guess who’s leading the charge? The post‑95s—they already account for 35% of supplement spending. Tmall Health alone reportedly has close to 300 million annual active users (though that number still needs a solid source). Even more striking: post‑95s and post‑00s are said to buy about a third of all melatonin sold. Lutein, liver‑support pills, and fish oil? They’ve gone from occasional buys to everyday essentials for many young people.
But here’s where China puts its own spin on wellness — It’s not just personal discipline, tracking every step, or keeping your body in a perfect working order. It also taps into the old wisdom of yangsheng 养生 —the art of “nurturing life”—which somehow promises both instant fixes and slow, long‑term benefits, even if that promise is sometimes just a beautiful fantasy.
Just look at the shelves.
L’Oréal-owned Vichy is betting on “beauty from within” with ingestible collagen supplements. Korea’s Olive Young has incubated Olive Better as a one-stop K-wellness platform, while Japan’s DHC brings skincare, health foods, and pet nutrition under one broader umbrella. Pechoin has expanded from beauty into medical aesthetics and broader health-related categories, while Guyu has launched Sishi Youfang, an oral nutrition line. In food and beverages, Nayuki’s ejiao milk tea, Haoxiangni’s freeze-dried red-date and tremella snacks, Chunfeng’s herbal “late-night water,” and WonderLab’s portable probiotics all turn traditional or medicalized ideas of wellness into products that are easier to drink, eat, carry, and share.
Different brands, same vibe: health can’t be so clinical, heavy, or intimidating anymore. It has to be something you can grab, sip, swallow, and toss in your bag like a daily essential—to keep up with the hectic pace of modern life. Bottom line: beauty goes health, health goes snackable, and TCM slips into modern formulas with sleek packaging.
But who actually needs this new wellness wave the most?
Not China’s retirees, it turns out.
Older folks, cushioned by pensions and state support, are often seen as living their best lives in retirement. The ones who look like they’re struggling? The young. There’s a joke going around China: the elderly are full of energy, while the young are barely holding it together.
It sounds exaggerated—until you look at the lifestyle of today’s urban youth.
A typical day might begin with a jolt of coffee, followed by a sugar-loaded milk tea. After work comes a late-night workout or a fitness livestream. Before bed, vitamins are popped to keep the body going, liver-support supplements are swallowed as penance, a candle is lit for emotional balance, and a few collectible figurines are arranged like tiny psychological bandages—then sleep is tracked. On weekends, it’s brunch, wine tasting, shopping, spa, hiking, and tennis—and, to lose weight but with limited time? maybe semaglutide.
It looks like a Perfect Loop — Stimulation, Exhaustion, Compensation, and Consumption
This is the peculiar logic of wellness among many. They overdraw during the week, then buy small rituals of recovery in their spare time.
The bottom line: whoever can reverse the red flags on their medical reports, give them a sense of peace, or even just sell the fleeting illusion that they can get a little healthier without changing the routine — wins.
P.S. Don’t get me wrong about China’s youth. China is vast, and its lifestyles are incredibly diverse. The vitality and creativity of young people are taking root and flourishing in places that often go unnoticed. No single story can capture all the nuances—some things we’ll just have to save for another conversation.