On the go

Shi's case is not exceptional. Many people are spinning like tops in China's metropolitan cities. Because of a fast work pace, urban white-collar workers are subject to mental stress. They get up early and go to bed late, spend hours commuting, have meals irregularly and live a sedentary life. All these have a toll on their health, medical experts say.

All work and no play do make people dull. According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Health in 10 large Chinese cities, 49 percent of urban white-collar workers felt exhausted, 46 percent dull and 38 percent anxious. Soaring housing prices, parents' health, marriage and children's education are four major sources of their stress.

The survey also shows 48 percent of Chinese urban employees suffer from sub-health problems. Particularly in economically developed Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong Province, about three quarters of the residents are in poor health. Sub-health is a state between health and illness, which features physiological function deterioration.

Fast living can cause even more serious physical and mental problems. For instance, several doctors with the No.1 Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Traditional Chinese Medicine University recently published a study revealing the fast life is positively associated with Type II diabetes.

Natural living

Now, some urban white-collar workers are gradually changing their lifestyle and beginning to endorse the idea of slow living.

"When you spin around like a machine wheel in pursuit of a quality life, quality life has already eluded you," said some advocates of slow living at Douban.com, one of China's largest online communities.  

Three years ago in Tianjin, several young people started a slow life club as an escape from the hectic metropolitan life.

"In recent years, I often hear people around me saying they are busy, tired and stressed out and I see people toiling all day long to pay back housing, car and credit card debt," said Yang Yue, one of the club's founder, in an interview with Tianjin Daily.

The club is located in a creative industry park along Haihe River that runs through Tianjin from west to east. The club gets in touch with young white-collar workers through groups on social networking websites such as Douban.com and QQ.com. These young people get together for movies, reading, travel, photography, cooking or just chatting.

Ma Yongmei, another founder, said every weekend, more and more people gathered at the club. "Most people coming to the club hanker for a simple lifestyle," she said.

Slow living would make your life more wonderful, said Hong Zhaoguang, a senior consultant for the Ministry of Health and Vice President of China Elder Health Care Association, at a recent interview with the Beijing Television Station.

"Here, 'slow' is not equivalent to lazy or slacking," Hong said. "In essence, slow living means a return to natural and harmonious lifestyle."

Hong suggests people not bring work home, not work extra hours and not check e-mail or make work-related calls on weekends.

Instead, he said, one should plan some time for physical exercise, cooking, reading, gardening or simply relaxing, because all these contribute to longevity.

Eating on the run is also not conducive to healthy living. Recently, a survey conducted by Beijing-based Life Times and web portal Sohu.com shows people often wolf down their meals. Of the 2,743 respondents, 43.31 percent said their quickest meal in a day took only five minutes. As to why they ate so fast, 29.02 percent blamed the fast living pace.  

Ma Guansheng, Deputy Director of the Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety at the Chinese Center for Disease Prevention and Control, said the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents compiled by nutritional experts recommends people spend 15-20 minutes on breakfast and about half an hour on lunch and supper.

Eating slowly and chewing more has many health benefits. Experts say chewing can stimulate people to secrete saliva and gastric acid, which make food easier to digest; chewing food more slowly can also help people to lose weight; eating slow can also reduce stress.

 "Fast living in cities is distorting our life and environment. We should resist fast living, starting with slow food," Zhao Zeming, a member of a Slow Food organization told Hangzhou Daily, a local newspaper in Zhejiang Province.

Slow food used to be a tradition, now it has become a fashion, Zhao said.