Herb your enthusiasm(2)

For example turtle jelly, made of a precious turtle spice and other herbal products such as dandelion and honeysuckle flower, can release heat into the body and is beneficial to those who are easily irritated and often feel thirsty, Liu noted.

The ejiao honeyed date, made of gelatin obtained from the skin of the donkey and Chinese date, can help nourish the spleen and stomach and is a good supplement after experiencing symptoms of bleeding and dizziness.

Know your herb

However, the snacks often lack strict instructions for use and are not for everyone. An inappropriate intake can cause side effects, warned both Liu and Li.

"From the perspective of clinical medicine, it is not advisable to mix Chinese medicinal herbs into food products as TCM always prescribes very precise TCM formulas to patients, some of which differ even with patients with the same symptoms," said Liu.

Prescriptions of TCM formulas are based on diagnosis of ailments in the body. One classic herb formula can vary by adding or reducing some herbs depending on the body conditions and the stages the treatment goes through, noted Liu.

For those who are weak and those who are pregnant, an excessive intake of turtle jelly might have a negative effect on their body and won't do them any good, said Li by way of example.

"The effects of different herbs are more complicated than Western medicine and it takes longer to tell their side effects," Li also noted.

Li has not read of side effects that longtime consumers of these snacks have experienced, but people should be aware of the potential problems they might cause in the long term.

When buying such snacks, people should check the instructions on the package to see which category of person the snack is suitable for, said Li.

She also suggested people should seek a balanced diet instead of eating snacks. After all, even if they say they have special health herbs in them, they are still snacks and thus ultimately junk food with little nutritional value.