By Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS, September 13, 2004, abstracted from The effect of Tai Chi on health outcomes in patients with chronic conditions: a systematic review” from the March 8, 2004 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine
With the increasing number of elderly in the population, chronic pain has become a serious burden on our healthcare system. Patients with chronic pain are five times more likely than patients without chronic pain to utilize health care services, with 58 percent of patients with chronic pain experience depression or anxiety.1 The physical, emotional and social problems that symbolize chronic pain make it a problem for healthcare providers when trying to treat it. Organized medicine has started to find answers by using alternative healing methods, one of which is Tai Chi.
Practiced in China for centuries, Tai Chi emphasized proper breathing and proper posture that is reinforced through slow, gentle, graceful movements.2 A new study in the Archives of Internal Medicine3 has now advocated the use of Tai Chi to help both the physical and mental hardships experienced by people with chronic pain. The study attributes Tai Chi’s effectiveness for chronic pain through its ability to do the following:
Reduces falls. Seven different studies reported that 8 to 16 weeks of Tai Chi training significantly improved balance and flexibility that reduced the occurrence of falling in community-dwelling elders. The implications for Tai Chi are significant since falls are responsible for 70 percent of accidental deaths in persons 75 years of age and older. The elderly, who represent 12 percent of the population, account for 75 percent of deaths from falls.4
Improves arthritis symptoms. Studies of Tai Chi and arthritis have also yielded encouraging results, with one study5 finding 12 weeks of Tai Chi to “significantly improve arthritis symptoms, self-efficacy, and satisfaction with general health status.” Arthritis is a leading cause of disability in older persons that reduces quality of life and restricts activity, with almost 80 percent of persons over age 70 having degenerative joint disease.6
Tai Chi’s biggest benefit lies in its ability to improve mental health through improving physical health. This study not only highlights Tai Chi’s versatility as a way to improve your quality of life, it reaffirms the mind-body connection in health and disease.
Reference:
Marcus, D.A., Treatment of nonmalignant chronic pain. Am Fam Physician, 2000. 61(5): p. 1331-8, 1345-6
Cheng J. Tai Chi Chuan: a slow dance for health. Physician Sports Med 1999; 27: 109-11
Wang, C., J.P. Collet, and J. Lau, The effect of Tai Chi on health outcomes in patients with chronic conditions: a systematic review. Arch Intern Med, 2004. 164(5): p. 493-501
Fuller, G.F., Falls in the elderly. Am Fam Physician, 2000. 61(7): p. 2159-68, 2173-4
Hartman, C.A., et al., Effects of T'ai Chi training on function and quality of life indicators in older adults with osteoarthritis. J Am Geriatr Soc, 2000. 48(12): p. 1553-9
Lin EH, et al. Effect of improving depression care on pain and functional outcomes among older adults with arthritis. A randomized controlled trial. JAMA November 12, 2003;290:2428-34
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