|
Welcome to our HEALTH section.
As you may already know, Tai-Chi can be practiced at any age and practiced to a level of intensity that best suits your goals whether they be learning how to relax, using Tai-Chi as an aid to recovering from an injury or illness, developing improved flexibility,posture and balance,improving fitness and whole body muscle tone, working on building up the body’s “chi” {internal energy} etc.
Chen style Tai Chi is fast becoming the most popular form of Tai Chi in the world today. Chen style exercises regulate all systems within the body improving digestion, respiration and circulation. (See bottom of this page for Health PDF's with more information)
The slow, relaxed manner of Tai Chi can lead to a reduction in stress-related disorders.
The low-impact nature of the routines improves the condition of bones, joints and muscles without strain whilst encouraging balance, focus, flexibility and coordination.
Tai Chi is recognised by the Chinese Government and many Health Institutes around the world as the form of exercise that offers one of the greatest all-round benefits to health.
Western Medicine is just starting to test the health benefits of Tai Chi and some of the results have been remarkable. These results are due to a combination of the benefits of meditation, stance training, where pressure is placed on the bones, the twisting of the torso and the flow of chi (i.e. energy) and blood.
Tai Chi consists of constant coordinated movement of the head, trunk and limbs requiring tremendous concentration and balance control.
The movements and philosophy of Tai Chi teach people to relax, slow down, coordinate their mind and body, and improve posture.
Use of slow movements and increased strength and balance in Tai Chi has been proven to reduce the risk of falling for many individuals. This is of benefit to both stroke sufferers and osteoporosis sufferers.
Tai Chi Benefits Arthritis/Osteoporosis
Tai Chi for Arthritis helps arthritis by improving muscular strength, flexibility and fitness through gentle movements of all joints, muscles and tendons throughout the body.
Arthritic joints and tissues need a good supply of blood and oxygen for healing. Better circulation of blood, fluid and oxygen also helps keep joints flexible and muscles strong. Tai Chi gradually increases the level of fitness.
Improved Fitness will strengthen the heart, lungs and increase stamina, circulation of blood, fluid and oxygen.
Medical studies have shown Tai Chi improves balance, reduces falls, slows down the loss of bone density and helps relieve pain in osteoporosis patients.
The conventional medical world has welcomed the use of Tai Chi as they see it as a safe, low cost meditative exercise with many health benefits.
Meditation
Meditation is an important part of Tai Chi and there are numerous health benefits associated with meditation:
It decreases respiratory rate.
It increases blood flow and slows the heart rate.
Increases exercise tolerance in heart patients.
Leads to a deeper level of relaxation. Good for people with high blood pressure as it brings the blood pressure to normal.
Reduces anxiety attacks by lowering the levels of blood lactate.
Decreases muscle tension (any pain due to tension) and headaches.
It increases serotonin production which influences mood and behaviour. Low levels of serotonin are associated with depression, obesity, insomnia and headaches. Reduces Pre- menstrual Syndrome.
Helps in post-operative healing.
It enhances the immune system.
US Study shows Tai Chi Beats Back Depression in the Elderly
More than 2 million people age 65 and older in the US suffer from depression, including 50 percent of those living in nursing homes.
When researchers at UCLA combined a weekly tai chi exercise class with a standard depression treatment for a group of depressed elderly adults, they found greater improvement in the level of depression — along with improved quality of life, better memory and cognition, and more overall energy — than among a different group in which the standard treatment was paired with a weekly health education class.
The results of the study appear in the current online edition of the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.
"This is the first study to demonstrate the benefits of tai chi in the management of late-life depression, and we were encouraged by the results," said first author Dr. Helen Lavretsky, a UCLA professor-in-residence of psychiatry. "We know that nearly two-thirds of elderly patients who seek treatment for their depression fail to achieve relief with a prescribed medication."
In the study, 112 adults age 60 or older with major depression were treated with the drug escitalopram, a standard antidepressant, for approximately four weeks. From among those participants, 73 who showed only partial improvement continued to receive the medication
daily but were also randomly assigned to 10 weeks of either a tai chi class for two hours per week or a health education class for two hours per week.
All the participants were evaluated for their levels of depression, anxiety, resilience, health-related quality of life, cognition and immune system inflammation at the beginning of the study and again four months later.
The level of depression among each participant was assessed using a common diagnostic tool known as the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, which involves interviewing the individual. The questions are designed to gauge the severity of depression. A cut-off score of 10/11 is generally regarded as appropriate for the diagnosis of depression.
The researchers found that among the tai chi participants, 94 percent achieved a score of less than 10, with 65 percent achieving remission (a score of 6 or less). By comparison, among participants who received health education, 77 percent achieved scores of 10 or less, with 51 percent achieving remission.
While both groups showed improvement in the severity of depression, said Lavretsky, who directs UCLA's Late-Life Depression, Stress and Wellness Research Program, greater reductions were seen among those taking escitalopram and participating in tai chi, a form of exercise that is gentle enough for the elderly.
"Depression can lead to serious consequences, including greater morbidity, disability, mortality and increased cost of care," Lavretsky said. "This study shows that adding a mind-body exercise like tai chi that is widely available in the community can improve the outcomes of treating depression in older adults, who may also have other, co-existing medical conditions, or cognitive impairment.
"With tai chi," she said, "we may be able to treat these conditions without exposing them to additional medications."
Provided by University of California - Los Angeles
Depression & Anxiety
Emerging research indicates that Tai Chi can help reduce the incidence of depression, anxiety, and mood disturbance in regular practitioners.
By a process of relaxing muscular tensions, improving posture, and a deepening of the breathing process, Tai Chi affects, in a positive way, the stress levels of the mind and emotions.
All tension and stress are expressions of imbalance. Therefore the cultivation of improved balance, as a mind/body experience, has a significant influence on reducing stress.
PDF's - Click title to open
Blood Pressure
Nervous System
Osteoporosis
Diabetes
Balance Study
|
