[NEohioPAL] **Tai Chi Reduces the Effects of Parkinson's**

[Edward Niam]

By Jeannine Stein, Los Angeles Times / For the Booster Shots blog 

February 9, 2012, 10:54 a.m.

A six-month program of Tai Chi exercises helped people with various stages
of Parkinson's disease
<http://www.latimes.com/topic/health/diseases-illnesses/parkinsons-disease-H
EDAI0000032.topic>  improve stability, their ability to walk and reduced the
frequency of falls.

A study released this week in the New England Journal of Medicine
<http://www.nejm.org/>  compared a six-month tailored Tai Chi program to
resistance training and stretching to see which was most effective at
improving functional movement, walking and balance for Parkinson's patients.

Researchers randomly assigned 195 men and women ages 40 to 85 who were in
stages one to four of Parkinson's disease (on a scale of one to five).
Parkinson's is a neurological disorder caused by a loss of neurons that
produce dopamine, a chemical involved with muscle function and movement
coordination. That can result in tremors, stiffness, poor coordination and
more difficulty doing daily activities. It can also lead to a higher risk of
falls, which can cause serious injuries.

Tai Chi, a discipline that incorporates slow, deliberate movements, plus
breathing, has health benefits that include reducing stress and improving
balance and posture.

The study participants were randomly assigned to hourlong, twice weekly
sessions of Tai Chi, resistance training or stretching for six months.
Researchers assessed their status at the beginning of the study, at three
and six months, and three months after the study ended.

The Tai Chi group did better than the stretching group on a few measures:
leaning without losing balance, having better directional control of their
body, and walking skills. They outperformed the resistance training group on
balance and stride length. Those in the Tai Chi group also reduced their
frequency of falls more than the stretching group, and on a par with the
resistance group.

Three months after the study ended, those in the Tai Chi group were able to
maintain the benefits they had gained.

"Since many training features in the program are functionally oriented,"
said Oregon Research Institute <http://www.ori.org/>  scientist Fuzhong Li
in a news release, "the improvements in the balance and gait measures that
we demonstrated highlight the potential of Tai Chi-based movements in
rehabilitating patients with these types of problems and, consequently,
easing cardinal symptoms of Parkinson's disease and improving mobility,
flexibility, balance and range of motion." Li was the lead author of the
study.

He added that Tai Chi has several advantages: "It is a low-cost activity
that does not require equipment, it can be done anywhere, at any time, and
the movements can be easily learned. It can also be incorporated into a
rehabilitation setting as part of existing treatment. Similarly, because of
its simplicity, certain aspects of this Tai Chi program can also be
prescribed to patients as a self-care/home activity."



Copyright © 2012, Los Angeles Times <http://www.latimes.com/> 


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