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Tai Chi as a Complementary Treatment for Parkinson's Disease
- viren chauhan
- 14 hours ago
- 2 min read
What is Parkinson's Disease?
Parkinson's Disease, or PD for short, is a neurodegenerative condition in which nerve cells in the brain do not produce enough dopamine. It is often genetic, but can be worsened or occur because of environmental factors as well. It currently has no cure, but therapies are available to manage symptoms of the condition.
How does it appear? PD appears in symptoms such as:
Difficulty walking and balancing
Involuntary shaking and movement
Speech difficulty
Stiffness
Difficulty talking
Slowed and pained chewing and swallowing
Depression
What is Tai Chi?
Tai Chi, or TC for short, is an ancient Chinese martial art/exercise that makes use of slow and controlled movements. TC is an art that requires and benefits the mind, body, and spirit. As a result, it has benefits both mentally and physically:
Strength
Flexibility
Aerobic capacity
Balance
Cardiovascular fitness
Blood pressure
Fall prevention
Anxiety
Stress
Depression
Memory
Focus
Sleep
What does TC have to do with PD? Well, the aforementioned benefits do apply to all of the major symptoms of PD, and so TC would logically have benefits for the quality of life (QoL) of PD patients. To this point, there is a great deal of data suggesting just that. For motor function, there are multiple articles showing a statistically significant increase in motor function for PD patients after doing a TC intervention, such as an article from the BMJ Neurology section, which showed that 9% of the PD patients in the TC group were able to quit Levodopa (a PD motor function medication) altogether while the rest of the TC group was able to reduce their dosage in mg compared to the routine exercise group. Moreover, the TC group saw roughly double the decrease in fall incidences within 6 months from the start of the treatment. Alongside this, the TC group had double the positive results for the timed up and go test, the functional reach test, and the 50-foot walk test. Another article proving its effectiveness was an article from Parkinsonism and Related Disorders that showed that on the PD cognitive rating scale (PDCRS) and Epworth Sleepiness scale (ESS), outcomes were significantly improved in the Tai Chi group compared to the control group.
Why Tai Chi for PD? Tai Chi works as a great complementary treatment for PD patients as its whole system approach and lack of invasive methodology allows it to function and provide the patients with the benefits it claims to provide, but stops it from interfering with the QoL benefits the patient gets from Western medicinal techniques. Moreover, it is cost-free and available to nearly everyone who suffers from PD, thus making it the ideal complementary treatment for this condition.
Assessed and Endorsed by the MedReport Medical Review Board
