Qigong & Tai Chi for Breast Cancer Survivors Shows Promise In New Study

Health Studies

Qigong & Tai Chi For Breast Cancer Survivors Shows Promise in New Study

Many breast cancer survivors experience symptoms well past the treatment stage that affect quality of life. Symptoms such as fatigue, depression and anxiety can lead to weight gain due to an inactive life style and emotional eating. Exercise which centers on Meditative Movement, such as Tai Chi and Qigong, has shown promising results. These practices, which focus on breathing and relaxation, are low impact with low to moderate aerobic exertion. Participants in the study were found to improve significantly in both physical and mental health with some improving their BMI score. The results lead researchers to believe that these methods bridge the gap between inactivity and becoming physically active and thus improve quality of life.

Abstract:

Design:

This double-blind, randomized controlled pilot study with 87 female Breast Cancer Survivors (BCSs) explored effects of Qigong and Tai Chi Easy (QG/TCE) on mental and physical Quality of Life (QOL) (Medical Outcomes Survey, Short Form), cognitive function (Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Cognitive Function and two cognitive performance tests from the WAIS III), overall levels of physical activity (PA)(Brief Physical Activity Questionnaire) and body mass index (BMI). Twelve weekly sessions of QG/TCE were compared to sham Qigong (SQG), a gentle movement control intervention similar to QG/TCE but without the focus on breathing and meditative state.

Results:

Both groups demonstrated pre-to-post-intervention improvements in physical and mental health, level of PA, self-reported cognitive function, and cognitive performance tests, though without significant differences between QG/TCE and SQG. For a subset of women enrolled later in the study, a significant reduction in BMI [-0.66 (p=0.048)] was found for QG/TCE compared to SQG.

Conclusion:

Practices that include gentle movement (such as QG/TCE or our sham protocol) among women with a history of breast cancer may improve many facets of the cancer experience, including QOL, cognitive function, and PA patterns. Practicing QG/TCE may show some advantage for BMI reduction compared to non-meditative gentle exercise.

Link:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27912947

Larkey, Linda K et al. “Exploratory outcome assessment of Qigong/Tai Chi Easy on breast cancer survivors.” Complementary therapies in medicine vol. 29 (2016): 196-203. doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2016.10.006

If this article interests you, follow this link to read a related article: https://health.cleartaichi.com/cancer-survivors-2

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