Mumbai, February 12: Tai chi chuan, an ancient Chinese martial art of 2,000 years may benefit people suffering from type 2 diabetes, claims a researcher from the University of Queensland.
Tai chi involves slow, smooth body movements to achieve relaxation of body and mind. Also known as “meditation in motion”, this type of martial art involves performance of body movements in a slow and graceful manner, each movement flowing to the other.
Researcher Liu Xin studied the preliminary studies involving people suffering from diabetes or those who were at the risk of developing diabetes. The studies recorded drop in the blood pressure and blood sugar level and also reduction in weight after practicing Tai chi.
Tai chi is known to have a healing effect on the mental as physical health of the body. A different movement heals different body organs. It improves blood circulation, breathing and flexibility in the body. It helps in releasing stress and tension thus, giving relief from hypertension or high blood pressure, headache or other neurological disease like Parkinson’s disease.
Dr Liu plans to conduct a larger trial study with 200 people with depression and obesity.
An ancient form of Chinese exercise may hold hope for staving off a modern illness – type 2 diabetes, according to a university researcher.
People with – or at risk of developing – diabetes who took part in preliminary studies of a tai chi-based program recorded falls in blood pressure, weight and blood sugar levels.
Many reported decreases in depressive symptoms after their involvement in the classes, designed by University of Queensland researcher Liu Xin.
Dr Liu said the program had been tailored to benefit people with, or at risk of, type 2 diabetes and included movements to specifically exercise the pancreas, which is involved in digestion and in the regulation of blood sugar levels.
“Like in designing or producing medication, we need to target the disease specifically,” Dr Liu said.
“Different movements target different internal organs.”
Shirley Fraser said she signed up to a trial of Dr Liu’s program after watching her father struggle with the effects of type 2 diabetes towards the end of his life.
She attended the tai chi classes for up to 90 minutes a day, three days a week, for three months and also performed the exercises at home. Although the program did not involve a change of diet, she lost 10kg.
She said her blood pressure and blood sugar levels had also improved.
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