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Tai chi is a Chinese martial art originally developed for self-defense. It consists of exercise, breathing, and meditation. It is a form of Qi gong.
Tai chi is an exercise of low-to-moderate intensity. It might help prevent falls in some older adults by reducing their fear of falling and improving their balance and muscle strength.
People use tai chi for athletic performance, preventing falls, back pain, obesity, diabetes, depression, and many other conditions, but there is no good scientific evidence to support many of these uses.
Don't confuse tai chi with Qi gong. Tai chi is a specific type of Qi gong.
- Athletic performance. Practicing tai chi improves aerobic exercise capacity, with the greatest benefits noted in initially sedentary, older adults.
Login for details - Back pain. Practicing tai chi reduces pain in patients with chronic low back pain.
Login for details - Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi improves 6-minute walking distance and pulmonary function in patients with COPD.
Login for details - Fall prevention. Practicing tai chi seems to reduce fall risk in some elderly adults, especially when performed more frequently and with the use of certain styles (i.e., Yang-style tai chi or a style specifically tailored for fall prevention).
Login for details - Fibromyalgia. Practicing tai chi improves symptoms of fibromyalgia similarly to other forms of exercise. However, the optimal duration of tai chi is unclear.
Login for details - Heart failure. Practicing tai chi improves exercise capacity, symptoms, and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in patients with heart failure.
Login for details - Hypertension. Practicing tai chi reduces blood pressure similarly to aerobic exercise.
Login for details - Insomnia. Practicing tai chi seems to improve sleep quality and sleep efficiency and reduce wake time after sleep onset in older patients with chronic insomnia and adults with sleep complaints.
Login for details - Obesity. Practicing tai chi reduces waist circumference and body weight in patients with obesity to a similar extent as conventional exercise.
Login for details - Osteoarthritis. Practicing tai chi seems to improve function and disability and reduce pain and stiffness in patients with knee and hip osteoarthritis.
Login for details - Physical performance. Practicing tai chi improves self-reported physical function in elderly patients, particularly in those with low physical function at baseline. Effects on objective measures of physical function are mixed.
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- Age-related cognitive decline. Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi may improve cognitive function, learning, and memory in elderly patients with age-related cognitive decline.
Login for details - Asthma. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in children with persistent asthma.
Login for details - Autism spectrum disorder. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in children with autism spectrum disorder.
Login for details - Breast cancer. It is unclear if practicing tai chi can improve general well-being or quality of life in patients with breast cancer or in patients who have survived breast cancer.
Login for details - Cancer-related fatigue. Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi may improve short-term cancer-related fatigue in patients with breast and lung cancer.
Login for details - Cognitive function. Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi may improve executive function, learning, and memory in adults without cognitive impairment.
Login for details - Cognitive impairment. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in middle-aged or older adults with cognitive impairment.
Login for details - Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with a history of CABG surgery.
Login for details - Coronary heart disease (CHD). Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi may modestly improve aerobic endurance in patients with CHD.
Login for details - Depression. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with major depressive disorder.
Login for details - Diabetes. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in adults with type 2 diabetes; the available research is conflicting.
Login for details - HIV/AIDS. Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi may improve quality of life and anxiety in patients with HIV/AIDS.
Login for details - Hyperlipidemia. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with hyperlipidemia.
Login for details - Metabolic syndrome. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with metabolic syndrome.
Login for details - Methamphetamine use disorder. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with methamphetamine use disorder.
Login for details - Myocardial infarction (MI). It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with MI.
Login for details - Neurological trauma. It is unclear if tai chi is beneficial in adults who have experienced a traumatic brain injury.
Login for details - Osteoporosis. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with osteoporosis.
Login for details - Parkinson disease. Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi may improve motor symptoms in some patients with Parkinson disease.
Login for details - Postoperative recovery. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients recovering from total knee arthroplasty.
Login for details - Psychological well-being. Small clinical studies suggest that tai chi may improve anxiety symptoms in healthy adolescents.
Login for details - Rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi may improve symptoms in patients with RA.
Login for details - Scleroderma. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with scleroderma.
Login for details - Spinal cord injury. It is unclear if tai chi can improve recovery from a spinal cord injury.
Login for details - Stress. Small clinical studies and observational research suggest that practicing tai chi reduces stress in healthy and stressed adults.
Login for details - Stroke. Practicing tai chi seems to improve gait, balance, and overall motor recovery in patients that have had a stroke.
Login for details - Substance use disorder. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with substance use disorders.
Login for details - Tension headache. It is unclear if practicing tai chi is beneficial in patients with tension headache.
Login for details - Vestibulopathy. Small clinical studies suggest that practicing tai chi may modestly improve symptoms in patients with vestibulopathy.
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Tai chi is likely safe when practiced appropriately. There are no known safety concerns or serious side effects.
Special Precautions & Warnings:
Pregnancy and breast-feeding: There isn't enough information to know whether tai chi is safe when pregnant or breast-feeding. If you are pregnant or breast-feeding, check with your healthcare provider before starting tai chi or any other exercise program.It is not known if this treatment interacts with any medicines. Before using this treatment, talk with your health professional if you take any medications.
There are no known interactions with herbs and supplements.
There are no known interactions with foods.
Tai chi is usually practiced for an hour daily, 1-5 times weekly. There are many different styles of tai chi. Some styles may be better for certain conditions. For example, Yang style tai chi appears to work better than Sun style tai chi for fall prevention.
Tai chi is not regulated in any way and there are no specific standards for training. Practitioners of tai chi are not considered health professionals in North America. However, in China, tai chi is often practiced along with conventional modern medicine.
Art Martial Interne, Internal Martial Art, Méditation en Mouvement, Moving Meditation, Tai-Chi, Tai Chi Chih, Tai Chi Chuan, Tai Chi Martial Arts, Taichi Quan, Tai Ji Quan, Taichí, Taiji, Taijiquan, Tie Chee.
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