A Tai Chi Beginner Course Improves Depression and Physical Well-being
May 23, 2016 -
The latest issue of
Brain and Behavior reported
a Swiss study that investigated
the potential preventive effects of Tai Chi practice in healthy individuals with
regard to their depressive symptoms and physical well-being.
Seventy healthy Tai Chi novices were randomly assigned
to a Tai Chi intervention group, taking beginner-level Yang-Style Tai Chi for 12
weeks with 2 hours per week, or a control group comprised of the waiting list
for the course. The included participants had a mean age of 35.5 years.
Self-reported symptoms of depression and physical well-being were assessed at
baseline, at the end of the intervention, as well as 2 months later.
Physical well-being in the Tai Chi group significantly
increased when comparing baseline to follow-up. Pearson's correlation
coefficients displayed a strong negative relationship between self-reported
symptoms of depression and physical well-being.
In this randomized controlled trial, the scientists
found significant evidence that a Tai Chi beginner course of 3 months duration
elicits positive effects with respect to physical well-being in healthy
individuals, with improvements pronouncing over time. Physical well-being was
shown to have a strong relationship with depressive symptoms.
Based on these results, the consideration of Tai Chi as
one therapeutic option in the development of multimodal approaches in the
prevention of depression seems justifiable.
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