Tai chi helps Parkinson's patients with balance, movement

People doing tai chi look like they're moving in graceful slow motion, but something about those carefully controlled movements — and perhaps the mindset they put people in — seems to have health benefits. Tai chi has been tested in dozens of studies, and the findings suggest that it can help people with conditions ranging from heart failure to osteoporosis to fibromyalgia. Now it seems that Parkinson's disease can be added to that list.

These results affirm the general recommendation to exercise and then refine that with an endorsement of tai chi. More research — and a lot more convincing of doctors and patients — will have to take place before tai chi becomes a standard practice for Parkinson's disease patients. But, as the authors of this study point out, there's good reason to believe that tai chi would have special therapeutic value for people with the disease. Tai chi movements involve subtle shifts in weight, maintaining a relaxed but upright posture, and rotating the trunk, all of which can help with balance. Practicing controlled movement would seem to help the tremors and other extraneous movement. And, judging by this study, there's little risk of people coming to harm. The people in the tai chi group reported fewer adverse events (just two falls and one instance of muscle soreness) during their twice-weekly sessions than those working on strength or stretching.