The Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) paradigm can be difficult to understand in relation to the Western Scientific/Medical model that most of us are familiar with. Many of the ancient Chinese texts can seem difficult to interpret without the appropriate cultural knowledge. Despite this there's no shortage of people sharing internet memes with quotes from texts such as the Dao De Jing. Whilst these writings do indeed offer some profound insights into the business of being a human being, those insights are often only really available to those with sufficient understanding of the contextual culture and metaphor surrounding them. To many people I suspect they evoke a sense of the profound, whilst actually communicating very little.
By way of contrast, the reality of TCM is that it's an ancient practice which is the result of millennia of observations of illnesses, diseases and the human condition in general, and the efficacy of certain natural treatments, exercises and remedies. Whilst the explanatory framework is somewhat figurative, it doesn't invalidate the observations or proposed treatments. Indeed, modern medicine is only now waking up to the links between mental health and gut health, or the importance of the facial layer in referred pain, both of which are accommodated within the TCM framework.
I find it helpful when western scientific research concurs with the Chinese model. As a Western student of Tai Chi and Qigong with an educational background in the sciences, such confirmations provide a greater insight into how two such different paradigms can both have merit and comfortably co-exist.
This report, pulling together research from around the world, demonstrates the very real benefits that regular practice of Tai Chi and Qigong can bestow upon the practitioner. It's a bit of a dry read for those who don't make a habit of reading science papers, so let me spoil the report for everyone by sharing its conclusions with you here:
"A compelling body of research emerges when Tai Chi studies and the growing body of Qigong studies are combined. The evidence suggests that a wide range of health benefits accrue in response to these meditative movement forms, some consistently so, and some with limitations in the findings thus far. This review has identified numerous outcomes with varying levels of evidence for the efficacy for Qigong and Tai Chi, including bone health, cardiopulmonary fitness and related biomarkers, physical function, falls prevention and balance, general quality of life and patient reported outcomes, immunity, and psychological factors such as anxiety, depression and self-efficacy. A substantial number RCTs have demonstrated consistent, positive results especially when the studies are designed with limited activity for controls. When both Tai Chi and Qigong are investigated together, as two approaches to a single category of practice, meditative movement, the magnitude of the body of research is quite impressive."
For those of you out there who do enjoy wading through the odd scientific journal, you'll find the full paper here:
The moral of the tale? Keep doing what you're doing, as long as what you're doing is Tai Chi and Qigong!
If you aren't currently a Tai Chi or Qigong practitioner but feel compelled to find out more after reading this article, head to our Beginners page to get in touch and join us at a session.
