A brand new examine finds that tai chi is healthier than standard cardio train at decreasing blood strain in middle-aged folks with prehypertension.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Tai chi is a conventional type of Chinese language martial arts, and it is identified to extend flexibility and enhance steadiness. New analysis suggests it might be higher than extra vigorous cardio train in decreasing blood strain. This is NPR’s Maria Godoy.
MARIA GODOY, BYLINE: Tai chi combines gradual, mild actions with mindfulness. It is also known as meditation in movement. Ruth Taylor-Piliae of the College of Arizona researches tai chi’s many well being advantages.
RUTH TAYLOR-PILIAE: Oh, my gosh – much less melancholy, anxiousness, much less stress, higher social help – simply so many issues.
GODOY: Now, a brand new examine revealed within the journal JAMA Community Open finds that tai chi is even higher at decreasing blood strain than workouts like jogging, biking and brisk strolling. The examine checked out 342 folks in China with prehypertension. That is when blood strain is increased than regular, nevertheless it does not fairly attain the extent of hypertension. It is thought-about a warning signal that coronary heart illness could also be forward. Roughly half of the folks within the examine did supervised cardio train, whereas the opposite half had been skilled to follow tai chi. Each teams obtained hour lengthy classes 4 occasions per week. After 12 months, the tai chi group noticed larger drops of their blood strain than the cardio train group, and extra folks within the tai chi group noticed their blood strain readings fall into the traditional vary in contrast with the aerobics group. So what’s it about tai chi that helps decrease blood strain? Taylor-Piliae says tai chi tends to elicit extra of a response from the parasympathetic nervous system. That is the community of nerves that relaxes your physique after durations of stress or hazard.
TAYLOR-PILIAE: Being within the second, specializing in the tai chi, having the ability to calm down, being conscious of what you are doing type of simply helps calm an individual down. And I believe a few of these issues is what actually helps with the blood pressure-lowering impact.
GODOY: She says that tai chi is interesting as a type of train as a result of it is low impression and requires little house or gear.
TAYLOR-PILIAE: I believe the fantastic thing about tai chi is that you do not have to have a particular fitness center membership. You do not have to have particular clothes. When you be taught the tai chi, you are able to do it any time, anywhere, anyplace. And it does type of present that calming, enjoyable factor.
GODOY: However to reap the well being advantages, it’s a must to follow tai chi constantly.
Maria Godoy, NPR Information.
Copyright © 2024 NPR. All rights reserved. Go to our web site phrases of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for additional info.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This textual content will not be in its ultimate kind and could also be up to date or revised sooner or later. Accuracy and availability could range. The authoritative file of NPR’s programming is the audio file.
