Alternative Health Blog

For several years, researchers have discovered the Chinese ancient healing art of tai chi can help an older person maintain balance—or regain it—while avoiding the nasty falls that plague a number of our elders. Now the findings are directly helping in communities.

For seniors, those falls can lead to broken hips among other adversities, and often mark the beginning of a downhill slide of health. Any number of us have observed this wrong-way spiral in our own parents or other loved ones.

Some sharp workers at senior community centers in Lane County, Oregon were clearly reading and paying attention to the promising link between tai chi and staying younger—and in one piece. A recent issue of the American Journal of Public Health detailed how seniors in Lane County were avoiding falls and improving their overall health. The Oregon state department of human services was impressed enough to begin tai chi programs in four counties.

Now that’s community organizing

The study was funded by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to identify whether tai chi could be taught by lay people at the senior centers and still represent a therapeutic intervention. Public health researchers regularly debate whether controlled programs in experiments can translate to the real world, and it doesn’t more real than brittle bones associated with growing older.

Seniors observed in the study attended tai chi class twice a week for three months. The instructors were trained in how to teach and operate the classes, but none were masters in the art. Even so, participants significantly improved balance and, big stuff, increased function in everyday life while experiencing a lot fewer falls.

Interestingly, the researchers also evaluated whether administrators at the centers were enthused about tai chi and if it would remain on the programming list after the three months. No worries there. Both the administrators (who liked the results and the low costs)  and senior participants at the centers were dedicated to keeping up the tai chi momentum gained in the first three months.