The effects of Tai Chi exercise on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women


To evaluate the potential benefits of programmed Tai Chi exercise on the weight-bearing bones of early postmenopausal women,  132 healthy postmenopausal women within 10 years of menopause onset were recruited and randomized into the Tai Chi exercise group (n=67) or the sedentary control group (n=65).

Supervised Tai Chi exercise was performed by the TCC group for 45 minutes a day, 5 days a week, for 12 months; control subjects retained a sedentary life style.  Bone mineral density was measured in the lumbar spine and proximal femur by using  x-ray absorptiometry and in the distal tibia by using  computed tomography. All Bone mineral density measurements were repeated after 12 months in both groups. Fracture rate was also documented.

Baseline measurements showed homogeneity in age, anthropometric variables, and menstruation status between the Tai Chi and control groups. Exactly 81.6% of the subjects in the Tai Chi group and 83.1% of subjects in the control group completed the 12-month follow-up study. Bone mineral density measurements revealed a general bone loss in both Tai Chi and sedentary control subjects at all measured skeletal sites, but with a reportedly slower rate in the Tai Chi group. A significant 2.6- to 3.6-fold retardation of bone loss was found in the bones of the Tai Chi group as compared with the controls. A total of 4 fracture cases were documented during follow-up, including 3 subjects in the control group and 1 in the Tai Chi group.

This is the first prospective and randomized study to show that a programmed Tai Chi exercise intervention is beneficial for retarding bone loss in weight-bearing bones in early postmenopausal women. Long-term follow-up is needed to substantiate the role of Tai Chi exercise in the prevention of osteoporosis and its related fracture.

  (Source: Chan K, Qin L, Lau M, Woo J, Au S, Choy W, Lee K, Lee S. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2004 May;85(5):717-22)