Your Brain on Tai Chi

Did you ever wonder if practicing Tai Chi has an effect on your brain? The answer is, yes, but let’s start by talking about our brains and what happens to them as we age.

Throughout our lives, our brain changes more than any other other part of our body, and as we age, brain function gradually decline. “Slips of the mind” are associated with this, and become more frequent, as we get older. However, cognitive decline can actually start as early as middle age.

Although some studies show that one-third of older adults struggle to retrieve facts or events stored in the brain, other studies show that about one fifth of 70 year olds perform as well as 20 year olds on cognitive tests. This explains why scientists are trying to determine how the brain changes over time. However, they do know:

  • Areas of the brain involved in higher cognitive function and encoding new memories start to shrink around age 60 or 70

  • Brain connections responsible for cognitive processing get thinner, and this results in slower processing

  • Myelinated nerve fibers shrink, reducing cognitive function and slowing processing

  • Amounts of brain chemicals are reduced, causing declines in cognition and memory

Researchers at Northwestern University studied at a group of SuperAgers, individuals over 80 years old who have memories as sharp as people decades younger. When this group was compared to their peers, researchers found that their brains shrunk at a slower rate, which suggests that age-related decline is not inevitable.

In addition to intellectually stimulating activities, social activities, a healthy diet, sleeping well, and managing stress, evidence showed that physical exercise appeared over and over again as a way to delay age-related mental decline. Other research by the University of Miami found that people 50 and over with little to no exercise experienced a decline in memory and thinking skills comparable to 10 years of aging in only 5 years. Bottom line: physical activity slowed brain aging.

In the past, random trials have shown that physical exercise can increase brain volume and improve cognition. Intellectual stimulation through social interaction was also associated with increases in brain volume and cognitive improvements. People who practice regular exercise like Tai Chi are also more socially engaged, which can help improve memory and cognition at any age.

In a study specifically related to Tai Chi, research has shown that Tai Chi practice increases brain volume, and augments memory and thinking skills. This University of South Florida study, in collaboration with Fudan University in China, also showed Tai Chi to be highly effective in combating dementia illnesses such as Alzheimer's. While the brain is engaged in doing Tai Chi, it releases growth factors that can stimulate brain growth. Unlike the Tai Chi group, study participants who didn’t practice Tai Chi had decreases in brain volume typical of people their age.

Another study was undertaken to investigate whether Tai Chi could slow gray matter atrophy and if gray matter volume had any effect on emotional stability and risky behavior. Long term, Tai Chi not only slowed gray matter atrophy but improved emotional stability, decreased risky behavior, and promoted successful aging. The meditation component in Tai Chi was thought to play a key role in this process.

Yet another study ot older Chinese women was performed to compare the effects on white matter between a group who did Tai Chi and one that walked. Tai Chi was found to be more conducive to optimizing brain function.

If Tai Chi can improve memory processes, it may be able to slow the the onset of Alzheimer’s disease, a condition characterized by brain shrinkage, increased brain plaques, and neurofibrillary tangles. Studies have shown that individuals who practiced Tai Chi were able to increase their overall brain volume and improve their scores on memory tests. And because its low impact, Tai Chi tends to be a better form of exercise for those with decreased capacity for strenuous aerobic activity.

Eastern and Western researchers have provided compelling evidence that Tai Chi, in addition to its many medical benefits, can have a positive effect on improving, and perhaps slowing down, the aging process itself.

It makes you wish you had started earlier in life, doesn’t it? The good news is that it is never too late!