The Science of TaiChi

At Heaven Man Earth Tokyo, we take our TaiChi seriously, and we offer a complete, balanced TaiChi system to individuals and corporations alike.

Let’s explore some of the science-backed benefits of TaiChi.

Benefits of Doing TaiChi

The Art of Taijiquan (TaiChi Chuan) predates modern science, but research is catching up on its many near-magical benefits on both the metabolism and mental health. Here are some of its benefits.

Improving Heart Rate Variability (1) and Regulating Emotions (5, 6)

Reducing Anxiety (2, 3, 4)

Reducing Oxidative Stress (9) and Improving Fatigue Symptoms (10)

Improving Brain Adaptability (7) and Protecting Cognitive Abilities (8)

Managing Pain (11, 12)

Fighting Metabolic Syndrome (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)

Corporate Takeaways

While it is not so easy to calculate the subtler benefits from preventive corporate wellness programs like TaiChi Chuan training, some are evident.

Improved brain plasticity and cognition increase employee focus and productivity (22, 29)

Improved health conditions reduce sick days and corporate health insurance costs (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)

Preventive health comes with many intangible benefits, like corporate loyalty and trust (24, 30)

Want Specific Examples?

Corporate wellness programs can pay off! Take a look at these cases:

"J&J’s leaders estimate that wellness programs have cumulatively saved the company $250 million on health care costs over the past decade; from 2002 to 2008, the return was $2.71 for every dollar spent." (24)

"Presenteeism—the problem of workers’ being on the job but, because of illness or other medical conditions, not fully functioning—can cut individual productivity by one-third or more." (29)

"When a manufacturing company dedicated time during their workday for employees to stretch before going on shift, work-related injuries declined by 50% and workers’ comp costs decreased by $800,000." (28)

References

These are the scientific articles and references we used to compile this list. Know of more benefits of doing TaiChi? We would love to hear!

  1. Tai Chi Effects on Heart Rate Variability: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37695835/

  2. The comparative effects of Tai chi versus non-mindful exercise on measures of anxiety, depression and general mental health: A systematic review and meta-analysis. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37244543/

  3. Depression and Anxiety Disorders: Benefits of Exercise, Yoga, and Meditation. https://www.aafp.org/pubs/afp/issues/2019/0515/p620.html

  4. Tai chi as an alternative and complimentary therapy for anxiety: a systematic review. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25488322/

  5. The Effect of Tai Chi Chuan on Emotional Health: Potential Mechanisms and Prefrontal Cortex Hypothesis. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34007290/

  6. Prefrontal cortical hemodynamics and functional network organization during Tai Chi standing meditation: an fNIRS study. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37954940/

  7. Tai Chi Chuan Alters Brain Functional Network Plasticity and Promotes Cognitive Flexibility. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34267705/

  8. Tai Chi and the Protection of Cognitive Ability: A Systematic Review of Prospective Studies in Healthy Adults. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26094229/

  9. Effect of Tai Chi on Markers of Oxidative Stress: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33810466/

  10. Does Tai Chi relieve fatigue? A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28380067/

  11. Noninvasive Treatments for Acute, Subacute, and Chronic Low Back Pain: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American College of Physicians. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28192789/

  12. Tai Chi for Chronic Pain Conditions: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27125299/

  13. The efficacy of Tai Chi for essential hypertension: A systematic review and meta-analysis. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37798948/

  14. Effects of Tai Chi on health outcomes among community-dwelling adults with or at risk of metabolic syndrome: A systematic review. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34260997/

  15. Effects of Tai Chi or Conventional Exercise on Central Obesity in Middle-Aged and Older Adults : A Three-Group Randomized Controlled Trial. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34058100/

  16. Effects of a T'ai Chi-Based Health Promotion Program on Metabolic Syndrome Markers, Health Behaviors, and Quality of Life in Middle-Aged Male Office Workers: A Randomized Trial. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28654312/

  17. The metabolic syndrome and mind-body therapies: a systematic review. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21773016/

  18. A preliminary study of the effects of Tai Chi and Qigong medical exercise on indicators of metabolic syndrome, glycaemic control, health-related quality of life, and psychological health in adults with elevated blood glucose. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18927159/

  19. Tai Chi workplace program for improving musculoskeletal fitness among female computer users. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20037248/

  20. Tai Chi and Qigong in Medical Research: A Comprehensive Bibliometric Analysis. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34144532/

  21. Effectiveness of Tai Chi for health promotion for adults with health conditions: a scoping review of Meta-analyses. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32070137/

  22. Accounting for employee health: The productivity cost of leading health risks. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30168878/

  23. Making the link between health and productivity at the workplace--a global perspective. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20562499/

  24. What’s the Hard Return on Employee Wellness Programs? https://hbr.org/2010/12/whats-the-hard-return-on-employee-wellness-programs

  25. Why Companies Should Prioritize Employee Health And Happiness In 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/karadennison/2023/10/24/why-companies-should-prioritize-employee-health-and-happiness-in-2024/

  26. Colonial Life study: Stressed workers costing employers billions – weekly. https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190314005804/en/Colonial-Life-study-Stressed-workers-costing-employers

  27. Employers See Wellness Link to Productivity, Performance. https://www.shrm.org/topics-tools/news/benefits-compensation/employers-see-wellness-link-to-productivity-performance

  28. The Undeniable Link Between Well-Being And Productivity. https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbescoachescouncil/2023/08/22/the-undeniable-link-between-well-being-and-productivity/

  29. Presenteeism: At Work—But Out of It. https://hbr.org/2004/10/presenteeism-at-work-but-out-of-it

  30. Three Reasons Social Health Should Be Part Of Your Corporate Wellness Program. https://www.forbes.com/sites/ellevate/2020/05/13/three-reasons-social-health-should-be-part-of-your-corporate-wellness-program/