Can qigong help older adults?

The number of qigong studies that have included older adults is limited. Two 2019 reviews looked at the effects of qigong on the physical and psychological health of older adults. Some of the results were positive, suggesting a potential benefit of qigong for older adults.

• The first review considered 13 studies with a total of 1,340 community-dwelling older adults with chronic disease and found that qigong had a significant positive effect on quality of life but not on depressive symptoms.
• The second review looked at 14 studies of 1,282 older adults with depressive symptoms, frailty, or chronic illness. Seven of the studies were also evaluated in the first review, so there was some overlap. This second review found that qigong helped improve physical ability and may have positive effects on depression, balance, and functioning (the ability to do normal, everyday activities). But the researchers noted that more methodologically sound randomized controlled trials (studies in which participants are randomly assigned to an intervention group and control group) are needed to determine the efficacy of qigong on physical and psychological health in older adults.