TAI CHI BOOSTS IMMUNITY TO SHINGLES VIRUS IN OLDER ADULTS, NIH-SPONSORED STUDY REPORTS

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

 

An article from the National Institutes of Health, in our favor. I don't now

about you all, but I have seen the most horrific cases of shingles in elderly

patients here in northern Arizona. It's good to have a preventive, protective

measure to recommend.

 

 

 

 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

NIH News

National Institute on Aging (NIA)

<http://www.nia.nih.gov/>

National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)

<http://nccam.nih.gov/>

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, April 6, 2007

 

CONTACT: Susan Farrer or Linda Joy, 301-496-1752,

<e-mail: nianews3

 

TAI CHI BOOSTS IMMUNITY TO SHINGLES VIRUS IN OLDER ADULTS,

NIH-SPONSORED STUDY REPORTS

 

Tai Chi, a traditional Chinese form of exercise, may help older adults

avoid getting shingles by increasing immunity to varicella-zoster virus

(VZV) and boosting the immune response to varicella vaccine in older

adults, according to a new study published in print this week in the

" Journal of the American Geriatrics Society " . This National Institutes of

Health (NIH)-funded study is the first rigorous clinical trial to

suggest that a behavioral intervention, alone or in combination with a

vaccine, can help protect older adults from VZV, which causes both

chickenpox and shingles.

 

The research was supported by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and

the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM),

both components of NIH. The study's print publication follows its

online release in March. The research was conducted by Michael R. Irwin,

M.D., and Richard Olmstead, Ph.D., of the University of California at Los

Angeles, and Michael N. Oxman, M.D., of the University of California at

San Diego and San Diego Veterans Affairs Healthcare System.

 

" One in five people who have had chickenpox will get shingles later in

life, usually after age 50, and the risk increases as people get

older, " says NIA Director Richard J. Hodes, M.D. " More research is needed,

but this study suggests that the Tai Chi intervention tested, in

combination with immunization, may enhance protection of older adults from this

painful condition. "

 

" Dr. Irwin's research team has demonstrated that a centuries-old

behavioral intervention, Tai Chi, resulted in a level of immune response

similar to that of a modern biological intervention, the varicella vaccine,

and that Tai Chi boosted the positive effects of the vaccine, " says

Andrew Monjan, Ph.D., chief of the NIA's Neurobiology of Aging Branch.

 

The randomized, controlled clinical trial included 112 healthy adults

ages 59 to 86 (average age of 70). Each person took part in a 16-week

program of either Tai Chi or a health education program that provided 120

minutes of instruction weekly. Tai Chi combines aerobic activity,

relaxation and meditation, which the researchers note have been reported to

boost immune responses. The health education intervention involved

classes about a variety of health-related topics.

 

After the 16-week Tai Chi and health education programs, with periodic

blood tests to determine levels of VZV immunity, people in both groups

received a single injection of VARIVAX, the chickenpox vaccine that was

approved for use in the United States in 1995. Nine weeks later, the

investigators did blood tests to assess each participant's level of VZV

immunity, comparing it to immunity at the start of the study. All of the

participants had had chickenpox earlier in life and so were already

immune to that disease.

 

Tai Chi alone was found to increase participants' immunity to varicella

as much as the vaccine typically produces in 30- to 40-year-old adults,

and Tai Chi combined with the vaccine produced a significantly higher

level of immunity, about a 40 percent increase, over that produced by

the vaccine alone. The study further showed that the Tai Chi group's rate

of increase in immunity over the course of the 25-week study was double

that of the health education (control) group. The Tai Chi and health

education groups' VZV immunity had been similar when the study began.

 

In addition, the Tai Chi group reported significant improvements in

physical functioning, bodily pain, vitality and mental health. Both groups

showed significant declines in the severity of depressive symptoms.

 

" This study builds upon preliminary research funded by NCCAM, and we

are delighted to see this rigorous trial of Tai Chi for varicella zoster

immunity come to fruition, " said Ruth L. Kirschstein, M.D., NCCAM

Acting Director.

 

Shingles, or herpes zoster, affects the nerves, resulting in pain and

blisters in adults. Following a case of chickenpox, a person's nerve

cells can harbor the varicella-zoster virus. Years later, the virus can

reactivate and lead to shingles.

 

More information about shingles is available from the NIA at

<http://www.niapublications.org/agepages/shingles.asp> and from

<http://www.NIHSeniorHealth.gov>, a website for older adults developed

by the NIA and the National Library of Medicine, also a part of NIH.

More information on Tai Chi can be found on NCCAM's website at

<http://nccam.nih.gov/health/taichi/>.

 

To reach Dr. Michael Irwin, University of California at Los Angeles,

contact Mark Wheeler at 310-794-2265 or <email:

mwheeler.

 

The NIA leads the federal effort supporting and conducting research on

aging and the medical, social and behavioral issues of older people.

For more information on research and aging, go to

<http://www.nia.nih.gov>. Publications on research and on a variety of topics of

interest on

health and aging can be viewed and ordered by visiting the NIA website

or can be ordered by calling toll-free 1-800-222-2225.

 

The NCCAM's mission is to explore complementary and alternative medical

(CAM) practices in the context of rigorous science, train CAM

researchers, and disseminate authoritative information to the public and

professionals. For additional information, call NCCAM's Clearinghouse

toll-free at 1-888-644-6226, or visit <http://www.nccam.nih.gov>.

 

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) -- The Nation's Medical

Research Agency -- includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of

the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary

federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and

translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and

cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH

and its programs, visit <http://www.nih.gov>.

 

###

 

--------------------------

REFERENCE: Irwin, M.R., et al. Augmenting immune responses to varicella

zoster virus in older adults: A randomized, controlled trial of Tai

Chi. " Journal of the American Geriatrics Society " (2007), 55(4):511-517.

-------------------------

 

This NIH News Release is available online at:

<http://www.nih.gov/news/pr/apr2007/nia-06.htm>.

 

 

 

 

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