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Chronic fatigue syndrome is a complex condition characterised by persistent, debilitating fatigue and is often accompanied by gastrointestinal complaints. Emerging research suggests that disruptions to gut microbiota may play a role in the condition. Traditional Chinese Qigong exercise, specifically a practice known as the Prolong Life With Nine Turn Method, has been proposed as a potentially beneficial intervention, though high-quality evidence has been lacking.
This exploratory randomised controlled trial recruited 96 adults diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome and assigned them to either eight weeks of the Prolong Life With Nine Turn Method Qigong or eight weeks of cognitive behavioural therapy. The primary measure was change in overall fatigue severity using the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory-20 scale, with secondary measures covering fatigue subtypes, gastrointestinal symptom ratings, and gut microbiota diversity.
After eight weeks, participants in the Qigong group showed meaningful reductions in fatigue scores from their starting point, along with improvements across fatigue subtypes and gastrointestinal symptom subscales. Gut microbiota alpha diversity also changed significantly within the Qigong group. Importantly, when the two groups were directly compared, there were no statistically significant differences in fatigue scores, gastrointestinal outcomes, or microbiota diversity measures, suggesting Qigong performed comparably to cognitive behavioural therapy rather than outperforming it.
Conclusion: The Prolong Life With Nine Turn Method Qigong demonstrated potential benefits for fatigue and gastrointestinal symptoms in chronic fatigue syndrome, accompanied by gut microbiota changes, and performed comparably to cognitive behavioural therapy over eight weeks.
Source: Cui J, Xie F, Gu Y et al. Complementary therapies in medicine (2026). View on PubMed (PMID 41806958) · doi:10.1016/j.ctim.2026.103353