Acupuncture Times Your guide to acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine and TCM — explore acupoints, herbs and formulas, plus the latest acupuncture research news.
Related Articles
This systematic review and meta-analysis examined whether traditional mind-body exercises — including Tai Chi, Baduanjin, and Wuqinxi — could reduce fall risk and improve balance in older adults. Researchers searched seven major databases up to December 2025 and identified 31 randomised controlled trials involving 3,622 participants. Study quality was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool, and results were pooled using a random-effects model.
The pooled analysis found that participants practising traditional mind-body exercises had meaningfully lower fall risk test scores and higher Berg Balance Scale scores compared to control groups. In subgroup analyses, both Tai Chi and Baduanjin demonstrated reductions in fall risk scores, with Baduanjin showing a slightly larger effect. All three exercises — Tai Chi, Baduanjin, and Wuqinxi — were associated with improvements in balance as measured by the Berg Balance Scale. Notably, heterogeneity across the Berg Balance Scale studies was very high, which limits the reliability of the pooled estimates. Example training protocols included Tai Chi practised twice weekly for 55 minutes per session over eight weeks.
The authors caution that the overall certainty of evidence is low, and these results do not confirm that these exercises actually reduce the number of falls experienced in daily life.
Conclusion: Low-certainty evidence suggests Tai Chi and related traditional mind-body exercises may reduce fall risk test scores and improve balance in older adults, though these findings should be interpreted with caution.
Source: Wan L, Guo Y, Liang C. Medicine (2026). View on PubMed (PMID 42888580) · doi:10.1097/MD.0000000000051150