Adults with type 2 diabetes—the most common type of diabetes—had enhanced immunity after 12 weeks of tai chi chuan exercise, according to a new study being presented Sunday, June 3, at The Endocrine Society’s 89th Annual Meeting in Toronto.

The finding is important because individuals with diabetes are usually immune compromised, said the lead researchers, Shu-Hui Yeh, RN, PhD and Kuender Yang, MD, PhD. Yeh is with Chang Gung Institute of Technology and Yang is with Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Kaohsiung in Taiwan, which helped fund the study along with Taiwan’s National Science Council.

Tai chi is a traditional Chinese martial art that involves a series of slow movements and postures. The Taiwanese researchers previously showed that this moderate exercise program lowered hemoglobin A1c, a measure of blood sugar control over time.

In this study, Yeh, Yang and co-workers again found improved blood sugar control in 30 patients with type 2 diabetes after they performed an hour of tai chi, three days a week, for 12 weeks. In addition, after tai chi, the diabetic patients had significantly increased levels in the blood of an important immune substance known as interleukin-12. This substance is a hormonal messenger that helps generate one type of cell-mediated immune reaction known as Th1 (short for T-helper cells type 1). Diabetic patients usually have impaired Th1 reaction, thus leaving them susceptible to infections, Yeh and Yang said.

Th1 and another type of immune reaction, Th2, need to be balanced to have optimal immunity and to prevent diseases. Normally, the two mutually regulate each other. After tai chi, the diabetic patients had decreased levels of the Th2 immune substance interleukin-4, bringing a balance between Th1 and Th2.

“This suggests that tai chi exercise may benefit cell immunity of patients with type 2 diabetes and may give them a better defense against microorganisms that can cause infections,” Yeh and Yang said. “We would encourage diabetic patients to do regular tai chi chuan exercise in addition to taking medications for diabetes.”

Yeh said the mutual regulation of Th1 and Th2 immune reactions is similar to the yin and yang response. Traditional Chinese medicine holds with the principle of yin and yang, the balance between two opposing yet complementary forces.

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