Tai Chi May Increase Immunity to Shingles Virus

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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 publishsed 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

R. Irwin, M.D., and Olmstead, Ph.D., of the

University of California at Los Angeles, and 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 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 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.

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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

www.NIHSeniorHealth.gov, a Web site 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/.