Open Reference
61 peer-reviewed studies on tai chi, each verified against a PubMed record and summarised with its study type, sample size, key finding and stated limitations.
Last updated: August 10, 2026 · Download CSV
The Tai Chi Research Library is a free reference index of 61 peer-reviewed tai chi studies published between 2015 and 2026, maintained by Tai Chi Coach. Every entry is verified against a PubMed record and lists the study type, population and sample size, a one-sentence key finding written in non-promissory language, and at least one stated limitation. The collection spans balance and fall prevention, cardiovascular and cardiometabolic outcomes, mental health, chronic pain, cognition, sleep, and neurological conditions such as Parkinson's disease and stroke. It is intended for journalists, health writers, clinicians and researchers who need a quick, citable overview rather than a clinical guideline; the underlying data is downloadable as CSV.
Tai chi is one of the most frequently cited “gentle exercise” interventions in consumer health writing, and it is also one of the most frequently mis-cited. Numbers such as “43% fewer falls” circulate widely without a traceable source, and headline percentages are often lifted from a single small trial and presented as settled fact.
This library was built for journalists, health writers, clinicians, students and AI assistants who need the primary record rather than a repeated claim. Every row links to a PubMed entry we opened and checked; nothing here is included on the strength of a secondary summary alone. Findings are phrased with hedged language (“was associated with”, “may reduce”) because that is what the underlying designs support, and every row carries at least one limitation so the weaknesses travel with the numbers.
What this page is not: it is not a clinical guideline, not a complete systematic search of the literature, and not medical advice. Inclusion here means a study exists and reports what we describe — not that its finding is definitive. See our Editorial Policy for how we handle sourcing and corrections.
| Study | Year | Type | Population / N | Focus area | Key finding | Limitations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Effects of Tai Chi on balance and fall prevention in healthy older adults: a randomized controlled meta-analysis PMID 41567791 | 2025 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 21 RCTs in healthy older adults | Balance, fall risk | Tai chi was associated with improved balance, walking speed and falls-efficacy versus non-exercise controls. | Non-exercise comparators only; attention/social effects not separated. |
| Falls prevention interventions for community-dwelling older adults: systematic review and meta-analysis of benefits, harms, and patient values PMID 39593159 | 2024 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | Multiple RCTs (Canadian Task Force evidence review) | Fall prevention, patient preference | Exercise-based programmes including tai chi were associated with reduced falls, with generally low reported harm. | Broad intervention categories; effect sizes vary by delivery setting. |
| Effect of Tai Chi exercise on bone health and fall prevention in postmenopausal women: a meta-analysis PMID 39127644 | 2024 | Meta-analysis | 12 studies of postmenopausal women | Bone health, falls | Tai chi was associated with improved clinical balance scores and fewer reported falls in postmenopausal women. | Small underlying trials; several were published only in Chinese databases. |
| Tai Chi for fall prevention and balance improvement in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials PMID 37736087 | 2023 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 24 RCTs of older adults | Fall prevention, balance | Pooled data suggest tai chi may reduce fall risk (RR 0.76, 95% CI 0.71-0.82) and improve timed-up-and-go performance. | Heterogeneous tai chi styles, doses and control conditions across trials. |
| Effects of tai chi on postural balance and quality of life among the elderly with gait disorders: a systematic review PMID 37768953 | 2023 | Systematic review | 16 RCTs across Parkinson's, stroke, MCI and fall-history groups | Postural stability, gait | Tai chi practice was associated with better postural stability and quality-of-life scores in older adults with abnormal gait. | Mixed clinical populations; no pooled effect estimate for some outcomes. |
| The effect of Tai Chi in elderly individuals with sarcopenia and frailty: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials PMID 36223875 | 2022 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | RCTs in adults 60+ with diagnosed frailty or sarcopenia | Frailty, muscle function | Tai chi was associated with improvements in physical function and some muscle-strength measures in frail or sarcopenic older adults. | Few trials; muscle-mass outcomes were less consistent than function. |
| Evidence on physical activity and falls prevention for people aged 65+ years (WHO guideline review) PMID 33239019 | 2020 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 116 studies, 25,160 participants | Fall prevention (exercise broadly) | Exercise overall was associated with a 23% lower rate of falls; balance-and-functional training, which includes tai chi, carried the strongest signal. | Tai chi is one modality among many; not a tai-chi-specific estimate. |
| Exercise for preventing falls in older people living in the community (Cochrane Review) PMID 30703272 | 2019 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 108 RCTs, 23,407 community-dwelling adults | Fall prevention | Tai chi was reported to probably reduce the rate of falls, with balance and functional exercise showing the highest-certainty benefit. | Certainty for tai chi rated lower than for balance/functional training. |
| Effectiveness of a Therapeutic Tai Ji Quan Intervention vs a Multimodal Exercise Intervention to Prevent Falls Among Older Adults at High Risk of Falling PMID 30208396 | 2018 | Randomized controlled trial | 670 community-dwelling adults aged 70+ at high risk of falling (USA) | Fall prevention | Over 6 months, the therapeutic tai ji quan arm was associated with fewer falls than both multimodal exercise and stretching controls. | Single US region; falls were self-reported via monthly calendars. |
| Effect of Tai Chi Chuan on balance in women with multiple sclerosis PMID 25534298 | 2015 | Randomized controlled trial | 36 women with multiple sclerosis (Iran) | Balance, neurological condition | Twelve weeks of Yang-style tai chi was associated with improved Berg Balance Scale scores versus baseline. | Very small sample; single-centre; no active comparator. |
| A systematic review and meta-analysis of the mechanism of action of Tai Chi on cardiovascular disease: evidence map PMID 41617914 | 2026 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 60 studies (39 RCTs + 21 reviews) | Cardiovascular disease, mechanisms | Tai chi was associated with a systolic blood pressure reduction of roughly 6 mmHg alongside autonomic and inflammatory marker changes. | Evidence-map design pools varied outcomes; mechanistic claims remain provisional. |
| The Effect of Tai Chi on Cardiometabolic Risk Factors: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis PMID 40042393 | 2025 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 13 RCTs, 1,746 adults with cardiometabolic risk | Cardiometabolic risk | Tai chi was associated with modest improvements in triglycerides, fasting glucose, diastolic blood pressure and waist circumference. | Small number of trials; effect sizes modest and heterogeneity present. |
| Effect of Tai Chi vs Aerobic Exercise on Blood Pressure in Patients With Prehypertension: A Randomized Clinical Trial PMID 38335001 | 2024 | Randomized controlled trial | 342 adults aged 18-65 with prehypertension (China) | Blood pressure | At 12 months, tai chi was associated with a greater reduction in office systolic blood pressure than aerobic exercise. | Chinese single-country sample; supervised 4x/week dose is higher than typical home practice. |
| Efficacy of Tai Chi exercise in patients with hypertension: systematic review and meta-analysis PMID 39208601 | 2024 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 5 RCTs, 568 patients with hypertension | Hypertension | Compared with routine care, tai chi was associated with statistically significant reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure. | Only five trials; small pooled sample limits confidence. |
| Effects of Tai Chi on Lung Function, Exercise Capacity and Psychosocial Outcomes in Patients With COPD PMID 37210672 | 2023 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 20 RCTs, 1,430 participants with COPD | Respiratory function | Tai chi was associated with improvements in FEV1, 6-minute walk distance, anxiety and quality of life. | No significant effect on FEV1% or FEV1/FVC; mostly Chinese-language trials. |
| Effects of Tai Chi on essential hypertension and related risk factors: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials PMID 32338292 | 2020 | Meta-analysis | 13 RCTs | Hypertension | Tai chi was associated with a mean systolic reduction of about 6.6 mmHg versus control conditions. | Variable trial quality; blinding of participants not feasible. |
| Tai Chi for Essential Hypertension: a Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials PMID 32124064 | 2020 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 28 RCTs, 2,937 participants | Hypertension | Tai chi showed statistically significant blood pressure lowering versus education, other exercise or antihypertensive drugs in pooled analysis. | Most trials conducted in China; adverse-event reporting was sparse. |
| Benefits of Tai Chi Exercise Among Adults With Chronic Heart Failure: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis PMID 32544110 | 2020 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 6 studies, 229 participants (mean age 68) | Heart failure | Tai chi was associated with improved functional capacity and quality of life in adults with chronic heart failure. | Very small pooled sample; English/German language restriction. |
| Tai Chi Exercise for Patients with Chronic Heart Failure: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials PMID 28234634 | 2017 | Meta-analysis | 13 RCTs in chronic heart failure | Heart failure | Tai chi was associated with a mean 51 m gain in 6-minute walk distance and better quality-of-life scores. | Notable heterogeneity and risk of bias in the included trials. |
| Mindfulness and Tai Chi for Cancer Health (MATCH): primary outcomes of a preference-based multisite randomized comparative effectiveness trial PMID 40505072 | 2025 | Randomized controlled trial | 587 distressed cancer survivors, 75% female, mean age 60.7 | Distress in cancer survivorship | Both tai chi/qigong and mindfulness-based recovery were associated with greater mood-disturbance improvement than waitlist. | Preference-based allocation; waitlist control cannot isolate attention effects. |
| Randomized controlled trial testing Tai Chi Easy/Qigong and Sham Qigong on breast cancer survivors' fatigue and associated symptoms PMID 40651067 | 2025 | Randomized controlled trial | 167 fatigued breast cancer survivors aged 45-75 | Fatigue, sleep, mood | In survivors with moderate fatigue, tai chi easy/qigong was associated with improved sleep, anxiety and cognitive scores versus education support. | Sham qigong also improved some outcomes, suggesting non-specific effects. |
| Effect of exercise for depression: systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials PMID 38355154 | 2024 | Systematic review / network meta-analysis | 218 studies, 14,170 participants with major depression | Depression | Exercise modalities including tai chi/qigong showed moderate reductions in depressive symptoms versus active controls. | Network estimates for tai chi rest on fewer arms than walking or strength training. |
| Tai Chi compared with cognitive behavioral therapy and the reversal of inflammation markers in breast cancer survivors with insomnia PMID 38777285 | 2024 | Randomized controlled trial | 90 breast cancer survivors with insomnia | Inflammation, insomnia | Tai chi and CBT-I were both associated with reductions in stimulated monocyte inflammatory cytokine production over 15 months. | Small sample; biomarker outcomes are surrogate rather than clinical endpoints. |
| Tai Chi for anxiety and depression symptoms in cancer, stroke, heart failure, and COPD: a systematic review and meta-analysis PMID 34749040 | 2022 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | RCTs across four chronic conditions | Anxiety, depression | Tai chi was associated with reduced anxiety and depression symptom scores across several chronic-disease populations. | Pooling across different diseases; risk of bias in many included trials. |
| Online Unsupervised Tai Chi Intervention for Knee Pain and Function in People With Knee Osteoarthritis: The RETREAT Randomized Clinical Trial PMID 41143827 | 2026 | Randomized controlled trial | Adults meeting clinical criteria for knee osteoarthritis (Australia) | Knee osteoarthritis, remote delivery | A 12-week unsupervised video-based Yang-style programme was associated with improved knee pain and function versus information-only control. | Unsupervised format; adherence self-reported and control group received no active exercise. |
| Comparative efficacy of Tai Chi versus balance training on functional performance and postural control during sit-to-stand in knee osteoarthritis PMID 41111041 | 2026 | Randomized controlled trial | 69 randomized (52 completers) with knee osteoarthritis | Knee osteoarthritis, postural control | Both tai chi and balance training were associated with improved sit-to-stand mechanics over 12 weeks. | High dropout; small sample; no non-exercise control arm. |
| Exercise prescription for improving chronic low back pain in adults: a network meta-analysis PMID 40520315 | 2025 | Systematic review / network meta-analysis | RCTs of adults with chronic low back pain | Low back pain, dosing | Sessions of 15-30 minutes and programmes of 12 weeks or longer were associated with the largest pain improvements. | Dose findings are observational within the network; wide credible intervals. |
| Exercise intervention for patients with chronic low back pain: a systematic review and network meta-analysis PMID 38035307 | 2023 | Systematic review / network meta-analysis | 75 RCTs comparing 20 exercise interventions | Low back pain | Mind-body exercise including tai chi ranked favourably among exercise options for chronic low back pain. | Network ranking is indirect; few head-to-head tai chi trials. |
| Effectiveness of Tai Chi on fibromyalgia patients: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials PMID 31519264 | 2019 | Meta-analysis | 6 RCTs, 657 patients with fibromyalgia | Fibromyalgia | Tai chi was associated with reduced total fibromyalgia impact and pain scores at 12-16 weeks. | Few trials; wide confidence intervals on pain and fatigue estimates. |
| Effect of tai chi versus aerobic exercise for fibromyalgia: comparative effectiveness randomized controlled trial PMID 29563100 | 2018 | Randomized controlled trial | 226 adults with fibromyalgia (USA) | Fibromyalgia | Tai chi was associated with greater improvement in fibromyalgia impact scores than supervised aerobic exercise at 24 weeks. | Single centre; participants unblinded; results may not generalise outside supervised classes. |
| Physical activity and exercise for chronic pain in adults: an overview of Cochrane Reviews PMID 28087891 | 2017 | Overview of systematic reviews | 21 Cochrane reviews of adults with chronic pain | Chronic pain (exercise broadly) | Exercise interventions were associated with small-to-moderate pain and function benefits with few reported adverse events. | Low-quality evidence overall; tai chi not analysed separately. |
| Comparative Effectiveness of Tai Chi Versus Physical Therapy for Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Trial PMID 27183035 | 2016 | Randomized controlled trial | 204 adults with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis (mean age 60) | Knee osteoarthritis | At 12 weeks, tai chi produced WOMAC improvements similar to standard physical therapy, with better depression and quality-of-life scores. | Single academic centre; participants could not be blinded to allocation. |
| Tai Chi for Chronic Pain Conditions: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials PMID 27125299 | 2016 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 18 RCTs across osteoarthritis, low back pain and osteoporosis | Chronic pain | Tai chi showed positive short-term evidence for pain relief in osteoarthritis, low back pain and osteoporosis. | Short follow-up; long-term durability of pain relief not established. |
| Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and Tai Chi Chuan for Older Adults With Sleep Disorders and Mild Cognitive Impairment PMID 39792383 | 2025 | Randomized controlled trial | Adults aged 60-75 with sleep disorders and MCI (China) | Sleep, cognition | Adding active rTMS to tai chi chuan was associated with greater sleep-quality and cognitive gains than tai chi with sham stimulation. | Combined intervention; tai-chi-only effect cannot be isolated. |
| Combined mind-body physical exercise, cognitive training, and nurse-led risk factor modification to enhance cognition in MCI: three-arm randomised controlled trial PMID 40294622 | 2025 | Randomized controlled trial | Older adults aged 60-80 with MCI in Hong Kong primary care | Mild cognitive impairment | A multi-component programme including mind-body exercise was associated with better cognitive outcomes than health advice alone over 15 months. | Multi-component design; the mind-body component is not separable. |
| Efficacy of Nonpharmacological Interventions in Cognitive Impairment: Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis PMID 39034265 | 2024 | Systematic review / network meta-analysis | RCTs of MCI and dementia populations | Cognitive impairment | Tai chi appeared among the better-performing physical interventions, though combined physical-cognitive rehabilitation ranked highest. | Indirect comparisons; ranking probabilities are sensitive to network structure. |
| Effects of tai chi based on information and communication technology for patients with mild cognitive impairment PMID 39839400 | 2024 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 16 studies, 1,877 participants | MCI, remote delivery | Technology-delivered tai chi was associated with MMSE and timed-up-and-go improvements comparable to or better than in-person delivery. | Small, varied studies; technology formats differ widely. |
| Clinical Effectiveness of Cognitively Enhanced Tai Ji Quan Training on Global Cognition and Dual-Task Walking in Older Adults With MCI PMID 37903365 | 2023 | Randomized controlled trial | 318 older adults with MCI or self-reported memory concerns | Mild cognitive impairment | Cognitively enhanced tai ji quan was associated with greater MoCA gains and lower dual-task walking cost than standard tai ji quan or stretching at 24 weeks. | Self-reported memory concern was an eligibility route; delivered via videoconference only. |
| Effects of Tai Chi Chuan on Cognitive Function in Adults 60 Years or Older With Type 2 Diabetes and Mild Cognitive Impairment in China PMID 37022680 | 2023 | Randomized controlled trial | 328 adults aged 60+ with type 2 diabetes and MCI | Cognition, diabetes | 24-form tai chi chuan was associated with greater cognitive improvement than fitness walking at 36 weeks. | Single-country trial; supervised 3x/week dose; unblinded participants. |
| Effects of tai chi and Qigong on cognition in neurological disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis PMID 35704955 | 2022 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 40 RCTs, 2,754 participants | Cognition in neurological disease | Tai chi and qigong were associated with improvements in global cognition, executive function and memory across several neurological conditions. | Methodological quality ranged from low to high; disorders pooled together. |
| Tai chi or cognitive behavioural therapy for treating insomnia in middle aged and older adults: randomised non-inferiority trial PMID 41297969 | 2025 | Randomized controlled trial (non-inferiority) | 200 adults aged 50+ with chronic insomnia (Hong Kong) | Insomnia | Tai chi did not meet non-inferiority to CBT-I at 3 months but was non-inferior at 12-month follow-up. | Non-inferiority margin of 4 ISI points; single site; Chinese participants only. |
| Effectiveness of Aerobic Exercise and Tai Chi Interventions on Sleep Quality in Patients With Advanced Lung Cancer PMID 38060250 | 2024 | Randomized controlled trial | 226 patients with advanced lung cancer (Hong Kong) | Sleep in cancer care | Both tai chi and aerobic exercise were associated with better subjective sleep quality than physical activity guidance alone. | Advanced-disease population with high attrition risk; findings may not transfer to healthy adults. |
| Effect of combined Tai Chi and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for sleep disturbance in older adults PMID 39476538 | 2024 | Randomized controlled trial | 152 older adults, mean age 67.7, 74% female | Sleep disturbance | Tai chi plus active rTMS was associated with the largest actigraphy-measured sleep improvement among four arms. | Four-arm design with 38 per arm; short 4-week intervention. |
| Effects of traditional Chinese exercise on sleep quality: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials PMID 37933009 | 2023 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 20 RCTs | Sleep quality | Traditional Chinese exercise including tai chi was associated with improved Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores. | Tai chi pooled with baduanjin and qigong; scales analysed separately. |
| Comparative efficacy of exercise regimens on sleep quality in older adults: a systematic review and network meta-analysis PMID 36087457 | 2022 | Systematic review / network meta-analysis | 35 trials, 3,519 older adults | Sleep quality | Tai chi was among the regimens associated with better sleep quality than usual care. | Muscle-endurance training plus walking outranked tai chi in the network. |
| Effects of Tai Chi or Exercise on Sleep in Older Adults With Insomnia: A Randomized Clinical Trial PMID 33587135 | 2021 | Randomized controlled trial | 320 adults aged 60+ with chronic insomnia (Hong Kong) | Insomnia | Actigraphy-measured sleep efficiency and wake-after-sleep-onset improved with tai chi relative to no-intervention control. | Chinese population; conventional exercise arm showed comparable gains on several measures. |
| Tai Chi improves balance, mobility and gait function of the lower limbs in patients with Parkinson's disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis PMID 39962570 | 2025 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 18 studies, 963 patients with Parkinson's disease | Parkinson's disease | Tai chi was associated with improved balance, timed-up-and-go and gait speed versus conventional medication alone. | Cadence and step-length effects were inconsistent; most trials from a few countries. |
| Tai Chi improves non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease: one-year randomized controlled study with investigation of mechanisms PMID 38244460 | 2024 | Randomized controlled trial | 95 randomized (66 completers) with early-stage Parkinson's | Parkinson's non-motor symptoms | Over 12 months, tai chi was associated with better cognition and sleepiness scores than no-exercise control. | 31% attrition; mechanistic biomarker findings are exploratory. |
| Distinct effects of long-term Tai Chi Chuan and aerobic exercise on motor and neurocognitive performance in early-stage Parkinson's disease PMID 38888734 | 2024 | Randomized controlled trial | 56 patients with idiopathic Parkinson's (Taiwan) | Parkinson's disease | Twelve weeks of tai chi chuan was associated with motor and event-related-potential changes distinct from aerobic exercise. | Very small groups (13-16 per arm); short intervention window. |
| Effects of traditional Chinese exercises on physical and psychological health of patients with multiple sclerosis PMID 39222581 | 2024 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 11 studies, 461 participants with multiple sclerosis | Multiple sclerosis | Traditional Chinese exercise was associated with improved physical function and psychological outcomes in MS. | Includes non-randomised studies; tai chi pooled with qigong and baduanjin. |
| Mechanisms of motor symptom improvement by long-term Tai Chi training in Parkinson's disease patients PMID 35125106 | 2022 | Randomized controlled trial | 95 early-stage Parkinson's patients (tai chi 32, brisk walking 31, control 32) | Parkinson's motor symptoms | One year of tai chi was associated with improved Berg Balance and UPDRS motor scores alongside imaging and cytokine changes. | Small per-arm samples; mechanistic analyses exploratory and multiple-comparison prone. |
| Tailored Sitting Tai Chi Program for Subacute Stroke Survivors: A Randomized Controlled Trial PMID 35387494 | 2022 | Randomized controlled trial | 160 subacute stroke survivors (China) | Stroke rehabilitation | A 12-week seated tai chi programme was associated with improved upper-limb function, sitting balance and depressive symptoms versus attention control. | Single-country trial; effects measured to 4 weeks post-intervention only. |
| Effect of simplified Tai Chi exercise on relieving symptoms of patients with mild to moderate Parkinson's disease PMID 31665879 | 2020 | Randomized controlled trial | 41 patients with Parkinson's disease | Parkinson's disease | Adding simplified tai chi to routine exercise was associated with better UPDRS-III and Berg Balance scores over 12 weeks. | Small single-centre sample; short duration. |
| The effect of Tai Chi exercise on physical and psychological health of college students with persistent fatigue after COVID-19 infection PMID 41391357 | 2026 | Randomized controlled trial | 70 college students aged 18-20 with post-COVID fatigue | Post-viral fatigue | A 16-week programme was associated with improved fatigue, balance and physical-functioning scores versus usual routine. | Young-adult sample; findings may not transfer to older or deconditioned adults. |
| Tai Chi Exercise and Bone Health in Women at Perimenopausal and Postmenopausal Stages: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis PMID 41302103 | 2025 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 16 studies, 1,091 women aged 49-64 | Bone health, menopause | Tai chi was associated with bone mineral density improvements at the femoral neck, greater trochanter and lumbar spine. | Evidence quality rated low to moderate; protocols ranged from 6 to 104 weeks. |
| Effects of mind-body exercise on perimenopausal and postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis PMID 38669625 | 2024 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | RCTs of perimenopausal and postmenopausal women | Menopause symptoms | Mind-body exercise including tai chi was associated with improvements in sleep quality, anxiety and depression scores. | Tai chi pooled with yoga, Pilates, qigong and MBSR. |
| The effectiveness of tai chi in breast cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis PMID 32056814 | 2020 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 16 RCTs, 1,268 breast cancer patients | Breast cancer supportive care | Tai chi was associated with improved overall quality of life at 3 months when added to conventional care. | No clear difference versus conventional supportive care for fatigue, sleep or depression. |
| The safety of tai chi: a meta-analysis of adverse events in randomized controlled trials PMID 31229620 | 2019 | Meta-analysis | 24 RCTs, 1,794 participants | Safety, adverse events | Rates of serious adverse events did not differ significantly between tai chi and control conditions. | Adverse-event reporting was inconsistent; heart-failure trials showed more serious events overall. |
| Ameliorative effects of Tai Chi on cancer-related fatigue: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials PMID 29564620 | 2018 | Meta-analysis | 6 RCTs, 373 patients | Cancer-related fatigue | Tai chi was associated with short-term fatigue reduction, most clearly in breast and lung cancer subgroups. | Long-term fatigue effects unclear; no benefit signal in prostate cancer. |
| Effect of Tai Chi on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized control trials PMID 28827032 | 2017 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 6 RCTs, 350 postmenopausal women | Bone mineral density | Pooled lumbar-spine BMD differences were not statistically significant in this earlier analysis. | A useful negative/neutral counterweight; small sample and few trials. |
| Does Tai Chi relieve fatigue? A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials PMID 28380067 | 2017 | Systematic review / meta-analysis | 10 trials, 689 participants | Fatigue | Tai chi was associated with improved fatigue scores across mixed populations. | High risk of bias for blinding; two trials of low methodological quality. |
Showing 61 of 61 studies.
Prefer the raw data? Download the full CSV (topic, title, year, type, population, focus, finding, limitations, PMID, URL).
The summaries and CSV on this page are published under a CC BY 4.0 licence. You are welcome to quote or republish them with attribution to Tai Chi Coach and a link to this page. The underlying journal articles remain the property of their publishers — always cite the original study, not this index, when making a factual claim.
Suggested attribution: “Tai Chi Research Library, Tai Chi Coach, 2026, https://taichi.help/research/”. Found an error, a mis-stated sample size, or a study we should add? Email [email protected] with the PMID.
Background reading from major health institutions:
NCCIH · Harvard Health · Mayo Clinic · PubMed