Effect of Tai Chi Exercise on Immune Function in Middle-aged and Elderly Women
Effect of Tai Chi Exercise on Immune Function in Middle-aged and Elderly Women
November 2012
Volume 2 • Issue 6, Page 5 of 7-Discussion: The human immune system demonstrates degenerative changes with advancing age, especially T cells which demonstrate prominent age-related alterations in distribution and function, such as declined number of circulating T cells, NKT cells, and DCs, decreased production of T1 cytokines (IFN-γ) and increased production of T2 cytokines (IL-4) with aging [2,4,3]. However, the findings of our present study demonstrated that after a 6-month Tai Chi exercise program, the percentages of CD4+ T lymphocytes, NK cells, NKT cells, and DCs, along with the CD4+:CD8+ ratio and cytokines IFN-γ and IL-4 producing T cells, significantly increased in middle-aged and elderly women.