Tai Chi training as a primary care plan for the prevention and management of hypertension: an opinion and positioning article

Abstract

Hypertension is a prevalent chronic condition worldwide that can impact patients’ quality of life. Oral antihypertensive drugs are widely used to manage high blood pressure, primarily by regulating the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. Nevertheless, limited efficacy and low compliance represent significant obstacles, arising primarily from dose, duration, and medication type restrictions. Furthermore, the prolonged use of antihypertensive medication may result in dependence and adverse effects, without any substantial improvement in achieving targeted blood pressure leves. As a result, research has focused on using exercise therapy to treat hypertension. Tai Chi, a widely-practiced Chinese health exercise, has evolved into a form of exercise therapy that might help alleviate the risk associated with hypertension. Therefore, this article aims to outline the role of Tai Chi in preventing and managing hypertension.

Keywords:

• Hypertension
• exercise therapy
• Tai Chi
• prevention and management
• limitations

Authors contributions

SG and TZ conceived the manuscript and revised drafts. SY, QB and WL wrote the first draft. All authors contributed to the article and approved the submitted version.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

Data sharing is not applicable to this article, given that no new data were created or analysed in this study.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Scientific Research Fund of Zhejiang Provincial Education Department [No. Y202249390].