In this issue you will find:

• Important PCOM Dates
• Tai Ji as a Beneficial Exercise for Seniors
• Traditional Chinese Medicine to Lower Blood Pressure
• Benefits of Shiatsu Massage
• Chinese Wisdom: Quote of the Day

Important PCOM Dates

• September 18 (Tuesday): New York Open House
• September 29 (Wednesday): San Diego Open House
  

Tai Ji as a Beneficial Exercise for Seniors

By: Michelle Fletcher

More and more seniors are becoming physically active—reaping the countless health benefits associated with regular exercise. If power walking and your run-of-the-mill strength building exercises are uninteresting, the no-impact Chinese exercise Tai Ji is an excellent way to tone muscle, increase endurance, and gain balance.

In a recent study in Annals of Behavioral Medicine, researchers concluded that the movements associated with Tai Ji helped seniors improve their physical functioning. Study participants who took Tai Ji twice a week for a six-month period noticed a significant improvement in their ability to accomplish daily tasks such as carrying groceries, walking up stairs, or moving medium-sized objects.

“It was concluded that the six month Tai Ji exercise program was effective for improving functional status in healthy, physically inactive older adults. A self-paced and self-controlled activity such as Tai Ji has the potential to be an effective, low-cost means of improving functional status in older persons.” Most notably, those who took Tai Ji were less likely to fall—one of the largest causes of serious injury for seniors.
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Traditional Chinese Medicine to Lower Blood Pressure

By Kathleen Rushall

Traditional Chinese medicine is a large practice composed of many aspects. There is acupuncture (the use of small needles to free and aid one’s qi), qi gong (a self healing art that combines meditation and movement), massage therapy, herbs, and various manners of meditation, to name a few. Each practice has specific ailments that it can aid, and some may overlap in their benefits. For example, there is new evidence that the ancient arts of acupuncture and qi gong can help with hypertension, also known as high blood pressure.

High blood pressure directly increases the risk of coronary heart disease (which leads to heart attack) and stroke, especially when it's present with other risk factors. It can occur in both adults and children, but is most prevalent in people over 35. Hypertension can be a dangerous condition when left untended, but is also a manageable one. Western medicine generally prescribes medication and healthier eating habits to control hypertension. While these lifestyle changes are always beneficial, there are some Eastern practices that may prove even more successful, particularly when in conjunction with those from the West.
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Benefits of Shiatsu Massage

By Michelle Fletcher

 Over the past few decades, massage has grown from a periodic indulgence to a key component of overall fitness, wellness, and health in Western society. Massage has proven to reduce stress, rejuvenate the body, and provide therapy for various medical ailments. Many health providers now list massage therapists with general practitioners, optometrists, and dentists. Each year, thousands of individuals are exposed to massage therapy for their first time.

Massage takes on many forms; the most common is Swedish or deep-tissue massage. Techniques designed to increase blood flow to problem areas and invigorate the muscles, Swedish massage is made up of long, rhythmic strokes, circular actions, and kneading. Those receiving Swedish massage experience improved circulation, relaxation, and reduction of stress.

Shiatsu is yet another form of massage, based upon the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).  Shiatsu is a Japanese word meaning, “finger pressure,” and its goal is similar to that of acupuncture or acupressure: to restore the balance of energy (qi) in the body. Practitioners of Chinese medicine and shiatsu massage assert that disease and physical infirmities are caused by blockages or imbalances in the flow of energy throughout the body. Shiatsu practitioners strive to balance positive and negative energies (yin and yang) within the body to achieve balance and homeostasis within the body. A buildup or deficiency of one type of energy can cause illness, pain, or other problems in the body.
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