Effect of Tai Chi versus walking on oxidative stress in Mexican older adults.
It has recently been reported that the practice of Tai Chi reduces oxidative stress (OxS), but it is not clear whether walking or Tai Chi produces a greater antioxidant effect. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effect of the practice of Tai Chi and walking on markers for OxS. We carried out a quasi-experimental study with 106 older adults between 60 and 74 years of age who were clinically healthy and divided into the following groups: (i) control group (n = 23), (ii) walking group (n = 43), and (iii) Tai Chi group (n = 31). We measured the levels of lipoperoxides (LPO), antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and total antioxidant status (TAS) pre- and post-intervention in all subjects. The data were subjected to a covariant analysis. We found lower levels of LPO in the Tai Chi group compared with the walking group (Tai Chi, 0.261 ± 0.02; walking, 0.331 ± 0.02; control, 0.304 ± 0.023 µmol/L; P = 0.05). Likewise, we observed significantly higher SOD activity and lower OxS-score in the Tai Chi group (P < 0.05). Our findings suggest that the practice of Tai Chi produces a more effective antioxidant effect than walking.
Unidad de Investigación en Gerontología, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Zaragoza, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), México, DF, Mexico.
Juana
J
Rosado-Pérez
Rocío
R
Ortiz
Edelmiro
E
Santiago-Osorio
Víctor Manuel
VM
Mendoza-Núñez
D000368:Aged; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D005979:Glutathione Peroxidase / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008054:Lipid Peroxides / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000502:physiology*; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase / Q000378:metabolism; D026302:Tai Ji; D017392:Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances / Q000378:metabolism; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology*
D000975:Antioxidants; D008054:Lipid Peroxides; D017392:Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances; D005979:Glutathione Peroxidase; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase