title: Long-term Tai Chi training is related to depressive symptoms among Tai Chi practitioners.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Due to the close association with physical and psychological health and quality of life, mood disorders, especially depressive symptoms, are an important global public-health issue. It is hypothesized that long-term physical training and mood adjustment may have a beneficial effect on the prevention of the onset of depressive symptoms. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between long-term Tai Chi training and depressive symptoms among Tai Chi practitioners.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study analyzed a cross-sectional survey including 529 Japanese Tai Chi practitioners. Tai Chi training information, including total training time and a Tai Chi grade, was assessed using a structured questionnaire, and depressive symptoms were evaluated using the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) for subjects aged ≥65 and the 20-item Self-rating Depressive Scale (SDS) for subjects aged <65 with cut-off points: GDS ≥5 and SDS ≥11.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 15.9%. After adjustments for potential confounding factors, the odds ratios of having depressive symptoms by increasing levels of Tai Chi training time were 1.00, 0.64 (0.37-1.11), 0.65 (0.37-1.13), 0.34 (0.18-0.65) (P for trend <0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This is a cross-sectional study, and not for making a clinical diagnosis of depressive symptoms.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study has demonstrated that long-term Tai Chi training is independently related to a lower prevalence of depressive symptoms. These results suggest that long-term Tai Chi training may have a beneficial effect on the prevention of depressive symptoms. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings.
authors.affiliation: Tianjin University of Sport, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Yingjie
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Nutritional Epidemiology Institute and School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, 22 Qixiangtai Road, Heping District, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Su
authors.affiliation: Nutritional Epidemiology Institute and School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, 22 Qixiangtai Road, Heping District, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Nutritional Epidemiology Institute and School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, 22 Qixiangtai Road, Heping District, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Hongmei
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Nutritional Epidemiology Institute and School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, 22 Qixiangtai Road, Heping District, Tianjin 300070, China.
authors.forename: Huanmin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Du
authors.affiliation: College of Sports Science, Shenyang Normal University, Shenyang, China.
authors.forename: Guang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Toxicology, School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Ge
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Statistics, College of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China.
authors.forename: Changping
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Division of Biomedical Engineering for Health & Welfare, Tohoku University Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, Sendai, Japan.
authors.forename: Ryoichi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Nagatomi
authors.affiliation: Nutritional Epidemiology Institute and School of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, 22 Qixiangtai Road, Heping District, Tianjin 300070, China. Electronic address: nkj0809@163.com.
authors.forename: Kaijun
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Niu
mesh_terms: D000339:Affect; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D026302:Tai Ji
keywords: Depressive symptoms; Tai Chi