Qigong Therapy vs Progressive Resistance Exercise in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Pilot Study

Objective Nutrition and physical activity are cornerstones of Type 2 diabetes management yet compliance with lifestyle recommendations is often poor. This study compared metabolic and psychological effects of Qigong therapy (a traditional Chinese energy medicine practice), progressive resistance training (PRT), or usual care in Type 2 diabetes. Methods 32 adults with Type 2 diabetes (age 58 ± 7.3 yr, BMI 31.8±6.0 kg/m 2 ), were randomly assigned to Qigong, PRT, or control for 12 weeks. Fasting plasma glucose, HbA1C, insulin, HOMA‐IR (an estimate of insulin resistance) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) were determined before and after the intervention. Results Qigong therapy reduced plasma glucose (184.9 + 35.3 to161.9 + 40.5, P=0.003 ), HOMA‐IR (5.3 + 2.3 to 4.7 + 2.2; NS) and HbA1c (8.8 + 1.1 to 8.1 + 1.3;NS). In contrast, both PRT and control groups had slight increases in glucose and HOMA‐IR (NS). Qigong decreased perceived stress by 29.3% (p=0.05) and depression scores by 14.3% (NS). PRT decreased BDI scores by 52% (p=0.03) but both PRT and control groups increased PSS scores. Dropout was greater in the PRT group (45%) than the Qigong group (18%). Conclusion Qigong had beneficial effects on glycemia and psychological measures in patients with type 2 diabetes, while results were less consistent for PRT. Compliance and dropout were better with Qigong than with exercise.