Saturday

Western Doctors Take Notice of Benefits from Qigong

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GENE RANDALL, CNN ANCHOR: In case were you wondering today is World Tai Chi and Qigong Day. Proponents of the ancient Chinese health practices say they promote the flow of energy throughout the body. Many Western medical experts are also beginning to take notice of the benefits.

CNN's Robert Winstead explains the Eastern philosophy behind Qigong.

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ROBERT WINSTEAD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dating back more than 4,000 years, the idea remains at the core of traditional Chinese medicine today. It is called "chi." It means "energy."

DONALD MEAD, QIGONG PRACTITIONER: In essence, every breath we talk is generating chi in the body.

WINSTEAD: Donald Mead practices Qigong, an ancient art for cultivating chi. He has studied with Qigong masters both in China and the United States.

MEAD: It's ideally for health maintenance, a daily ongoing practice, storing energy to carry me through the low times, so that when I have, like, an illness that starts coming on, my body can deal with it better if I have reserves.

WINSTEAD: The idea is that breath converts into chi energy in an area of the body called the dan tien, the seat of energy according to Chinese tradition. Chi is then sent through the body, promoting and maintaining health. If the flow becomes blocked, that's when health problems develop.

MASTER LIANG SHIU-YU, QIGONG INSTRUCTOR: If people have high blood pressure or if people have diabetes, some people have cancers, they do chi exercises that make them better.

WINSTEAD: Master Liang Shiu-Yu has been teaching chi for over 30 years.

SHIU-YU: We think about energy from the universe through our body, wash our body, clean our body. And the impurity, bad things, go out. We imagine that, and it does help.

MEAD: The physical movement can relieve blockages in a person's energy.

WINSTEAD: In some case, chi doctors, like this one at the Chinese army hospital in Beijing, claim they can use their own chi energy to help patients.

Only recently have Western researchers begun to take a serious look at Qigong. And while they haven't identified any structures in the body to back up the claims of Qigong enthusiasts, a large amount of validating research has been done, though mainly in China. Doctors warn, Qigong should not be used in lieu of standard medical therapy, especially for serious diseases like cancer.

With millions of practitioners in China and a growing number in the West, the exercises of Qigong will continue to be one gentle way people can use to take charge of improving their own health and well being.

Robert Winstead, CNN.

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