Exhausted trying to get better sleep?
You’re not alone if you experience chronic insomnia — about 12% of adults have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep or returning to sleep after waking up at night.
While many try cutting down on caffeine or working out to fall asleep, new research has found that one specific activity could make a difference when your head hits the pillow.
This exercise is so relaxing, researchers believe it’s just as effective as talk therapy, usually the go-to treatment for long-term insomnia.
According to the study, tai chi — a calming combination of gentle movement, breathwork and meditation — had similar benefits in middle-aged and older adults in a head-to-head matchup.
Although experts recommend seven to nine hours of rest each night to stay healthy, more than a third of adults don’t hit this number.
Lack of sleep can increase the risk of several chronic health problems like heart disease, dementia, depression and more.
While cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is the preferred treatment for a sleep disorder like insomnia, it can be expensive, and therapist options are limited, the researchers noted.
The study, published Wednesday in The BMJ, had 200 Chinese adults over the age of 50 undergo CBT or tai chi sessions for one hour twice a week.
Researchers used the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) to score sleep symptoms like difficulty falling and staying asleep, waking up too early and being unable to go back to sleep, and their impact on daily life.
While therapy had better results in the first three months, with a larger reduction in ISI scores, the groups saw similar scores and improvements in symptoms after more than a year.
This study follows earlier research showing the benefits of tai chi in middle-aged and older adults with insomnia.
A prior study determined that the mind-body exercise widely practiced in Chinese communities boosted sleep by over 50 minutes, shaved off more than 30 minutes of wakefulness and helped users drift off 25 minutes faster.
No direct comparisons had been made to other insomnia treatments, though.
Tai chi and CBT didn’t just improve sleep quality — the participants of this latest trial also saw boosts in mental health, physical activity levels and overall quality of life.
The positive effects of the ancient martial art may be linked to perpetual practice, as the study’s authors noted that participants continued to practice long after the trial concluded.
While CBT and talk therapy are still first-line treatments, the research for alternative approaches to managing sleep issues is promising.
“Our study supports tai chi as an alternative treatment approach for the long-term management of chronic insomnia in middle-aged and older adults,” the authors noted.
