Qigong trial reported improved anxiety and stress scores during pregnancy
A trial during the second trimester found favorable changes with qigong, but its abstract leaves the comparative effect on anxiety and stress unclear.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Anxiety, stress, and exercise-confidence scores improved within the qigong group. The abstract does not clearly report between-group differences for those outcomes, so improvement in one group alone does not establish superiority over counseling. It does explicitly report smaller increases in blood pressure with qigong, a different outcome from reduced anxiety or stress.
The abstract omits intervention duration, effect sizes, and adverse-event results. High-risk pregnancies were excluded, limiting applicability, and the reported results cannot establish safety for all pregnant people.
What was measured
Researchers measured pregnancy-related anxiety, stress, and confidence in exercising using questionnaires. They also recorded blood pressure. Anxiety and stress scores improved significantly within the qigong group, while the control group had no statistically significant changes.
Reading the comparisons carefully
A significant change in one group and a nonsignificant change in another do not establish a significant difference between groups. The explicit blood-pressure comparison concerned smaller increases, which should not be described as a blood-pressure reduction.
The original publication
Effects of qigong for physical and psychological well-being in pregnancy: A multicenter randomized controlled trial.
Dundar Ahi E, Kuculmez O, Ikbali Afsar S et al.
Complement Ther Med · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 41176183
- Record checked
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