Qigong and quality of life: research overview

Not medical advice. This page lists research about qigong and quality of life. It does not say whether qigong works for any person or condition. Talk to a qualified health professional before starting a new exercise program, especially if you have a medical condition.

Studies in PubMed

113 (tagged with “Quality of Life” as a major topic)

Years

2004–2026

Registered trials

0 on ClinicalTrials.gov

Types of studies

Each study is counted once, under its strongest type in this order: meta-analysis, systematic review, randomized controlled trial, clinical trial, review, observational study.

Studies, newest first

1. Auriculotherapy and Baduanjin Qigong on insomnia and quality of life in students: a quasi-experimental study. — Revista gaucha de enfermagem, 2026 · DOI
2. Baduanjin sequential therapy's effects on quality of life and cardiac function in post-cardiac surgery heart disease patients: A systematic review. — Medicine, 2026 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
3. Comparative efficacy of mind-body exercises on quality of life, anxiety, and depression in patients with breast cancer: a systematic review with pairwise and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. — Frontiers in public health, 2026 · DOISystematic Review
4. Effects of Baduanjin exercise on sleep quality, depressive symptoms, quality of life, and body composition in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. — Frontiers in public health, 2026 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
5. Effects of Baduanjin on anxiety, depressive symptoms, and quality of life in patients with primary glaucoma: A randomized controlled trial. — Complementary therapies in clinical practice, 2026 · DOIRandomized Controlled Trial
6. Effects of Health Qigong on quality of life, physical function, and mental health in older adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. — Frontiers in public health, 2026 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
7. Effects of acupuncture combined with Baduanjin on muscle mass, strength, and quality of life in older adults with sarcopenia: A randomized controlled trial. — Journal of back and musculoskeletal rehabilitation, 2026 · DOIRandomized Controlled Trial
8. Effects of different mind-body exercises on quality of life and cancer-related fatigue in breast cancer survivors: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. — Journal of cancer survivorship : research and practice, 2026 · DOISystematic Review
9. Exercise interventions for health-related quality of life, fatigue, depression, and anxiety in colorectal cancer survivors: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. — Journal of gastrointestinal surgery : official journal of the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract, 2026 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
10. Mechanisms of simplified sitting Badunjin effects on symptom burden: a network-based cross-lagged analysis in advanced cancer patients. — Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, 2026 · DOIRandomized Controlled Trial
11. Optimal mind-body exercise for quality of life, anxiety, and depression in cancer patients and survivors: A pairwise, network, and dose-response meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. — Applied psychology. Health and well-being, 2026 · DOI
12. Quality of Life in Breast and Gynecological Cancer: A Review of Systematic Reviews, 1985-2025. — Asia-Pacific journal of clinical oncology, 2026 · DOISystematic Review
13. A Systematic Review of Tai Chi-based Interventions for Positive and Negative Symptoms, Cognitive Functioning, and Quality of Life in Psychosis. — Community mental health journal, 2025 · DOISystematic Review
14. Characteristics of rehabilitation programs for chronic respiratory diseases in Asia: A scoping review. — Respiratory medicine, 2025 · DOI
15. Comparative efficacy of mind-body exercise for pain, function, quality of life in knee osteoarthritis: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. — Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research, 2025 · DOISystematic Review
16. Effectiveness of Baduanjin exercise on pulmonary function, quality of life, psychological well-being and exercise tolerance in postoperative patients with non-small cell lung cancer: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. — Explore (New York, N.Y.), 2025 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
17. Effectiveness of qigong and Tai Chi for quality of life in patients with cancer: an umbrella review and meta-analysis. — BMC complementary medicine and therapies, 2025 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
18. Effects of Baduanjin on exercise tolerance, cardiac function, and quality of life in patients with heart failure: A systematic review and meta-analysis. — Complementary therapies in medicine, 2025 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
19. Effects of cultural-artistic rehabilitation activities on quality of life, anxiety and depression, and self-management level of maintenance hemodialysis: A propensity-score-matched study. — Complementary therapies in medicine, 2025 · DOI
20. Effects of exercise interventions on cognition, physical function and quality of life among older adults with cognitive frailty: A systematic review and meta-analysis. — Geriatric nursing (New York, N.Y.), 2025 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
21. Four MBE Therapies to Improve Pain Scores, Physical Functioning, and Quality of Life in Patients With Chronic Nonspecific Low Back Pain: Network Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials. — European journal of pain (London, England), 2025 · DOISystematic Review
22. Mind-body training outperforms other physical activities in reducing frailty and enhancing quality of life in older adults: a network meta-analysis. — Frontiers in public health, 2025 · DOISystematic Review
23. The Effectiveness of Mind-Body Exercise on Health-Related Quality of Life and Mental Health During and After Breast Cancer Treatment: An Umbrella Review of Meta-Analyses for Randomized Controlled Trials. — Worldviews on evidence-based nursing, 2025 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
24. The clinical effective of Baduanjin rehabilitation training on limb motor function, daily life, and quality of life in elderly patients with hemiplegia after stroke. — Medicine, 2025 · DOI
25. Validation of a Qigong quality of life questionnaire (3Q instrument) in patients with cancer: a study protocol. — BMJ open, 2025 · DOI
26. Baduanjin Mind-Body Exercise for Cancer-Related Fatigue: Protocol for a Remotely Delivered Randomized Wait-List Controlled Feasibility Study. — Integrative cancer therapies, 2024 · DOI
27. Baduanjin for ischemic heart failure with mildly reduced/preserved ejection fraction (BEAR Trial): A randomized controlled trial. — Journal of evidence-based medicine, 2024 · DOIRandomized Controlled Trial
28. Comparative Effects of Exercise Interventions and Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Cognitive Impairment and Quality of Life in Breast Cancer Survivors During or After Cancer Treatment: A Systematic Review and Bayesian Network Meta-analysis. — American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitation, 2024 · DOISystematic Review
29. Effect of Exercise on Fatigue in Patients Receiving Maintenance Hemodialysis Treatment: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis. — American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitation, 2024 · DOISystematic Review
30. Effect of Qigong exercise on quality of life and cortisol in patients with cancer: a non-randomized controlled trial. — Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, 2024 · DOI
31. Effects of Qigong Therapy on the Psychological Well-Being, Physical Health State, Sleep State, and Life Satisfaction of Older Adults Living in Community. — Holistic nursing practice, 2024 · DOI
32. Effects of mind-body exercise on physical ability, mental health and quality of life in stroke patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis. — Frontiers in public health, 2024 · DOIMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
33. Efficacy and safety of mind-body exercise for patients with axial spondyloarthritis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. — Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research, 2024 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
34. Efficacy of Qigong Baduanjin on nutritional status and quality of life in patients on haemodialysis: study protocol for a prospective randomised controlled trial. — BMJ open, 2024 · DOI
35. Network meta-analysis evaluating the impact of diverse exercise regimens on quality of life in women post-breast cancer surgery. — Medicine, 2024 · DOI
36. Some types of exercise interventions are more effective than others in people with coronary heart disease: systematic review and network meta-analysis. — Journal of physiotherapy, 2024 · DOISystematic Review
37. The impact of mind-body exercise on the quality of life in older adults: the chain mediation effect of perceived social support and psychological resilience. — Frontiers in public health, 2024 · DOI
38. The impact of various mind-body exercises on cardiorespiratory function and quality of life in heart failure patients: A network meta-analysis. — Current problems in cardiology, 2024 · DOI
39. [Effects of Qigong on Cancer-Related Fatigue, Sleep Disturbance, Cognitive Impairment, and Quality of Life in Breast Cancer Survivors: A Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis]. — Hu li za zhi The journal of nursing, 2024 · DOISystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
40. Effectiveness of mind-body exercise via Baduanjin on physical and psychological outcomes in patients with pulmonary ground-glass nodules: A non-randomized controlled pilot study. — Complementary therapies in clinical practice, 2023 · DOI

73 more studies on PubMed

Government health information

The U.S. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health summarizes the evidence on qigong.

Study list: PubMed (U.S. National Library of Medicine), citation data only. Trials: ClinicalTrials.gov. Retrieved 2026-10-22.

Data: PubMed (NLM citation data, free to use (abstracts not reproduced)); ClinicalTrials.gov (Public domain (U.S. Government work)); NCCIH (Public domain (U.S. Government work)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.