Qigong as a Complementary Intervention for Cognitive and Motor Decline in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease: A Literature Review

The global ageing population increases the incidence of neurodegenerative diseases, such as dementia and Parkinson's disease, with limited pharmacological treatments. Traditional Chi-nese Medicine, with practices like Qigong, offers promising complementary approaches. The ob-jective of this work is to contextualise and analyse the scientific evidence on the effects of Qigong as a complementary intervention on cognitive and motor decline associated with neurodegen-erative diseases, exploring the underlying mechanisms. For this purpose, a review of the scien-tific literature on the application of Qigong in the treatment of dementia and Parkinson's disease was conducted, focusing on clinical studies and mechanisms of action. Qigong shows positive ef-fects in preventing mild cognitive decline and in improving cognitive functions, such as memory and visuospatial ability. It reduces inflammatory and oxidative stress markers, im-proves metabolic and cardiovascular health, and modulates brain activity. In Parkinson's dis-ease, it stabilises motor performance, improves gait and sleep quality, and reduces inflammato-ry markers. Therefore, Qigong emerges as a promising intervention for cognitive and neurolog-ical health, with benefits ranging from the prevention of cognitive decline to the improvement of Parkinson's disease symptoms. The practice seems to modulate brain activity, produce bio-chemical effects, and improve motor function, contributing to increased quality of life. Addi-tional studies are needed to explore different forms of Qigong and its application in various types of dementia.