Health-promoting effect of LBP and healthy Qigong exercise on physiological functions in old subjects

The aim of this study was to ascertain whether the Lycium barbarum polysaccharides (LBP) and healthy Qigong exercise had an effect on the prevention of atherosclerosis in the elderly. LBP was prepared and determined using High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Results showed that the LBP mainly consisted of rhamnose, arabinose, ribose, mannose, galactose, fructose, xylose and glucose with a molar ratio of 1:6.78:0.21:0.63:9.34:0.51:3.11:2.82. LBP was administrated to male subjects for 3 months. Pharmacological function of LBP was further compared with Healthy Qigong exercise. On the basis of experimental result, LBP administration and healthy Qigong exercise is believed to aid in preventing atherosclerosis by the modulation of blood pressure, and by reducing plasma triglycerides, total cholesterol, and low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, elevating HDL cholesterol in the elderly. The health-promotion effect healthy Qigong exercise can be comparable to that of LBP.