Its benefits are self-evident to those who have tried it. They talk of feeling more relaxed, of gaining strength and mobility. Their blood pressure has fallen and their general fitness levels have increased.

For a small number of grateful exponents in one part of Scotland the slow movements and body control of tai chi have been a boon to health.

But the country's first publicly funded community project to help people with chronic illnesses improve their fitness and stress levels using tai chi is under threat.

Despite numerous studies showing just how extensive the health positives of the discipline are - the latest has shown that tai chi exercises could help diabetics control their blood-sugar levels - government funding for a project that has been helping dozens of patients in Dumfries and Galloway is in danger of drying up.

The Thistledown Tai Chi project in Dumfries is run by Sandra Combe, 59, a PE teacher with nearly 40 years' experience who took early retirement after developing arthritis in her neck, and her husband, Mike, 59, a retired adult education worker who suffered a heart attack seven years ago.

Both turned to tai chi to help them recuperate from their conditions. Both believe the programme is making positive changes to people's lives.

The Combes say in a report that members of the group are now motivated to take other measures to improve their health, after becoming fitter and healthier practising tai chi.

"By funding this class the NHS is recognising the situation and validating their needs," the Combes said. "People see themselves as making use of a relevant and helpful service."

Mrs Combe is the martial arts specialist, having started tai chi four years ago under the tutelage of Dr Paul Lam, an Australian GP who won a gold medal at the third International Tai Chi Competition in Beijing in 1993. She has qualifications to teach tai chi for health with specific reference to conditions such as diabetes and arthritis.

Mr Combe helps with issues of stress, relaxation and anxiety.

The two-hour-a-week sessions are a short form of tai chi that includes a warm-up and some "accessible" exercises followed by 10 minutes of relaxation.

The physical techniques of tai chi are characterised by the use of leverage through the joints based on slow, repetitive movements and co-ordination in relaxation, rather than muscular tension. Accurate, repeated practice of the art is said to retrain posture, encourage circulation in bodies and maintain flexibility through joints.

Mr Combe said he began tai chi two years ago and joins in with his wife's sessions.

"These people are not aspiring to be martial arts experts," he said. "All they are doing is doing the exercise on a regular basis, and they are finding their blood pressure will go down, and strength and stamina increase.

"When you are working with people who have been diagnosed with all these various ailments, to say now you are starting exercising' is a big ask, because the confidence is low and they are a bit shaky.

"The real spin-off is that when you do it, you get confidence and you start to believe in yourself. People are then going to go walking and become interested in taking a hold of their diet. You think you can do something about the situation."

More than 2.3 million people in the UK have diabetes, including more than 200,000 in Scotland, while up to another 750,000 are sufferers but do not know it.

About 80% of diabetes sufferers die from a heart-related problem and they are 15 times more likely to undergo leg amputation because arteries have become blocked.

One of the group members, Bill Howatt, is a 55-year-old retired community nurse who was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes eight years ago and is a member of the Diabetic Support Group in Dumfries. He became interested in tai chi after Mrs Combe gave a talk at one of the group's meetings.

Since then he has lost one-and-a-half stone and his HbA1c (blood sugar) levels, which were at a dangerous 9.7, have dropped to a more acceptable seven, echoing the results of the scientific examination into the benefit of tai chi.

"I wondered whether this diabetes was a death sentence, basically," he said.

"You couldn't see me going to a gym with all these hard bodies and six packs and whatever, so tai chi was an attraction.

"I would be lucky to last a couple of weeks in a gym but here I have lasted since I started last April. It has been really really good, calming - it's exercise but it doesn't feel like exercise.

"You're not sweating, and you're not shattered at the end of it. You feel completely energised.

"It's a nice mix, especially for someone of my tender years who really hasn't been that well used to exercise.

"Now I am also walking an hour a day, seven days a week to try and keep the weight down, and tai chi has given me the confidence to do that.

"I think coming to tai chi has enabled me to get control of this diabetes. It's not a cure, of course, but it's making me feel great about myself."

Linda McKay, 55, a retired midwife, was diagnosed with breast cancer in November and is taking part in the classes while undergoing chemotherapy.

"The stress levels are high when you get diagnosed and I was very anxious to begin with, but when you come here you forget and it puts you in balance."

Ann Downing, 53, a former nurse suffers from Crohn's disease, a severe bowel illness, and has also been with the group since it started.

"I have had a lot of surgery, but coming here helps me cope with things better," she said. "It keeps you calm and helps you relax a bit more and you always know there is someone to talk to as well. This is one of the best things the NHS has done for us."