http://www.oprah.com/health/omag/health_omag_200710_yoga_101.jhtml
Depression
Low brain levels of the neurotransmitter GABA are often found in people with
depression; SSRIs, electroconvulsive therapy, and now yoga, it seems, can boost
GABA. Preliminary research out of the Boston University School of Medicine and
Harvard's McLean Hospital found that healthy subjects who practiced yoga for
one hour had a 27 percent increase in levels of GABA compared with a control
group that simply sat and read for an hour. This supports a growing body of
research that's proving yoga can significantly improve mood and reduce the
symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Heart Disease
Several trials have found that yoga can lower blood pressure, cholesterol, and
resting heart rates, and help slow the progression of atherosclerosis—all risk
factors for heart disease, says Erin Olivo, PhD, director of Columbia
University's Integrative Medicine Program.
While almost any exercise is good for the heart, experts speculate yoga's
meditative component may give it an extra boost by helping to stabilize the
endothelium, the lining of the blood vessels that, when irritated, contributes
to cardiovascular disease. Since the lining is reactive to stress, and
meditation can lower stress hormones, yoga may be causing a cascade of events
that could reduce your risk of a heart attack or stroke.
Breast Cancer
Research is becoming clear on this: Women who do yoga during and after
treatment experience less physical discomfort and stress. Earlier this year
Duke University scientists reported results of a pilot study in which women
with metastatic breast cancer attended eight weekly yoga sessions. The doctors
found that the women had much less pain and felt more energetic and relaxed.
Menopause
A preliminary study at the University of California, San Francisco, found that
menopausal women who took two months of a weekly restorative yoga class, which
uses props to support the postures, reported a 30 percent decrease in hot
flashes. A four-month study at the University of Illinois found that many women
who took a 90-minute Iyengar class twice a week boosted both their energy and
mood; plus they reported less physical and sexual discomfort, and reduced
stress and anxiety.
Chronic Back Pain
When doctors at the HMO Group Health Cooperative in Seattle pitted 12 weekly
sessions of yoga against therapeutic exercises and a handbook on self-care,
they discovered the yoga group not only showed greater improvement but
experienced benefits lasting 14 weeks longer. A note of caution: "While many
poses are helpful, seated postures or extreme movement in one direction can
make back pain worse," says Gary Kraftsow, author of Yoga for Wellness, who
designed the program for the study.
Umesh Sharma
Washington D.C.
1-202-215-4328 [Cell]
Ed.M. - International Education Policy
Harvard Graduate School of Education,
Harvard University,
Class of 2005
http://www.uknow.gse.harvard.edu/index.html (Edu info)
http://hbswk.hbs.edu/ (Management Info)
www.gse.harvard.edu/iep (where the above 2 are used )
http://jaipurschool.bihu.in/
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