1 1203 110 EXPECTATIONS AND EFFECTS OF A SINGLE YOGA SESSION ON PAIN PERCEPTION. BACKGROUND: SEVERAL STUDIES SHOW YOGA MAY BENEFIT CHRONIC PAIN MANAGEMENT. WE INVESTIGATED THE EFFECT OF A SINGLE YOGA SESSION ON THE PERCEPTION OF PAIN, MEASURED BY A STANDARDIZED PAIN PROVOCATION TEST IN HEALTHY YOGA PARTICIPANTS WHILE ALSO COMPARING PAIN PERCEPTION TO PARTICIPANTS' OWN EXPECTATIONS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: NINETY YOGA PARTICIPANTS WERE RECRUITED AT HATHA YOGA SCHOOLS IN SWITZERLAND. PAIN PERCEPTION WAS MEASURED WITH A STANDARDIZED ALGOMETRIC PAIN PROVOCATION TEST; I.E., A CALIBRATED PEG WAS APPLIED FOR 10 SECONDS AFTER WHICH THE PARTICIPANT RATED PAIN INTENSITY ON A 0-10 NUMERICAL RATING SCALE. THE TEST WAS APPLIED TO THE MIDDLE FINGER, EAR LOBE, AND SECOND TOE BEFORE AND AFTER A 60-MINUTE YOGA SESSION. RESULTS: SIXTY OUT OF 90 (66.7%) YOGA PARTICIPANTS EXPECTED A REDUCED PAIN PERCEPTION AFTER THE YOGA SESSION. HOWEVER, 36 (40%) PARTICIPANTS ACTUALLY EXPERIENCED LESS PAIN AFTER COMPARED TO BEFORE THE YOGA SESSION. BUT OVERALL, PAIN PERCEPTION STATISTICALLY DID NOT SIGNIFICANTLY CHANGE FROM BEFORE TO AFTER THE YOGA SESSION AT ANY OF THE THREE BODY LOCATIONS ASSESSED. THE EXPECTATIONS AND ALSO THE PREVIOUS YOGA EXPERIENCE DID NOT SIGNIFICANTLY INFLUENCE THE PARTICIPANTS' PAIN PERCEPTION. CONCLUSIONS: REGARDLESS OF THE HIGH POSITIVE EXPECTATIONS ON THE INFLUENCE OF YOGA ON PAIN, A SINGLE YOGA SESSION DOES NOT SIGNIFICANTLY INFLUENCE PAIN PERCEPTION INDUCED BY A PAIN PROVOCATION TEST. HYPOALGESIC EFFECTS OF YOGA SHOULD BE EXPLAINED OTHERWISE. 2015 2 2215 26 THE IMMEDIATE EFFECTS OF MODIFIED YOGA POSITIONS ON MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN RELIEF. MANY MUSCULOSKELETAL PAINS ARE RELATED TO POOR POSTURE. THUS, THE AIM OF THE PRESENT STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE EFFICIENCY OF A SINGLE SESSION OF TWO MODIFIED YOGA POSITIONS WITH 110 SUBJECTS AND THEIR 147 PAIN-RELATED COMPLAINTS. THE PARTICIPANTS WERE DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS: THE YOGA GROUP, WHICH RECEIVED TREATMENT OF TWO 20-MIN POSTURES AND THE CONTROL GROUP, WHICH RECEIVED A PLACEBO TREATMENT OF 15 MIN WITH A TURNED OFF ULTRASOUND. ALL VOLUNTEERS EXPERIENCED SOME PAIN BEFORE TREATMENT AND WERE ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER TREATMENT USING THE ANALOG PAIN SCALE. A SCORE OF 0 INDICATED NO PAIN WHEREAS 10 WAS THE MAXIMUM DEGREE OF PAIN ON THE SCALE. THE DIFFERENCE BEFORE AND AFTER TREATMENT WAS COMPARED BETWEEN THE GROUPS WITH A P-VALUE OF 0.0001, AS MEASURED BY THE STUDENT'S T-TEST. IT IS POSSIBLE TO CONCLUDE THAT ONE THERAPY SESSION IS EFFECTIVE IN THE TREATMENT OF VARIOUS MUSCULOSKELETAL PROBLEMS. 2013 3 2871 32 YOGA-BASED RELAXATION TECHNIQUE FACILITATES SUSTAINED ATTENTION IN PATIENTS WITH LOW BACK PAIN: A PILOT STUDY. CONTEXT: THE EXPERIENCE OF PAIN STRONGLY INFLUENCES SUSTAINED ATTENTION, WHICH IS IMPORTANT FOR NEUROCOGNITIVE PERFORMANCE. YOGA-BASED RELAXATION TECHNIQUES MAY BE EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING SUSTAINED ATTENTION BY ATTENUATING PAIN IN PATIENTS WITH LOW BACK PAIN. HENCE, WE AIMED TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF A YOGA-BASED RELAXATION TECHNIQUE ON SUSTAINED ATTENTION AND SELF-REPORTED PAIN DISABILITY IN PATIENTS WITH LOW BACK PAIN. METHODS: A TOTAL OF 22 MEN AGED 30 TO 50 YEARS WITH LOW BACK PAIN WERE RECRUITED FOR THE STUDY. THEY WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EITHER THE YOGA (N = 11) OR CONTROL (N = 11) GROUPS. THE YOGA GROUP PRACTICED A YOGA-BASED RELAXATION TECHNIQUE (YBRT) 1 HOUR A DAY FOR 4 WEEKS AND THE CONTROL GROUP MAINTAINED THEIR USUAL PHYSICAL ACTIVITY REGIMEN. ASSESSMENTS INCLUDED THE SUSTAINED ATTENTION TO RESPONSE TASK (SART) AND THE OSWESTRY LOW BACK PAIN DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE (OLBPDQ) MEASURED BEFORE AND AFTER THE 4-WEEK INTERVENTION. RESULTS: THE STUDY SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN ALL SELF-REPORTED OLBPDQ DOMAINS AND IMPROVEMENT IN SUSTAINED ATTENTION IN A BEFORE AND AFTER COMPARISON 4 WEEKS FOLLOWING THE YOGA INTERVENTION. PEARSON'S CORRELATION ALSO SHOWED A POSITIVE CORRELATION BETWEEN SUSTAINED ATTENTION AND PAIN REDUCTION FOLLOWING THE YOGA INTERVENTION. CONCLUSION: THE FINDINGS INDICATE THAT YOGA PRACTICE REDUCES PAIN AND SIMULTANEOUSLY IMPROVES INFORMATION PROCESSING SPEED WITH IMPULSE CONTROL DURING THE PERFORMANCE OF A SUSTAINED ATTENTION TASK. 2020 4 248 26 A YOGA INTERVENTION FOR YOUNG ADULTS WITH ELEVATED SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION. CONTEXT: YOGA TEACHERS AND STUDENTS OFTEN REPORT THAT YOGA HAS AN UPLIFTING EFFECT ON THEIR MOODS, BUT SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ON YOGA AND DEPRESSION IS LIMITED. OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF A SHORT-TERM IYENGAR YOGA COURSE ON MOOD IN MILDLY DEPRESSED YOUNG ADULTS. DESIGN: YOUNG ADULTS PRE-SCREENED FOR MILD LEVELS OF DEPRESSION WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO A YOGA COURSE OR WAIT-LIST CONTROL GROUP. SETTING: COLLEGE CAMPUS RECREATION CENTER. PARTICIPANTS: TWENTY-EIGHT VOLUNTEERS AGES 18 TO 29. AT INTAKE, ALL PARTICIPANTS WERE EXPERIENCING MILD LEVELS OF DEPRESSION, BUT HAD RECEIVED NO CURRENT PSYCHIATRIC DIAGNOSES OR TREATMENTS. NONE HAD SIGNIFICANT YOGA EXPERIENCE. INTERVENTION: SUBJECTS IN THE YOGA GROUP ATTENDED TWO 1-HOUR IYENGAR YOGA CLASSES EACH WEEK FOR 5 CONSECUTIVE WEEKS. THE CLASSES EMPHASIZED YOGA POSTURES THOUGHT TO ALLEVIATE DEPRESSION, PARTICULARLY BACK BENDS, STANDING POSES, AND INVERSIONS. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY, STATE-TRAIT ANXIETY INVENTORY, PROFILE OF MOOD STATES, MORNING CORTISOL LEVELS. RESULTS: SUBJECTS WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE YOGA COURSE DEMONSTRATED SIGNIFICANT DECREASES IN SELF-REPORTED SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION AND TRAIT ANXIETY. THESE EFFECTS EMERGED BY THE MIDDLE OF THE YOGA COURSE AND WERE MAINTAINED BY THE END. CHANGES ALSO WERE OBSERVED IN ACUTE MOOD, WITH SUBJECTS REPORTING DECREASED LEVELS OF NEGATIVE MOOD AND FATIGUE FOLLOWING YOGA CLASSES. FINALLY, THERE WAS A TREND FOR HIGHER MORNING CORTISOL LEVELS IN THE YOGA GROUP BY THE END OF THE YOGA COURSE, COMPARED TO CONTROLS. THESE FINDINGS PROVIDE SUGGESTIVE EVIDENCE OF THE UTILITY OF YOGA ASANAS IN IMPROVING MOOD AND SUPPORT THE NEED FOR FUTURE STUDIES WITH LARGER SAMPLES AND MORE COMPLEX STUDY DESIGNS TO MORE FULLY EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON MOOD DISTURBANCES. 2004 5 60 30 A COMPARISON OF THE EFFECTS OF HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE ON MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN SEDENTARY ADULTS: A PILOT STUDY. OBJECTIVES: PHYSICAL ACTIVITY HAS A POSITIVE EFFECT ON PEOPLE'S MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO COMPARE THE EFFECTS OF HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISES ON MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN SEDENTARY ADULTS. DESIGN: RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY. METHODS: FIFTY-ONE PARTICIPANTS AGED MEAN (SD) 25.6 (5.7) YEARS WERE RANDOMLY DIVIDED INTO THREE GROUPS: HATHA YOGA GROUP, RESISTANCE EXERCISE GROUP AND CONTROL GROUP. THE HATHA YOGA GROUP AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE GROUP PARTICIPATED IN SESSIONS THREE DAYS PER WEEK FOR 7 WEEKS AND THE CONTROL GROUP DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN ANY SESSIONS. ALL THE SUBJECTS WERE EVALUATED THROUGH THE ROSENBERG SELF-ESTEEM SCALE, BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY, BODY CATHEXIS SCALE, NOTTINGHAM HEALTH PROFILE AND VISUAL ANALOG SCALE FOR FATIGUE PRE-AND POST-SESSION. RESULTS: SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS WERE FOUND IN TERMS OF ALL OUTCOME MEASURES IN THE HATHA YOGA GROUP AND THE RESISTANCE EXERCISE GROUP. NO IMPROVEMENTS WERE FOUND IN THE CONTROL GROUP. HATHA YOGA MORE IMPROVED THE DIMENSIONS FATIGUE, SELF-ESTEEM, AND QUALITY OF LIFE, WHILST RESISTANCE EXERCISE TRAINING MORE IMPROVED BODY IMAGE. HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE DECREASED DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS AT A SIMILAR LEVEL. CONCLUSION: THE RESULTS INDICATED THAT HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE HAD POSITIVE EFFECTS ON MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN SEDENTARY ADULTS. HATHA YOGA AND RESISTANCE EXERCISE MAY AFFECT DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. 2014 6 2235 22 THE IMPACT OF YOGA UPON FEMALE PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM HYPOTHYROIDISM. OBJECTIVE: TO STUDY THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF FEMALE HYPOTHYROID PATIENTS. DESIGN: THE WHO QUALITY OF LIFE SCALE(22) WAS USED TO ASSESS THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF 20 FEMALE HYPOTHYROID PATIENTS. SUBJECTS ATTENDED ONE HOUR YOGA SESSIONS DAILY FOR A PERIOD OF ONE MONTH. A PRETEST-POST-TEST RESEARCH DESIGN WAS USED FOR DATA ANALYSIS. RESULTS: PATIENTS' QUALITY OF LIFE SCORES FOLLOWING THE YOGA PROGRAM WERE GREATER THAN SCORES OBTAINED PRIOR TO UNDERTAKING YOGA (P < 0.01). PATIENTS ALSO REPORTED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN THEIR PERCEPTION OF THE OVERALL QUALITY OF LIFE AND OF THEIR HEALTH POST YOGA INTERVENTION. CONCLUSIONS: IT CAN BE CONCLUDED THAT YOGA IS VALUABLE IN HELPING THE HYPOTHYROID PATIENTS TO MANAGE THEIR DISEASE-RELATED SYMPTOMS. YOGA MAY BE CONSIDERED AS SUPPORTIVE OR COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY IN CONJUNCTION WITH MEDICAL THERAPY FOR THE TREATMENT OF HYPOTHYROID DISORDER. 2011 7 2222 38 THE IMPACT OF MODIFIED HATHA YOGA ON CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN: A PILOT STUDY. PURPOSE: THE PURPOSE OF THIS RANDOMIZED PILOT STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE A POSSIBLE DESIGN FOR A 6-WEEK MODIFIED HATHA YOGA PROTOCOL TO STUDY THE EFFECTS ON PARTICIPANTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. PARTICIPANTS: TWENTY-TWO PARTICIPANTS (M = 4; F = 17), BETWEEN THE AGES OF 30 AND 65, WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN (CLBP) WERE RANDOMIZED TO EITHER AN IMMEDIATE YOGA BASED INTERVENTION, OR TO A CONTROL GROUP WITH NO TREATMENT DURING THE OBSERVATION PERIOD BUT RECEIVED LATER YOGA TRAINING. METHODS: A SPECIFIC CLBP YOGA PROTOCOL DESIGNED AND MODIFIED FOR THIS POPULATION BY A CERTIFIED YOGA INSTRUCTOR WAS ADMINISTERED FOR ONE HOUR, TWICE A WEEK FOR 6 WEEKS. PRIMARY FUNCTIONAL OUTCOME MEASURES INCLUDED THE FORWARD REACH (FR) AND SIT AND REACH (SR) TESTS. ALL PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED OSWESTRY DISABILITY INDEX (ODI) AND BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY (BDI) QUESTIONNAIRES. GUIDING QUESTIONS WERE USED FOR QUALITATIVE DATA ANALYSIS TO ASCERTAIN HOW YOGA PARTICIPANTS PERCEIVED THE INSTRUCTOR, GROUP DYNAMICS, AND THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON THEIR LIFE. ANALYSIS: TO ACCOUNT FOR DROP OUTS, THE DATA WERE DIVIDED INTO BETTER OR NOT CATEGORIES, AND ANALYZED USING CHI-SQUARE TO EXAMINE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE GROUPS. QUALITATIVE DATA WERE ANALYZED THROUGH FREQUENCY OF POSITIVE RESPONSES. RESULTS: POTENTIALLY IMPORTANT TRENDS IN THE FUNCTIONAL MEASUREMENT SCORES SHOWED IMPROVED BALANCE AND FLEXIBILITY AND DECREASED DISABILITY AND DEPRESSION FOR THE YOGA GROUP BUT THIS PILOT WAS NOT POWERED TO REACH STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE. SIGNIFICANT LIMITATIONS INCLUDED A HIGH DROPOUT RATE IN THE CONTROL GROUP AND LARGE BASELINE DIFFERENCES IN THE SECONDARY MEASURES. IN ADDITION, ANALYSIS OF THE QUALITATIVE DATA REVEALED THE FOLLOWING FREQUENCY OF RESPONSES (1) GROUP INTERVENTION MOTIVATED THE PARTICIPANTS AND (2) YOGA FOSTERED RELAXATION AND NEW AWARENESS/LEARNING. CONCLUSION: A MODIFIED YOGA-BASED INTERVENTION MAY BENEFIT INDIVIDUALS WITH CLB, BUT A LARGER STUDY IS NECESSARY TO PROVIDE DEFINITIVE EVIDENCE. ALSO, THE IMPACT ON DEPRESSION AND DISABILITY COULD BE CONSIDERED AS IMPORTANT OUTCOMES FOR FURTHER STUDY. ADDITIONAL FUNCTIONAL OUTCOME MEASURES SHOULD BE EXPLORED. THIS PILOT STUDY SUPPORTS THE NEED FOR MORE RESEARCH INVESTIGATING THE EFFECT OF YOGA FOR THIS POPULATION. 2004 8 1076 30 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES, ANXIETY AND SOCIAL FUNCTIONING IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS PATIENTS: A RANDOMIZED TRIAL. INTRODUCTION: MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (MS) AS A CHRONIC DISEASE COULD AFFECT PATIENTS' VARIOUS DOMAINS OF LIFE. AIM: THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO STUDY THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON THE PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES, ANXIETY AND SOCIAL FUNCTIONING OF PATIENTS WITH MS IN SOUTHWEST, IRAN. MATERIALS AND METHODS: IN THIS CLINICAL TRIAL STUDY, 60 MS PATIENTS WERE ENROLLED ACCORDING TO INCLUSION CRITERIA AND RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO TWO GROUPS OF 30 EACH. PRIOR TO AND AFTER INTERVENTION, THE PATIENTS' VITAL SIGNS WERE MEASURED. FOR CASE GROUP YOGA EXERCISES WERE PERFORMED THREE SESSIONS A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS WHILE CONTROL GROUP PERFORMED NO EXERCISE. THE DATA WERE GATHERED BY QUESTIONNAIRE AND ANALYSED BY DESCRIPTIVE AND ANALYTICAL STATISTICS IN SPSS. RESULTS: PRIOR TO INTERVENTION, THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN FATIGUE SEVERITY AND PAIN BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS BUT THE MEAN FATIGUE SEVERITY AND PAIN IN CASE GROUP DECREASED COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP AFTER THE INTERVENTION. PRIOR TO INTERVENTION, THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN MEAN PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS BUT THE MEAN PHYSIOLOGICAL INDICES IN CASE GROUP DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY AFTER THE INTERVENTION (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: YOGA IS LIKELY TO INCREASE SELF-EFFICACY OF MS PATIENTS THROUGH ENHANCING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, INCREASING THE STRENGTH OF LOWER LIMBS AND BALANCE, AND DECREASING FATIGUE AND PAIN, AND FINALLY TO PROMOTE SOCIAL FUNCTIONING AND TO RELIEVE STRESS AND ANXIETY IN THESE PATIENTS. 2016 9 1707 27 PATTERNS OF YOGA PRACTICE AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOLLOWING A YOGA INTERVENTION FOR ADULTS WITH OR AT RISK FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES. BACKGROUND: THE CURRENT STUDY DESCRIBED PATTERNS OF YOGA PRACTICE AND EXAMINED DIFFERENCES IN PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OVER TIME BETWEEN INDIVIDUALS WITH OR AT RISK FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES WHO COMPLETED AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION COMPARED WITH CONTROLS. METHODS: A LONGITUDINAL COMPARATIVE DESIGN MEASURED THE EFFECT OF A YOGA INTERVENTION ON YOGA PRACTICE AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY, USING DATA AT BASELINE AND POSTINTERVENTION MONTHS 3, 6, AND 15. RESULTS: DISPARATE PATTERNS OF YOGA PRACTICE OCCURRED BETWEEN INTERVENTION AND CONTROL PARTICIPANTS OVER TIME, BUT THE SUBJECTIVE DEFINITION OF YOGA PRACTICE LIMITS INTERPRETATION. MULTILEVEL MODEL ESTIMATES INDICATED THAT TREATMENT GROUP DID NOT HAVE A SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCE IN THE RATE OF CHANGE IN PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OVER THE STUDY PERIOD. WHILE AGE AND EDUCATION WERE NOT SIGNIFICANT INDIVIDUAL PREDICTORS, THE INCLUSION OF THESE VARIABLES IN THE MODEL DID IMPROVE FIT. CONCLUSIONS: FINDINGS INDICATE THAT AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION HAD LITTLE EFFECT ON PHYSICAL ACTIVITY OVER TIME. FURTHER RESEARCH IS NECESSARY TO EXPLORE THE INFLUENCE OF YOGA ON BEHAVIORAL HEALTH OUTCOMES AMONG INDIVIDUALS WITH OR AT RISK FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES. 2012 10 1616 25 MINDFUL AWARENESS FOR FEMALE DENTAL STUDENTS THROUGH YOGA, MOTIVATIONAL VIDEO, AND A COMBINATION OF TWO ON STRESS REDUCTION. OBJECTIVE: ASSESSMENT OF THE POTENTIAL EFFECT OF YOGA, MOTIVATIONAL VIDEOS, AND A COMBINATION OF TWO ON STRESS REDUCTION IN FEMALE DENTAL STUDENTS. METHODS: THE CURRENT STUDY DESIGN IS A NONRANDOMIZED TRIAL CARRIED OUT AMONG FEMALE DENTAL STUDENTS (N = 120). THE SELECTED SUBJECTS WERE ALLOCATED INTO THREE GROUPS, NAMELY, GROUP A: YOGA GROUP ASSIGNED UNDER A PROFESSIONAL YOGA INSTRUCTOR, GROUP B: MOTIVATIONAL VIDEO GROUP, AND GROUP C: A COMBINATION OF TWO (A AND B) INVOLVING YOGA SESSIONS AND MOTIVATIONAL VIDEOS; FOLLOWING WHICH FORMATIVE EXAMINATIONS WERE CARRIED OUT AT 6 WEEKS WHICH WERE REFERRED TO AS STRESSOR 1 AND THOSE CARRIED OUT AT 12 WEEKS WERE REFERRED TO AS STRESSOR 2. USING SPIELBERGER'S STATE-TRAIT ANXIETY INVENTORY FOR ADULTS (STAI-A) RECORDINGS WERE MEASURED AT BASELINE, STRESSOR 1, AND STRESSOR 2. RESULTS: THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN TRAIT ANXIETY SCORES AT BOTH STRESSORS IN ALL THE GROUPS WITH A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN DEPRESSION SCORE FROM STRESSOR 1 TO 2 IN GROUP 1 AND GROUP 3 SUBJECTS. THE SIGNIFICANT DECREASE OCCURRED IN STAI-A SCORES IN GROUP 1 AND GROUP 3 SUBJECTS AT BOTH STRESSORS (P < 0.001) WITH NO CHANGE OBSERVED IN GROUP 2 SUBJECTS. CONCLUSION: THE PRESENT STUDY IS ONE OF A KIND AND POSITIVELY CORRELATES YOGA AND MOTIVATIONAL VIDEOS WITH STRESS REDUCTION. BOTH OF THESE INTERVENTIONS PROVED TO BE BENEFICIARY FOR PHYSICAL AS WELL AS MENTAL HEALTH OF STUDY SUBJECTS. 2020 11 731 34 EFFECT OF MINDFULNESS YOGA ON DEPRESSION SEVERITY, SELF-ESTEEM, AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN MIDDLE-AGED MEN. BACKGROUND: WE AIMED TO CONDUCT A MINDFULNESS YOGA PROGRAM TO TREAT THE PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS OF MIDDLE-AGED MEN BY EXAMINING THE EFFECTS OF A MINDFULNESS YOGA PROGRAM ON DEPRESSION, SELF-ESTEEM, AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN THIS POPULATION. METHODS: THE PARTICIPANTS INCLUDED 50 MIDDLE-AGED MEN (AGED 40-60 YR) LIVING IN SEONGNAM-SI, KOREA. TWENTY-FIVE MEN WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP AND 25 WERE ASSIGNED TO THE CONTROL GROUP. THE MINDFULNESS YOGA PROGRAM WAS CONDUCTED TWICE A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS, AND EACH SESSION LASTED APPROXIMATELY 75 MIN. BEFORE THE FIRST SESSION, A PRE-TEST WAS CONDUCTED, AFTER WHICH THE PROGRAM BEGAN. QUESTIONNAIRES WERE COMPLETED AFTER THE 4TH, 8TH, AND 12TH WEEKS OF THE PROGRAM, AND THE CONTROL GROUP UNDERWENT PSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS AT THE SAME TIME POINTS. A TWO-WAY (2 X 4) REPEATED MEASURES ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE WAS CONDUCTED, AND WHEN THE INTERACTION EFFECT WAS SIGNIFICANT, A POST-HOC TEST (BONFERRONI) WAS PERFORMED. RESULTS: IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP, DEPRESSION SEVERITY SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED (P<0.001) AND SELF-ESTEEM SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED (P<0.01). FURTHERMORE, THE INTERVENTION GROUP ALSO SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN PSYCHOLOGICAL (P<0.001), SOCIAL (P<0.001), AND OVERALL QUALITY OF LIFE (P<0.001) AMONG THE SUB-DIMENSIONS OF QUALITY OF LIFE. CONCLUSION: MIDDLE-AGED MEN SHOULD BE MADE AWARE OF THE USEFULNESS OF MINDFULNESS YOGA AND ENCOURAGED TO PARTICIPATE IN SUCH PROGRAMS. MINDFULNESS YOGA MAY BE CONSIDERED AS AN ALTERNATIVE TREATMENT STRATEGY THAT PROMOTES THE NATURAL HEALING AND MANAGEMENT OF PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES FACED BY MIDDLE-AGED MEN. 2021 12 1826 23 PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF LAUGHTER YOGA SESSIONS IN JAPAN: A PILOT STUDY. THE PURPOSE OF THIS PILOT STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE AND EVALUATE THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF MULTIPLE SESSIONS OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON COMMUNITY MEMBERS. PARTICIPANTS TOOK PART IN A 45 MIN LAUGHTER YOGA SESSION ONCE PER MONTH FOR 6 MONTHS. BEFORE AND AFTER ALL SESSIONS, PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED THE PROFILE OF MOOD STATES-BRIEF JAPANESE VERSION (J-POMS-B) QUESTIONNAIRE TO ASSESS THEIR MOOD, AND HAD BLOOD DRAWN FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF STRESS INDICATORS AND IMMUNE FUNCTION. SERIAL CHANGES IN J-POMS-B SCORES WERE TESTED BY THREE WAY ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE, AND CHANGES IN LABORATORY RESULTS PER SESSION WERE EVALUATED WITH A PAIRED T-TEST. THE RESULTS SHOWED THAT REPEATED SESSIONS OF LAUGHTER YOGA HAD PSYCHOLOGICALLY BENEFICIAL EFFECTS, ESPECIALLY ON THE ASPECTS OF TENSION-ANXIETY, AND VIGOR. ADRENOCORTICOTROPIC HORMONE AND CORTISOL VALUES RELATED TO THE PARTICIPANTS' STRESS LEVELS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED AFTER THE FOURTH LAUGHTER YOGA SESSION. THESE RESULTS INDICATED THAT MULTIPLE LAUGHTER YOGA SESSIONS APPEARED TO BE EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING THE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL STATUS OF HEALTHY ADULTS. 2018 13 976 31 EFFECTS OF AN INTERVENTION PROGRAM WITH HEALTH EDUCATION AND HATHA YOGA ON THE HEALTH OF PROFESSIONALS WITH MUSCULOSKELETAL SYMPTOMS. INTRODUCTION: MUSCULOSKELETAL AND MENTAL DISORDERS ARE RELEVANT IN THE WORKERS' DISEASE PROCESS, AND ERGONOMIC INTERVENTIONS THAT INCLUDE GUIDANCE AND PHYSICAL EXERCISE CONSIST OF STRATEGIES OF HEALTH PROMOTION. INTEGRATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY PRACTICES ARE PRESENTED AS A POSSIBILITY OF PROMOTING COMPREHENSIVE CARE AND YOGA CONSISTS OF A THERAPEUTIC ALTERNATIVE. OBJECTIVE: TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF AN INTERVENTION INCLUDING EDUCATIONAL MEASURES AND HATHA YOGA IN MUSCULOSKELETAL PAIN, DISABILITY, AND STRESS IN PROFESSIONALS OF A UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL. METHODS: WE SELECTED 125 PROFESSIONALS WITH MUSCULOSKELETAL SYMPTOMS OF INTENSITY >/= 1 WHO DID NOT PRACTICE YOGA AND RANDOMLY ASSIGNED THEM TO INTERVENTION (N = 63) AND CONTROL (N = 62) GROUPS, REQUESTING ANSWERS TO THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONNAIRES: INITIAL CHARACTERIZATION, THE NORDIC MUSCULOSKELETAL QUESTIONNAIRE AND A NUMERIC SCALE, THE PAIN DISABILITY QUESTIONNAIRE, AND THE PERCEIVED STRESS SCALE. THE INTERVENTION GROUP WENT THROUGH A 12-WEEK PROGRAM WITH EDUCATIONAL MEASURES AND HATHA YOGA. AT THE END OF THE STUDY PERIOD, BOTH GROUPS ANSWERED TO THE QUESTIONNAIRES ONCE AGAIN. WE COMPARED DATA BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION AND BETWEEN GROUPS. RESULTS: BOTH GROUPS PRESENTED IMPROVEMENTS AFTER 12 WEEKS, BUT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MEAN RESULTS OBTAINED IN THE FIRST AND SECOND DATA COLLECTIONS REVEALED THAT THE LEVELS OF PAIN, DISABILITY, AND STRESS DECREASED MORE STRONGLY IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP THAN IN THE CONTROL GROUP. CONSIDERING THAT THE INTERVENTION GROUP BEGAN THE PROGRAM IN WORSE CLINICAL CONDITIONS, THE PROGRAM LED TO A REDUCTION IN THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GROUPS, BUT THIS WAS NOT ENOUGH FOR THE INTERVENTION GROUP TO REACH BETTER RESULTS THAN THE CONTROL. CONCLUSIONS: THE INTERVENTION PROMOTED IMPROVEMENTS IN THE INTENSITY OF PAIN, DISABILITY, AND STRESS AMONG THE PARTICIPANTS OF THE INTERVENTION GROUP. SIMILAR PROGRAMS COULD BE EXPLORED IN THE PROMOTION OF OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH. 2020 14 936 26 EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA VERSUS EXERCISE FOR REDUCING FALLING RISK IN OLDER ADULTS: PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL INDICES. OUR PURPOSE IN THIS STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA TO ADDRESS MULTIPLE RISK FACTORS OF FALLING IN ACTIVE AND LOW ACTIVE OLDER ADULTS. COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS (N = 35) OVER THE AGE OF 65 ACTIVELY PARTICIPATED IN EITHER A YOGA PROGRAM, AN EXERCISE PROGRAM, OR A NO-PROGRAM CONTROL. PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED MEASURES ASSOCIATED WITH FALLING RISKS. PHYSICAL MEASURES INCLUDED LOWER BODY STRENGTH, STATIC BALANCE, AND LOWER BODY FLEXIBILITY. PSYCHOLOGICAL MEASURES INCLUDED PERCEIVED SELF-EFFICACY WITH RESPECT TO FALLS AND HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE. WE DETERMINED BETWEEN-GROUP DIFFERENCES USING PLANNED COMPARISONS, EFFECT SIZE, CONFIDENCE INTERVALS, AND PROBABILITY OF SUPERIORITY. RESULTS OF PLANNED COMPARISONS AND PRACTICAL SIGNIFICANCE TESTING INDICATED THAT YOGA PARTICIPANTS SCORED HIGHER THAN THE EXERCISE AND CONTROL PARTICIPANTS ON BOTH RIGHT AND LEFT LOWER BODY FLEXIBILITY TESTS. YOGA PARTICIPANTS ALSO SCORED HIGHER THAN THE CONTROL PARTICIPANTS ON RIGHT LEG STATIC BALANCE, AND THE RIGHT AND LEFT LOWER BODY FLEXIBILITY TESTS. THE EXERCISE PARTICIPANTS SCORED HIGHER THAN YOGA PARTICIPANTS ON THE RAND-36 QUALITY OF LIFE SUBSCALES OF ENERGY/FATIGUE, PAIN, AND GENERAL HEALTH. THE PROBABILITY OF SUPERIORITY RESULTS INDICATED THAT THE NO-PROGRAM OLDER ADULT PARTICIPANTS WOULD BENEFIT BY ENROLLING IN THE YOGA RATHER THAN THE EXERCISE PROGRAM TO REDUCE PHYSICAL RISKS OF FALLING. THESE FINDINGS WERE DISCUSSED IN RELATION TO PROMOTING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PROGRAMS TO REDUCE RISKS OF FALLING, AND THE ROLES OF THE PROTOCOL, PRACTICAL SIGNIFICANCE, AND MEASURES EMPLOYED WHEN DETERMINING PROGRAM EFFECTIVENESS. 2022 15 719 32 EFFECT OF IYENGAR YOGA ON MENTAL HEALTH OF INCARCERATED WOMEN: A FEASIBILITY STUDY. BACKGROUND: INCARCERATED WOMEN SHARE A DISPROPORTIONATE BURDEN OF MENTAL ILLNESS. ALTHOUGH PSYCHOTROPIC MEDICATIONS ARE AVAILABLE TO WOMEN IN PRISON, ADJUNCTIVE TREATMENT MODALITIES, SUCH AS IYENGAR YOGA, MAY INCREASE PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING. OBJECTIVES: THE PURPOSES OF THIS STUDY WERE (A) TO ADDRESS THE FEASIBILITY OF PROVIDING A GENDER-RESPONSIVE EXERCISE INTERVENTION WITHIN A CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION AND (B) TO OBSERVE THE EFFECT OF A GROUP-FORMAT IYENGAR YOGA PROGRAM THAT MET TWO SESSIONS A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS ON LEVELS OF DEPRESSION SYMPTOMS, ANXIETY SYMPTOMS, AND PERCEIVED STRESS AMONG INCARCERATED WOMEN. METHODS: A REPEATED MEASURES DESIGN, IN WHICH EACH PARTICIPANT SERVED AS HER OWN CONTROL, WAS USED. PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED THREE SELF-ADMINISTERED INSTRUMENTS: THE BECK DEPRESSION INVENTORY, THE BECK ANXIETY INVENTORY, AND THE PERCEIVED STRESS SCALE BEFORE TREATMENT (BASELINE) AND DURING TREATMENT (WEEKS 4, 8, AND 12). LINEAR MIXED EFFECTS MODELS WERE USED TO EXAMINE STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN MENTAL HEALTH MEASURES OVER TIME, TAKING ADVANTAGE OF ALL AVAILABLE DATA. RESULTS: ALTHOUGH 21 WOMEN INITIALLY PARTICIPATED IN THE INTERVENTION, 6 WOMEN COMPLETED THE 12-WEEK INTERVENTION. A SIGNIFICANT LINEAR DECREASE WAS DEMONSTRATED IN SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION OVER TIME, WITH MEAN VALUES CHANGING FROM 24.90 AT BASELINE TO 5.67 AT WEEK 12. THERE WAS A MARGINALLY SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN ANXIETY OVER TIME (12.00 AT BASELINE TO 7.33 AT WEEK 12) AND A NONLINEAR CHANGE IN STRESS OVER TIME, WITH DECREASES FROM BASELINE TO WEEK 4 AND SUBSEQUENT INCREASES TO WEEK 12. DISCUSSION: WOMEN WHO PARTICIPATED IN THIS PROGRAM EXPERIENCED FEWER SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY OVER TIME. FINDINGS FROM THIS STUDY MAY BE USED TO IMPROVE FUTURE INTERVENTIONS FOCUSING ON THE HEALTH OUTCOMES OF INCARCERATED WOMEN. 2010 16 500 26 COMBINING GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY AND YOGA EXERCISES IMPROVES QUALITY OF LIFE IN MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS: A CONTROLLED RANDOMIZED CLINICAL TRIAL. PURPOSE: THIS STUDY AIMS TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECTS OF COMBINING 12-WEEK GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY WITH YOGA EXERCISES ON STRESS PERCEPTION AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: THIS STUDY WAS A PARALLEL-ARM RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL, IN WHICH THE PARTICIPANTS WAS UNAWARE OF WHICH GROUP WAS THE EXPERIMENTAL ONE. PARTICIPANTS INVOLVED IN OUR RESEARCH WERE ASSIGNED TO TWO GROUPS OF SEPARATE TREATMENT THAT FOLLOWED FOR THREE MONTHS GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY COMBINED WITH YOGA PROGRAM FOR STRESS MANAGEMENT OR USUAL STRESS COPING STRATEGIES. FINDINGS: THE FINDINGS DID NOT REVEAL A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN STRESS PERCEPTION ASSESSED IN THE TWO GROUPS EITHER BEFORE OR AFTER INTERVENTION BUT REVEAL A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE TWO GROUPS BEFORE AND AFTER THE PSYCHO BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: THE FINDINGS DID NOT REVEAL A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN STRESS PERCEPTION ASSESSED IN THE TWO GROUPS EITHER BEFORE OR AFTER INTERVENTION BUT REVEAL A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE TWO GROUPS BEFORE AND AFTER THE PSYCHO BEHAVIORAL INTERVENTIONS. 2019 17 2675 31 YOGA IN PUBLIC SCHOOL IMPROVES ADOLESCENT MOOD AND AFFECT. THE PURPOSE OF THE PRESENT STUDY WAS TO DIRECTLY COMPARE THE ACUTE EFFECTS OF PARTICIPATING IN A SINGLE YOGA CLASS VERSUS A SINGLE STANDARD PHYSICAL EDUCATION (PE) CLASS ON STUDENT MOOD. FORTY-SEVEN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS COMPLETED SELF-REPORT QUESTIONNAIRES ASSESSING MOOD AND AFFECT IMMEDIATELY BEFORE AND AFTER PARTICIPATING IN A SINGLE YOGA CLASS AND A SINGLE PE CLASS ONE WEEK LATER. DATA WERE ANALYZED USING PAIRED-SAMPLES T TESTS AND WILCOXON-SIGNED RANKS TESTS AND BY COMPARING EFFECT SIZES BETWEEN THE TWO CONDITIONS. PARTICIPANTS REPORTED SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER DECREASES IN ANGER, DEPRESSION, AND FATIGUE FROM BEFORE TO AFTER PARTICIPATING IN YOGA COMPARED TO PE. SIGNIFICANT REDUCTIONS IN NEGATIVE AFFECT OCCURRED AFTER YOGA BUT NOT AFTER PE; HOWEVER, THE CHANGES WERE NOT SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT BETWEEN CONDITIONS. IN ADDITION, AFTER PARTICIPATING IN BOTH YOGA AND PE, PARTICIPANTS REPORTED SIGNIFICANT DECREASES IN CONFUSION AND TENSION, WITH NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GROUPS. RESULTS SUGGEST THAT SCHOOL-BASED YOGA MAY PROVIDE UNIQUE BENEFITS FOR STUDENTS ABOVE AND BEYOND PARTICIPATION IN PE. FUTURE RESEARCH SHOULD CONTINUE TO ELUCIDATE THE DISTINCT PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF PARTICIPATING IN YOGA COMPARED TO PE ACTIVITIES. 2015 18 723 29 EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON MENTAL SYMPTOMS AND SALIVARY CORTISOL LEVELS IN FIRST-YEAR NURSING STUDENTS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND: UNIVERSITY STUDENTS ARE FACED WITH SEVERAL STRESS FACTORS AFFECTING THEIR MENTAL HEALTH. THEREFORE, THE FIRST YEAR AT UNIVERSITY IS A PERIOD THAT CALLS FOR CAREFUL ATTENTION AND RESEARCH. AIM: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY IS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF LAUGHTER YOGA ON MENTAL SYMPTOMS AND CORTISOL LEVELS IN NURSING STUDENTS. METHODS: THIS STUDY IS A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY EMPLOYING A PRE-/POST-TEST DESIGN WITH A CONTROL GROUP. A TOTAL OF 75 HEALTHY UNIVERSITY STUDENTS WERE ASSIGNED TO THE INTERVENTION GROUP AND CONTROL GROUP. THE BRIEF SYMPTOM INVENTORY WAS APPLIED TO BOTH GROUPS BEFORE SESSION 1 AND AFTER SESSION 8. SALIVA SAMPLES WERE TAKEN FROM THE STUDENTS TO MEASURE THEIR CORTISOL LEVELS BEFORE AND AFTER EACH SESSION. RESULTS: EVALUATION OF THE MEAN SCORES OBTAINED FROM THE BRIEF SYMPTOM INVENTORY BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN THE SCORES BETWEEN GROUPS (P < 0.05). IN THREE OUT OF THE EIGHT SESSIONS, THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP COMPARED WITH THE CONTROL GROUP REGARDING THE MEAN VALUES OF PRE-TEST AND POST-TEST SALIVARY CORTISOL LEVELS (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: LAUGHTER YOGA CAN PROVIDE AN EFFECTIVE MEANS TO HELP FIRST-YEAR NURSING STUDENTS COPE WITH STRESS AND REDUCE MENTAL SYMPTOMS. 2021 19 1063 31 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON HEART RATE VARIABILITY AND MOOD IN WOMEN: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF AN 8-WEEK YOGA PROGRAM ON HEART RATE VARIABILITY AND MOOD IN GENERALLY HEALTHY WOMEN. DESIGN: RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. PARTICIPANTS: FIFTY-TWO HEALTHY WOMEN WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO A YOGA GROUP OR A CONTROL GROUP. INTERVENTIONS: PARTICIPANTS IN THE YOGA GROUP COMPLETED AN 8-WEEK YOGA PROGRAM, WHICH COMPRISED A 60-MINUTE SESSION TWICE A WEEK. EACH SESSION CONSISTED OF BREATHING EXERCISES, YOGA POSE PRACTICE, AND SUPINE MEDITATION/RELAXATION. THE CONTROL GROUP WAS INSTRUCTED NOT TO ENGAGE IN ANY YOGA PRACTICE AND TO MAINTAIN THEIR USUAL LEVEL OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY DURING THE STUDY. OUTCOME MEASURES: PARTICIPANTS' HEART RATE VARIABILITY, PERCEIVED STRESS, DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS, AND STATE AND TRAIT ANXIETY WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE (WEEK 0) AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION (WEEK 9). RESULTS: NO MEASURES OF HEART RATE VARIABILITY CHANGED SIGNIFICANTLY IN EITHER THE YOGA OR CONTROL GROUP AFTER INTERVENTION. STATE ANXIETY WAS REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY IN THE YOGA GROUP BUT NOT IN THE CONTROL GROUP. NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES WERE NOTED IN PERCEIVED STRESS, DEPRESSION, OR TRAIT ANXIETY IN EITHER GROUP. CONCLUSIONS: AN 8-WEEK YOGA PROGRAM WAS NOT SUFFICIENT TO IMPROVE HEART RATE VARIABILITY. HOWEVER, SUCH A PROGRAM APPEARS TO BE EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING STATE ANXIETY IN GENERALLY HEALTHY WOMEN. FUTURE RESEARCH SHOULD INVOLVE LONGER PERIODS OF YOGA TRAINING, INCLUDE HEART RATE VARIABILITY MEASURES BOTH AT REST AND DURING YOGA PRACTICE, AND ENROLL WOMEN WITH HIGHER LEVELS OF STRESS AND TRAIT ANXIETY. 2015 20 1700 35 PARTICIPATION IN A 10-WEEK COURSE OF YOGA IMPROVES BEHAVIOURAL CONTROL AND DECREASES PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS IN A PRISON POPULATION. BACKGROUND: YOGA AND MEDITATION HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO BE EFFECTIVE IN ALLEVIATING SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION AND ANXIETY IN HEALTHY VOLUNTEERS AND PSYCHIATRIC POPULATIONS. RECENT WORK HAS ALSO INDICATED THAT YOGA CAN IMPROVE COGNITIVE-BEHAVIOURAL PERFORMANCE AND CONTROL. ALTHOUGH THERE HAVE BEEN NO CONTROLLED STUDIES OF THE EFFECTS OF YOGA IN A PRISON POPULATION, WE REASONED THAT YOGA COULD HAVE BENEFICIAL EFFECTS IN A SETTING WHERE PSYCHOSOCIAL FUNCTIONING IS OFTEN LOW, AND THE FREQUENCY OF IMPULSIVE BEHAVIOURS IS HIGH. METHODS: PARTICIPANTS WERE RECRUITED FROM 7 BRITISH PRISONS AND RANDOMLY ALLOCATED TO EITHER A 10-WEEK YOGA PROGRAMME (YOGA GROUP; 1 CLASS PER WEEK; N = 45) OR A CONTROL GROUP (N = 55). SELF-REPORT MEASURES OF MOOD, STRESS, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS WERE COLLECTED BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION PERIOD. PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED A COGNITIVE-BEHAVIOURAL TASK (GO/NO-GO) AT THE END OF THE STUDY, WHICH ASSESSED BEHAVIOURAL RESPONSE INHIBITION AND SUSTAINED ATTENTION. RESULTS: PARTICIPANTS IN THE YOGA GROUP SHOWED INCREASED SELF-REPORTED POSITIVE AFFECT, AND REDUCED STRESS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS, COMPARED TO PARTICIPANTS IN THE CONTROL GROUP. PARTICIPANTS WHO COMPLETED THE YOGA COURSE ALSO SHOWED BETTER PERFORMANCE IN THE COGNITIVE-BEHAVIOURAL TASK, MAKING SIGNIFICANTLY FEWER ERRORS OF OMISSION IN GO TRIALS AND FEWER ERRORS OF COMMISSION ON NO-GO TRIALS, COMPARED TO CONTROL PARTICIPANTS. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA MAY BE EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING SUBJECTIVE WELLBEING, MENTAL HEALTH, AND EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING WITHIN PRISON POPULATIONS. THIS IS AN IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION GIVEN THE CONSISTENTLY HIGH RATES OF PSYCHOLOGICAL MORBIDITY IN THIS GROUP AND THE NEED FOR EFFECTIVE AND ECONOMICAL INTERVENTION PROGRAMMES. 2013