1 1220 104 FACTORS INFLUENCING CHANGES IN TWEEZER DEXTERITY SCORES FOLLOWING YOGA TRAINING. YOGA HAS ALREADY BEEN SHOWN TO IMPROVE PERCEPTUAL-MOTOR SKILLS, BUT THE FACTORS WHICH INFLUENCE ITS EFFECTS ARE NOT WELL DEFINED. THIS STUDY CORRELATES AGE, GENDER, AND MOTIVATION TO LEARN YOGA WITH THE PERFORMANCE IN A DEXTERITY TASK FOLLOWING YOGA. TWEEZER DEXTERITY WAS RECORDED IN EIGHTY SUBJECTS BELONGING TO FOUR GROUPS. TWO GROUPS WERE GIVEN A MONTH OF YOGA TRAINING. ONE GROUP CONSISTED OF SUBJECTS WHO HAD VOLUNTEERED TO JOIN FOR THE TRAINING AND THE OTHER GROUP WERE DEPUTED FOR THE TRAINING AS PART OF THEIR JOB. THE TWO REMAINING GROUPS DID NOT RECEIVE YOGA TRAINING AND WERE SELECTED TO MATCH THE RESPECTIVE GROUPS RECEIVING YOGA, FOR AGE AND SEX, BUT NOT FOR THEIR MOTIVATION TO LEARN YOGA. THE TEST INVOLVED USING A TWEEZER TO PLACE METAL PINS IN EVENLY SPACED HOLES IN A METAL PLATE WITHIN FOUR MINUTES. FOLLOWING YOGA THE SCORES OF THE VOLUNTEERS WHO LEARNT YOGA INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY, WHEREAS THERE WAS NO CHANGE IN SCORES OF DEPUTED SUBJECTS AND NON-YOGA GROUPS. FOR REASONS DESCRIBED IN DETAIL, FACTORS SUCH AS AGE AND GENDER DID NOT APPEAR TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE DIFFERENCE IN PERFORMANCE. HENCE MOTIVATION TO LEARN YOGA APPEARED TO INFLUENCE THE MAGNITUDE OF INCREASE. 1999 2 1755 31 PLASTICITY OF MOTOR CONTROL SYSTEMS DEMONSTRATED BY YOGA TRAINING. THE STATIC MOTOR PERFORMANCE WAS TESTED IN TWO GROUPS WITH 20 SUBJECTS IN EACH (AGE RANGE 17 TO 22 YEARS, AND 5 FEMALES IN EACH GROUP). TESTS WERE CARRIED OUT AT THE BEGINNING AND END OF A 10 DAY PERIOD. THE TEST REQUIRED BEING ABLE TO INSERT AND HOLD A METAL STYLUS WITHIN HOLES OF VARYING SIZES FOR 15 SEC. ACCIDENTAL CONTACTS BETWEEN THE STYLUS AND THE SIDES OF THE HOLES, WERE REGISTERED ON A COUNTER AS ERRORS. DURING THE 10 DAYS ONE GROUP (THE YOGA GROUP) PRACTISED ASANAS (PHYSICAL POSTURES), PRANAYAMA (VOLUNTARY REGULATION OF BREATHING), MEDITATION, DEVOTIONAL SESSIONS, AND TRATAKAS (VISUAL FOCUSSING EXERCISES). THE CONTROL GROUP FOLLOWED THEIR USUAL ROUTINE. AT THE END OF 10 DAYS THE YOGA GROUP SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN NUMBER OF ERRORS (WILCOXON PAIRED SIGNED RANKS TEST), WHILE THE CONTROL GROUP DID NOT CHANGE. OUR EARLIER STUDY SHOWED A SIMILAR IMPROVEMENT IN CHILDREN (9-13 YEARS). IT WAS INTERESTING TO NOTE THE SAME DEGREE OF PLASTICITY IN MOTOR CONTROL SYSTEMS IN YOUNG ADULTS. THE IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION PROGRAMMES HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED. 1994 3 1261 40 FINGER DEXTERITY AND VISUAL DISCRIMINATION FOLLOWING TWO YOGA BREATHING PRACTICES. BACKGROUND: PRACTICING YOGA HAS BEEN SHOWN TO IMPROVE MOTOR FUNCTIONS AND ATTENTION. THOUGH ATTENTION IS REQUIRED FOR FINE MOTOR AND DISCRIMINATION TASKS, THE EFFECT OF YOGA BREATHING TECHNIQUES ON FINE MOTOR SKILLS AND VISUAL DISCRIMINATION HAS NOT BEEN ASSESSED. AIM: TO STUDY THE EFFECT OF YOGA BREATHING TECHNIQUES ON FINGER DEXTERITY AND VISUAL DISCRIMINATION. MATERIALS AND METHODS: THE PRESENT STUDY CONSISTED OF ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY SUBJECTS WHO HAD ENROLLED FOR STRESS MANAGEMENT. THEY WERE RANDOMLY DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS, ONE GROUP PRACTICED HIGH FREQUENCY YOGA BREATHING WHILE THE OTHER GROUP PRACTICED BREATH AWARENESS. HIGH FREQUENCY YOGA BREATHING (KAPALABHATI, BREATH RATE 1.0 HZ) AND BREATH AWARENESS ARE TWO YOGA PRACTICES WHICH IMPROVE ATTENTION. THE IMMEDIATE EFFECT OF HIGH FREQUENCY YOGA BREATHING AND BREATH AWARENESS (I) WERE ASSESSED ON THE PERFORMANCE ON THE O'CONNOR FINGER DEXTERITY TASK AND (II) (IN) A SHAPE AND SIZE DISCRIMINATION TASK. RESULTS: THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN THE FINGER DEXTERITY TASK BY 19% AFTER KAPALABHATI AND 9% AFTER BREATH AWARENESS (P<0.001 IN BOTH CASES, REPEATED MEASURES ANOVA AND POST-HOC ANALYSES). THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION (P<0.001) IN ERROR (41% AFTER KAPALABHATI AND 21% AFTER BREATH AWARENESS) AS WELL AS TIME TAKEN TO COMPLETE THE SHAPE AND SIZE DISCRIMINATION TEST (15% AFTER KAPALABHATI AND 15% AFTER BREATH AWARENESS; P<0.001) WAS ALSO OBSERVED. CONCLUSION: BOTH KAPALABAHATI AND BREATH AWARENESS CAN IMPROVE FINE MOTOR SKILLS AND VISUAL DISCRIMINATION, WITH A GREATER MAGNITUDE OF CHANGE AFTER KAPALABHATI. 2012 4 678 30 EFFECT OF A YOGA PRACTICE SESSION AND A YOGA THEORY SESSION ON STATE ANXIETY. YOGA TECHNIQUES PRACTICED FOR VARYING DURATIONS HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO REDUCE STATE ANXIETY. IN THIS STUDY, THERE WERE 300 NAIVE-TO-YOGA PERSONS OF BOTH SEXES WHO WERE ATTENDING A YOGA THERAPY CENTER IN NORTH INDIA FOR STRESS RELIEF AS DAY VISITORS AND WERE NOT RESIDING AT THE CENTER. THEY WERE ASSIGNED TO TWO GROUPS, YOGA PRACTICE AND YOGA THEORY, AND THEIR STATE ANXIETY WAS ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER A 2-HR. YOGA SESSION. A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN SCORES ON STATE ANXIETY WAS FOUND IN THE YOGA PRACTICE GROUP (14.7% DECREASE), AS WELL AS IN THE YOGA THEORY GROUP (3.4% DECREASE). THE DIFFERENCE IN SCORES FOLLOWING THE SESSIONS WAS STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT. HENCE, YOGA PRACTICE AS WELL AS LEARNING ABOUT THEORETICAL ASPECTS OF YOGA APPEAR TO REDUCE STATE ANXIETY, WITH A GREATER REDUCTION FOLLOWING YOGA PRACTICE. 2009 5 2682 21 YOGA IN STROKE REHABILITATION: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND RESULTS OF A PILOT STUDY. PURPOSE: THIS ARTICLE PRESENTS A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE PERTAINING TO THE USE OF YOGA IN STROKE REHABILITATION. IN ADDITION, WE PRESENT THE RESULTS OF A SMALL PILOT STUDY DESIGNED TO EXPLORE THE HYPOTHESIS THAT A KUNDALINI YOGA PRACTICE OF 12 WEEKS WOULD LEAD TO AN IMPROVEMENT IN APHASIA AS WELL AS IN FINE MOTOR COORDINATION IN STROKE PATIENTS. METHOD: THE 3 PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED YOGA CLASSES TWICE A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS, BEFORE AND AFTER WHICH THEY WERE TESTED ON THE O'CONNOR TWEEZER DEXTERITY TEST, A TIMED TEST WHERE THE PARTICIPANT PLACES PINS IN A PEG-BOARD WITH TWEEZERS, AND THE BOSTON APHASIA EXAM FOR SPEECH. RESULTS: ALL 3 PARTICIPANTS SHOWED IMPROVEMENT ON BOTH MEASURES. CONCLUSION: THE SMALL SAMPLE SIZE MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO DRAW DEFINITE CONCLUSIONS, BUT THE POSITIVE TRENDS IN THIS STUDY SUGGEST THAT FURTHER RESEARCH SHOULD BE DONE TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF KUNDALINI YOGA ON SPECIFIC ILLNESSES OR MEDICAL CONDITIONS. 2007 6 1422 35 IMPROVEMENT IN HAND GRIP STRENGTH IN NORMAL VOLUNTEERS AND RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS PATIENTS FOLLOWING YOGA TRAINING. THE PRESENT STUDY AIMED AT ASSESSING THE EFFECTS OF A SET OF YOGA PRACTICES ON NORMAL ADULTS (N = 37), CHILDREN (N = 86), AND PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS (N = 20). AN EQUAL NUMBER OF NORMAL ADULTS, CHILDREN, AND PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS WHO DID NOT PRACTICE YOGA WERE STUDIED UNDER EACH CATEGORY, FORMING RESPECTIVE CONTROL GROUPS. YOGA AND CONTROL GROUP SUBJECTS WERE ASSESSED AT BASELINE AND AFTER VARYING INTERVALS, AS FOLLOWS, ADULTS AFTER 30 DAYS, CHILDREN AFTER 10 DAYS AND PATIENTS AFTER 15 DAYS, BASED ON THE DURATION OF THE YOGA PROGRAM, WHICH THEY ATTENDED, WHICH WAS ALREADY FIXED. HAND GRIP STRENGTH OF BOTH HANDS, MEASURED WITH A GRIP DYNAMOMETER, INCREASED IN NORMAL ADULTS AND CHILDREN, AND IN RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS PATIENTS, FOLLOWING YOGA, BUT NOT IN THE CORRESPONDING CONTROL GROUPS, SHOWING NO RE-TEST EFFECT. ADULT FEMALE VOLUNTEERS AND PATIENTS SHOWED A GREATER PERCENTAGE IMPROVEMENT THAN CORRESPONDING ADULT MALES. THIS GENDER-BASED DIFFERENCE WAS NOT OBSERVED IN CHILDREN. HENCE YOGA PRACTICE IMPROVES HAND GRIP STRENGTH IN NORMAL PERSONS AND IN PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS, THOUGH THE MAGNITUDE OF IMPROVEMENT VARIES WITH FACTORS SUCH AS GENDER AND AGE. 2001 7 523 27 COMPARISON OF CHANGES IN AUTONOMIC AND RESPIRATORY PARAMETERS OF GIRLS AFTER YOGA AND GAMES AT A COMMUNITY HOME. THE HEART RATE, BREATHING RATE, AND SKIN RESISTANCE WERE RECORDED FOR 20 COMMUNITY HOME GIRLS (HOME GROUP) AND FOR 20 AGE-MATCHED GIRLS FROM A REGULAR SCHOOL (SCHOOL GROUP). THE FORMER GROUP HAD A SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER RATE OF BREATHING AND A MORE IRREGULAR BREATH PATTERN KNOWN TO CORRELATE WITH HIGH FEAR AND ANXIETY, THAN THE SCHOOL GROUP. SKIN RESISTANCE WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER IN THE SCHOOL GROUP, WHICH MAY SUGGEST GREATER AROUSAL, 28 GIRLS OF THE HOME GROUP FORMED 14 PAIRS, MATCHED FOR AGE AND DURATION OF STAY IN THE HOME. SUBJECTS OF A PAIR WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EITHER YOGA OR GAMES GROUPS. FOR THE FORMER EMPHASIS WAS ON RELAXATION AND AWARENESS, WHEREAS FOR THE LATTER INCREASING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY WAS EMPHASIZED. AT THE END OF AN HOUR DAILY FOR SIX MONTHS BOTH GROUPS SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN THE RESTING HEART RATE RELATIVE TO INITIAL VALUES (WILCOXON PAIRED-SAMPLE REST), AND THE YOGA GROUP SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN BREATH RATE, WHICH APPEARED MORE REGULAR BUT NO SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE SKIN RESISTANCE. THESE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT A YOGA PROGRAM WHICH INCLUDES RELAXATION, AWARENESS, AND GRADED PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IS A USEFUL ADDITION TO THE ROUTINE OF COMMUNITY HOME CHILDREN. 1997 8 760 26 EFFECT OF SUDARSANKRIYA YOGA PRACTICES ON P300 AMPLITUDE AND LATENCY. THE COGNITIVE ABILITY WHICH WAS PERCEIVED AS A CONSTANT TRAIT, IS NOW UNDERSTOOD TO BE UPGRADED BY ADAPTIVE AND EXTENDED TRAINING. YOGA PRACTICES ARE KNOWN TO SHARPEN THE INTELLECT AND ENHANCE CONCENTRATION. IN THE INITIAL PERIOD OF PRACTICING YOGA AS AN ALTERNATIVE/SUPPORTING TOOL TO MEDICAL LINE OF TREATMENT, IT IS ESSENTIAL TO INVESTIGATE EFFECT OF YOGA ON COGNITIVE ABILITY USING OBJECTIVE METHOD, IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH EVIDENCES. HENCE, AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EXPLORE THE EFFECT OF REGULAR PRACTICE OF SUDARSANKRIYA YOGA ON AUDITORY EVENT RELATED POTENTIAL (P300) BY RECORDING AND COMPARING PEAK LATENCY AND AMPLITUDE. THE PARTICIPANTS WERE DIVIDED INTO THREE GROUPS WITH GROUP I AND GROUP II PARTICIPANTS PRACTICING SUDARSANKRIYA YOGA FOR MORE THAN 36 MONTHS AND LESS THAN 36 MONTHS RESPECTIVELY. GROUP III WERE NON-PRACTITIONERS WITH NO PRIOR PRACTICE OF ANY FORM OF YOGA. TWENTY PARTICIPANTS IN EACH GROUP WITH A TOTAL OF 60 PARTICIPANTS BETWEEN 40 TO 65 YEARS OF AGE WERE RECRUITED FOR THE STUDY. RESULTS REVEALED A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE FOR MEAN LATENCY AND AMPLITUDE BETWEEN THREE GROUPS. FINDINGS OF THE CURRENT STUDY SUGGEST THAT SUDARSANKRIYA YOGA PRACTICES SLOWS DOWN THE PROCESS OF AGING EFFECT OR MAINTAINS ON COGNITIVE ABILITY IN ADULTS. 2021 9 48 32 A COMBINATION OF FOCUSING AND DEFOCUSING THROUGH YOGA REDUCES OPTICAL ILLUSION MORE THAN FOCUSING ALONE. THE DEGREE OF OPTICAL ILLUSION WAS ASSESSED USING STANDARD MULLER-LYER LINES IN TWO GROUPS (YOGA AND CONTROL) OF THIRTY SUBJECTS EACH. ALL SUBJECTS WERE BETWEEN EIGHTEEN AND FORTY TWO YEARS OF AGE. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE READING AT WHICH THE LINES WERE ACTUALLY EQUAL AND THE READING AT WHICH THE SUBJECT FELT THEM TO BE EQUAL, WAS NOTED AS THE DEGREE OF ILLUSION ("DI"). EACH SUBJECT WAS ASSESSED AT THE BEGINNING AND END OF A MONTH. DURING THE MONTH THE YOGA GROUP RECEIVED TRAINING IN YOGA, WHILE THE CONTROL GROUP CARRIED ON WITH THEIR USUAL ROUTINE. AT THE END OF THE MONTH THE YOGA GROUP SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT (TWO FACTOR ANOVA, TUKEY TEST, P < .001) DECREASE IN THE "DI" (86%), WHEREAS THE CONTROL GROUP SHOWED NO CHANGE. THE IMPROVEMENT FOLLOWING YOGA COULD BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE COMBINATION OF FOCUSING AND DEFOCUSING INVOLVED IN YOGA PRACTICE, AS THESE FACTORS ARE KNOWN TO INFLUENCE THE "DI". PREVIOUS RESULTS WHICH MENTIONED A 79% DECREASE IN "DI" WITH FOCUSING ALONE, PROVIDED A COMPARISON. 1997 10 208 25 A SINGLE SESSION OF AN INTEGRATED YOGA PROGRAM AS A STRESS MANAGEMENT TOOL FOR SCHOOL EMPLOYEES: COMPARISON OF DAILY PRACTICE AND NONDAILY PRACTICE OF A YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM. OBJECTIVES: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE EFFECT OF THE DAILY PRACTICE OF A YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM LEARNT DURING A SINGLE SESSION OF AN INTEGRATED YOGA INTERVENTION THAT WAS DEVELOPED BY US AS A STRESS MANAGEMENT TOOL FOR SCHOOL EMPLOYEES. SUBJECTS: NINETY SCHOOL EMPLOYEES. DESIGN: CASE-CONTROL STUDY. THREE MONTHS AFTER THE INTERVENTION, THE SUBJECTS WERE ASSIGNED TO A DAILY PRACTICE GROUP (CASE: N=43) AND A NONCONSECUTIVE DAILY PRACTICE GROUP (CONTROL: N=47) ACCORDING TO THEIR DAILY PRACTICE LEVEL OF THE YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM. INTERVENTIONS: THE SUBJECTS PARTICIPATED IN A STRESS MANAGEMENT EDUCATION PROGRAM BASED ON AN INTEGRATED YOGA THERAPY SESSION. THE PROGRAM INCLUDED PSYCHOLOGICAL EDUCATION AND COUNSELING ABOUT STRESS MANAGEMENT AND YOGA THEORIES, AS WELL AS THE PRACTICES OF ASANAS, PRANAYAMA, RELAXATION, AND COGNITIVE STRUCTURE BASED ON INDIAN PHILOSOPHY. OUTCOME MEASURES: ASSESSMENTS WERE PERFORMED BEFORE AND AFTER THE PROGRAM USING THE SUBJECTIVE UNITS OF DISTRESS FOR MIND AND BODY AND THE TWO-DIMENSIONAL MOOD SCALE. THE GENERAL HEALTH QUESTIONNAIRE 28 (GHQ28) WAS USED TO ASSESS THE MENTAL HEALTH STATE BEFORE THE INTERVENTION AND AT 3 MONTHS AFTER THE PROGRAM. RESULTS: THE SUBJECTS SHOWED SIGNIFICANT INCREASES IN THEIR LEVELS OF CALMNESS, COMFORT, AND CHEERFULNESS (P<0.001) AND SIGNIFICANT DECREASES IN COGNITIVE MIND AND BODY STRESS (P<0.001) AFTER PARTICIPATING IN THE INTEGRATED YOGA PROGRAM. A COMPARISON OF THE TOTAL SCORES ON THE GHQ28 USING A TWO-WAY ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE SHOWED SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS IN TERMS OF BOTH INTERACTION (P=0.047) AND THE MAIN EFFECT (P=0.026). CONCLUSIONS: THE PRESENT RESULTS SUGGESTED THAT A SINGLE SESSION OF AN INTEGRATED YOGA PROGRAM WAS EFFECTIVE FOR REDUCING STRESS AND THAT THE MENTAL HEALTH OF SCHOOL EMPLOYEES WAS PROMOTED BY THE DAILY PRACTICE OF THE YOGA THERAPY PROGRAM. 2015 11 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 12 1616 30 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 13 1848 9 QUANTITATIVE EVALUATION OF MUSCLE RELAXATION INDUCED BY KUNDALINI YOGA WITH THE HELP OF EMG INTEGRATOR. THE PRESENT WORK IS AIMED TO QUANTIFY THE DEGREE OF RELAXATION OF MUSCLE UNDER THE EFFECTS OF KUNDALINI YOGA WITH THE HELP OF EMG INTEGRATOR. THE DATA COLLECTED FROM 8 INDIVIDUALS (4 MALES 4 FEMALES) ON THE DEGREE OF MUSCLE RELAXATION AT THE END OF MEDITATION REVEALED A SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED MUSCLE ACTIVITY AMOUNTING TO 58% OF THE BASAL LEVEL IN BOTH THE SEXES. 1990 14 2736 25 YOGA POSES INCREASE SUBJECTIVE ENERGY AND STATE SELF-ESTEEM IN COMPARISON TO 'POWER POSES'. RESEARCH ON BENEFICIAL CONSEQUENCES OF YOGA FOCUSES ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGIC BREATHING AND MEDITATION. LESS IS KNOWN ABOUT THE PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF PERFORMING YOGA POSTURES. THE PRESENT STUDY INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA POSES ON SUBJECTIVE SENSE OF ENERGY AND SELF-ESTEEM. THE EFFECTS OF YOGA POSTURES WERE COMPARED TO THE EFFECTS OF 'POWER POSES,' WHICH ARGUABLY INCREASE THE SENSE OF POWER AND SELF-CONFIDENCE DUE TO THEIR ASSOCIATION WITH INTERPERSONAL DOMINANCE (CARNEY ET AL., 2010). THE STUDY TESTED THE NOVEL PREDICTION THAT YOGA POSES, WHICH ARE NOT ASSOCIATED WITH INTERPERSONAL DOMINANCE BUT INCREASE BODILY ENERGY, WOULD INCREASE THE SUBJECTIVE FEELING OF ENERGY AND THEREFORE INCREASE SELF-ESTEEM COMPARED TO 'HIGH POWER' AND 'LOW POWER' POSES. A TWO FACTORIAL, BETWEEN PARTICIPANTS DESIGN WAS EMPLOYED. PARTICIPANTS PERFORMED EITHER TWO STANDING YOGA POSES WITH OPEN FRONT OF THE BODY (N = 19), TWO STANDING YOGA POSES WITH COVERED FRONT OF THE BODY (N = 22), TWO EXPANSIVE, HIGH POWER POSES (N = 21), OR TWO CONSTRICTIVE, LOW POWER POSES (N = 20) FOR 1-MIN EACH. THE RESULTS SHOWED THAT YOGA POSES IN COMPARISON TO 'POWER POSES' INCREASED SELF-ESTEEM. THIS EFFECT WAS MEDIATED BY AN INCREASED SUBJECTIVE SENSE OF ENERGY AND WAS OBSERVED WHEN BASELINE TRAIT SELF-ESTEEM WAS CONTROLLED FOR. THESE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT THE EFFECTS OF PERFORMING OPEN, EXPANSIVE BODY POSTURES MAY BE DRIVEN BY PROCESSES OTHER THAN THE POSES' ASSOCIATION WITH INTERPERSONAL POWER AND DOMINANCE. THIS STUDY DEMONSTRATES THAT POSITIVE EFFECTS OF YOGA PRACTICE CAN OCCUR AFTER PERFORMING YOGA POSES FOR ONLY 2 MIN. 2017 15 306 31 AN EVALUATION OF THE ABILITY TO VOLUNTARILY REDUCE THE HEART RATE AFTER A MONTH OF YOGA PRACTICE. THE STUDY AIMED AT DETERMINING WHETHER NOVICES TO YOGA WOULD BE ABLE TO REDUCE THEIR HEART RATE VOLUNTARILY AND WHETHER THE MAGNITUDE OF REDUCTION WOULD BE MORE AFTER 30 DAYS OF YOGA TRAINING. TWO GROUPS (YOGA AND CONTROL, N = 12 EACH) WERE ASSESSED ON DAY 1 AND ON DAY 30. DURING THE INTERVENING 30 DAYS, THE YOGA GROUP RECEIVED TRAINING IN YOGA TECHNIQUES WHILE THE CONTROL GROUP CARRIED ON WITH THEIR ROUTINE. AT EACH ASSESSMENT THE BASELINE HEART RATE WAS RECORDED FOR ONE MINUTE, THIS WAS FOLLOWED BY A SIX-MINUTE PERIOD DURING WHICH PARTICIPANTS WERE ASKED TO ATTEMPT TO VOLUNTARILY REDUCE THEIR HEART RATE, USING ANY STRATEGY. BOTH THE BASELINE HEART RATE AND THE LOWEST HEART RATE ACHIEVED VOLUNTARILY DURING THE SIX-MINUTE PERIOD WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER IN THE YOGA GROUP ON DAY 30 COMPARED TO DAY 1 BY A GROUP AVERAGE OF 10.7 BEATS PER MINUTE (I.E., BPM) AND 6.8 BPM, RESPECTIVELY (P < .05, WILCOXON PAIRED SIGNED RANKS TEST). IN CONTRAST, THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN EITHER THE BASELINE HEART RATE OR THE LOWEST HEART RATE ACHIEVED VOLUNTARILY IN THE CONTROL GROUP ON DAY 30 COMPARED TO DAY 1. THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT YOGA TRAINING CAN ENABLE PRACTITIONERS TO USE THEIR OWN STRATEGIES TO REDUCE THE HEART RATE, WHICH HAS POSSIBLE THERAPEUTIC APPLICATIONS. 2004 16 1964 17 SEPARATING THE "LIMBS" OF YOGA: LIMITED EFFECTS ON STRESS AND MOOD. THOUGH MILLIONS OF PEOPLE PRACTICE YOGA TO REDUCE STRESS AND IMPROVE THEIR MOOD, IT IS UNCLEAR WHICH ASPECT OF YOGA IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THESE EFFECTS. TO INVESTIGATE RELEVANT ASPECTS, OR "LIMBS" OF YOGA, PARTICIPANTS WHO WERE NOVICES IN THE PRACTICE OF YOGA ENGAGED IN A SINGLE YOGA MANIPULATION (I.E., POSES, BREATH WORK, MEDITATION, OR LISTENING TO A LECTURE ABOUT YOGA) FOR 20 MIN BEFORE EXPERIENCING A MILD STRESSOR. PARTICIPANTS' HEART RATE, BLOOD PRESSURE, MOOD, AND ANXIETY LEVEL WERE ASSESSED, BOTH IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE YOGA MANIPULATION AND AFTER THE MILD STRESSOR. THE 20-MIN YOGA MANIPULATION DID NOT DIFFERENTIALLY AFFECT ANY OF THE MEASURES, INCLUDING PARTICIPANTS' STRESS RESPONSE AFTER THE MILD STRESSOR. RESULTS ARE DISCUSSED REGARDING THE INDIVIDUAL COMPONENTS OF A YOGA PRACTICE. 2019 17 33 27 A 10-WEEK YOGA PRACTICE HAS NO EFFECT ON COGNITION, BUT IMPROVES BALANCE AND MOTOR LEARNING BY ATTENUATING BRAIN-DERIVED NEUROTROPHIC FACTOR LEVELS IN OLDER ADULTS. DESPITE STUDIES INVESTIGATING THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON COGNITIVE AND MOTOR FUNCTIONING IN OLDER ADULTS, THE EFFECT ON DUAL-TASK PERFORMANCE AND MOTOR LEARNING AND THE SPECIFIC MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THE POSITIVE EFFECT OF YOGA REMAIN UNCLEAR. THUS, THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON COGNITION, BALANCE UNDER SINGLE- AND DUAL-TASK CONDITIONS, AND MOTOR LEARNING. THE POTENTIAL ROLE OF BRAIN-DERIVED NEUROTROPHIC FACTOR (BDNF) IN INDUCED IMPROVEMENT WAS ALSO EXPLORED. PARTICIPANTS AGED 60-79YEARS WERE RANDOMIZED TO EITHER A CONTROL GROUP (N=15) OR A YOGA GROUP (N=18) FOR A 10-WEEK PERIOD. THE YOGA GROUP RECEIVED 90-MIN DURATION YOGA CLASSES TWO TIMES PER WEEK. CHANGES IN COGNITION, BALANCE UNDER SINGLE- AND DUAL-TASK CONDITIONS, AND LEARNING FAST AND ACCURATE REACHING MOVEMENTS WERE ASSESSED. YOGA PRACTICE DECREASED (P<0.05) THE VELOCITY VECTOR OF THE CENTER OF PRESSURE UNDER SINGLE- AND DUAL-TASK CONDITIONS, WHEREAS NO CHANGES IN COGNITIVE PERFORMANCE WERE OBSERVED. ALTHOUGH REACTION AND MOVEMENT TIMES DURING LEARNING WERE DECREASED IN BOTH GROUPS (P<0.05), A FASTER REACTION TIME (P<0.05) AND SHORTER MOVEMENT TIME (P<0.05) WERE OBSERVED IN THE YOGA GROUP THAN IN THE CONTROL GROUP. SIGNIFICANT MODERATE RELATIONSHIPS (P<0.05) BETWEEN CHANGES IN BDNF LEVELS AND FUNCTIONAL IMPROVEMENTS WERE OBSERVED. THUS, 10WEEKS OF YOGA PRACTICE RESULTED IN IMPROVED BALANCE AND LEARNING IN THE SPEED-ACCURACY MOTOR TASK THAT WERE MEDIATED BY INCREASED BDNF LEVELS, BUT HAD NO IMPACT ON COGNITION IN OLDER ADULTS. 2020 18 1442 25 INCREASED MENTAL WELL-BEING AND REDUCED STATE ANXIETY IN TEACHERS AFTER PARTICIPATION IN A RESIDENTIAL YOGA PROGRAM. BACKGROUND REDUCING STRESS IN THE WORKPLACE IMPROVES MENTAL HEALTH. TEACHING IS OF SOCIAL IMPORTANCE, BUT IT MAY RECEIVE INADEQUATE RECOGNITION AND REWARDS. THE PRESENT STUDY COMPARED MENTAL WELL-BEING AND STATE ANXIETY IN PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS WHO PRACTICED 15 DAYS OF YOGA IN A RESIDENTIAL SETTING WITH THOSE WHO CONTINUED THEIR USUAL ROUTINE. MATERIAL AND METHODS WE ENROLLED 236 PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS TO PARTICIPATE IN THE STUDY. WE ASSIGNED 118 PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS (GROUP MEAN +/-S.D., AGE 41.5+/-6.0 YEARS, 74 FEMALES) TO THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP; THEY UNDERWENT 15 DAYS OF YOGA TRAINING FOR 6 HOURS/DAY) IN A RESIDENTIAL YOGA CENTER. THE NON-YOGA CONTROL GROUP (GROUP MEAN +/-S.D., AGE 42.3+/-6.0 YEARS, 79 FEMALES) CONSISTED OF 118 TEACHERS WHO CONTINUED WITH THEIR NORMAL TEACHING ROUTINE. RESULTS AFTER 15 DAYS IN THE RESIDENTIAL YOGA PROGRAM, THERE WAS AN INCREASE IN OVERALL MENTAL WELL-BEING (P<.001) AND LOWER STATE ANXIETY (P<.01) (REPEATED-MEASURES ANOVA, FOLLOWED BY POST HOC MULTIPLE COMPARISON TESTS). AT BASELINE, THE NON-YOGA CONTROL GROUP HAD HIGHER LEVELS OF STATE ANXIETY, PRESUMABLY RELATED TO THEIR REMAINING IN THE WORKPLACE. CONCLUSIONS THE STUDY WAS A 15-DAY, COMPARATIVE, CONTROLLED TRIAL. THE RESULTS SHOW THAT AFTER 15 DAYS OF PARTICIPATION IN THE RESIDENTIAL YOGA PROGRAM, PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS INCREASED ALL ASPECTS OF MENTAL WELL-BEING AND HAD REDUCED STATE ANXIETY. 2018 19 935 23 EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA TRAINING PROGRAMS TO REDUCE DEPRESSION AND IMPROVE RESILIENCE OF SINGLE MOTHERS. SINGLE MOTHERS ARE VULNERABLE TO MENTAL HEALTH SUCH AS DEPRESSION, BUT EMOTIONAL SUPPORT IS INSUFFICIENT. YOGA IS KNOWN TO BE EFFECTIVE IN REDUCING NEGATIVE EMOTIONS AND PROMOTING RESILIENCE. THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED IN ORDER TO VERIFY THE EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA TRAINING PROGRAMS IN REDUCING DEPRESSION AND IMPROVING THE RESILIENCE OF SINGLE MOTHERS. PARTICIPANTS IN THE STUDY INCLUDED 20 SINGLE MOTHERS WHO BELONGED TO THE SINGLE MOTHERS ASSOCIATION, WHO WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO TRAINING (N=10) AND NONTRAINING (N=10) GROUPS. THE YOGA TRAINING PROGRAM FOR SINGLE MOTHERS CONSISTED OF ASANA YOGA, MEDITATION, AND MIND EXPRESSION THROUGH EXPERT MEETINGS; A TOTAL OF EIGHT SESSIONS WERE CONDUCTED ONCE A WEEK FOR 120 MIN. TESTING FOR DEPRESSION AND RESILIENCE WAS PERFORMED BEFORE AND AFTER THE PROGRAM IN ORDER TO VERIFY THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PROGRAM. ACCORDING TO THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY, DEPRESSION IN SINGLE MOTHERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE YOGA TRAINING PROGRAM WAS SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED, AND RESILIENCE WAS SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED. THEREFORE, THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE YOGA TRAINING PROGRAM IN LOWERING THE DEPRESSION OF SINGLE MOTHERS AND IMPROVING RESILIENCE WAS CONFIRMED. IN THE FUTURE CONDUCT OF MANY STUDIES WILL BE REQUIRED IN ORDER TO HELP THE MENTAL HEALTH OF SINGLE MOTHERS. 2022 20 1745 21 PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES IN SPORTS TEACHERS FOLLOWING 3 MONTHS OF TRAINING IN YOGA. 1. THIS REPORT SHOWS THAT IN A GROUP OF 40 PHYSICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS WHO ALREADY HAD AN AVERAGE OF 8.9 YEARS PHYSICAL TRAINING, 3 MONTHS OF YOGIC TRAINING PRODUCED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN GENERAL HEALTH (IN TERMS OF BODY WEIGHT AND BP REDUCTION AND IMPROVED LUNG FUNCTIONS). 2. THERE WAS ALSO EVIDENCE OF DECREASED AUTONOMIC AROUSAL AND MORE OF PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL RELAXATION (HEART RATE AND RESPIRATORY RATE REDUCTION), AND IMPROVED SOMATIC STEADINESS (DECREASED ERRORS IN THE STEADINESS TEST). 3. THE CHANGES AT THE END OF 3 MONTHS IN VOLAR GSR IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS (INCREASE/DECREASE/NO CHANGE), DEPENDING ON THE INITIAL VALUES, SUGGESTS THAT PRACTISING YOGA MAY HELP TO BRING ABOUT A BALANCE IN DIFFERENT AUTONOMIC FUNCTIONS, SO THAT FUNCTIONING IS OPTIMISED. 1993