1 1559 82 LONG-TERM VIHANGAM YOGA MEDITATION AND SCORES ON TESTS OF ATTENTION. ALTHOUGH THE LITERATURE INDICATES THAT MEDITATION HAS BENEFICIAL EFFECTS ON SEVERAL ASPECTS OF HUMAN FUNCTIONING, FEW STUDIES HAVE SPECIFICALLY INVESTIGATED THE EFFECTS OF MEDITATION ON VARIOUS DOMAINS OF ATTENTION. THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO EXAMINE THE DIFFERENCES IN VARIOUS DOMAINS OF ATTENTION BETWEEN LONG-TERM CONCENTRATIVE MEDITATORS VERSUS MATCHED CONTROLS. 15 PRACTITIONERS OF VIHANGAM YOGA (> 10 YR. EXPERIENCE) WERE ENROLLED IN THE STUDY. CONTROLS MATCHED ON AGE, SEX, AND YEARS OF EDUCATION WERE RECRUITED. BOTH GROUPS WERE ADMINISTERED THE STROOP, TRAIL-MAKING, AND DIGIT SYMBOL SUBSTITUTION TESTS AS WELL AS THE DIGIT FORWARD AND DIGIT BACKWARD TESTS. THE GROUP OF VIHANGAM YOGIS HAD SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER MEAN PERFORMANCE ON ALL TESTS OF ATTENTION. LONG-TERM VIHANGAM YOGA MEDITATION IMPROVES ATTENTION SPAN, PROCESSING SPEED, ATTENTION ALTERNATION ABILITY, AND PERFORMANCE IN INTERFERENCE TESTS. 2010 2 277 19 ADDITIONAL PRACTICE OF YOGA BREATHING WITH INTERMITTENT BREATH HOLDING ENHANCES PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: THE PRACTICE OF YOGA IS ASSOCIATED WITH ENHANCED PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING. THE CURRENT STUDY ASSESSED THE CORRELATION BETWEEN THE DURATION OF YOGA PRACTICE WITH STATE MINDFULNESS, MIND-WANDERING AND STATE ANXIETY. ALSO, WE EXAMINED IF AN ADDITIONAL 20 MIN OF YOGA BREATHING WITH INTERMITTENT BREATH HOLDING (EXPERIMENTAL GROUP) FOR 8 WEEKS WOULD AFFECT THESE PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLES MORE THAN REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE (CONTROL GROUP) ALONE. METHODS: ONE HUNDRED SIXTEEN SUBJECTS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO EXPERIMENTAL (N = 60) AND CONTROL (N = 56) GROUPS. STATE MINDFULNESS ATTENTION AWARENESS SCALE (SMAAS), MIND-WANDERING QUESTIONNAIRE (MWQ) AND STATE ANXIETY INVENTORY WERE ADMINISTERED AT BASELINE AND AT THE END OF 8 WEEKS. RESULTS: BASELINE ASSESSMENT REVEALED A POSITIVE CORRELATION BETWEEN DURATION OF YOGA PRACTICE WITH SMAAS SCORES AND NEGATIVE CORRELATION WITH MWQ AND STATE ANXIETY SCORES. AT THE END OF 8 WEEKS, BOTH GROUPS DEMONSTRATED ENHANCED PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS, BUT THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP RECEIVING ADDITIONAL YOGA BREATHING PERFORMED BETTER THAN THE GROUP PRACTICING YOGA ALONE. CONCLUSION: AN ADDITIONAL PRACTICE OF YOGA BREATHING WITH INTERMITTENT BREATH HOLDING WAS FOUND TO ENHANCE THE PSYCHOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS IN YOUNG ADULT YOGA PRACTITIONERS. 2018 3 251 28 A YOGA PROGRAM FOR COGNITIVE ENHANCEMENT. BACKGROUND: RECENT STUDIES SUGGEST THAT YOGA PRACTICE MAY IMPROVE COGNITIVE FUNCTIONING. ALTHOUGH PRELIMINARY DATA INDICATE THAT YOGA IMPROVES WORKING MEMORY (WM), HIGH-RESOLUTION INFORMATION ABOUT THE TYPE OF WM SUBCONSTRUCTS, NAMELY MAINTENANCE AND MANIPULATION, IS NOT AVAILABLE. FURTHERMORE, THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN COGNITIVE ENHANCEMENT AND IMPROVED MINDFULNESS AS A RESULT OF YOGA PRACTICE REQUIRES EMPIRICAL EXAMINATION. THE AIM OF THE PRESENT STUDY IS TO ASSESS THE IMPACT OF A BRIEF YOGA PROGRAM ON WM MAINTENANCE, WM MANIPULATION AND ATTENTIVE MINDFULNESS. METHODS: MEASURES OF WM (DIGIT SPAN FORWARD, BACKWARD, AND SEQUENCING, AND LETTER-NUMBER SEQUENCING) WERE ADMINISTERED PRIOR TO AND FOLLOWING 6 SESSIONS OF YOGA (N = 43). ADDITIONALLY, THE MINDFULNESS ATTENTION AWARENESS SCALE WAS ADMINISTERED TO EXAMINE THE POTENTIAL IMPACT OF YOGA PRACTICE ON MINDFULNESS, AS WELL AS THE RELATIONSHIPS AMONG CHANGES IN WM AND MINDFULNESS. RESULTS: ANALYSES REVEALED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT FROM PRE- TO POST- TRAINING ASSESSMENT ON BOTH MAINTENANCE WM (DIGIT SPAN FORWARD) AND MANIPULATION WM (DIGIT SPAN BACKWARD AND LETTER-NUMBER SEQUENCING). NO CHANGE WAS FOUND ON DIGIT SPAN SEQUENCING. IMPROVEMENT WAS ALSO FOUND ON MINDFULNESS SCORES. HOWEVER, NO CORRELATION WAS OBSERVED BETWEEN MINDFULNESS AND WM MEASURES. CONCLUSIONS: A 6-SESSION YOGA PROGRAM WAS ASSOCIATED WITH IMPROVEMENT ON MANIPULATION AND MAINTENANCE WM MEASURES AS WELL AS ENHANCED MINDFULNESS SCORES. ADDITIONAL RESEARCH IS NEEDED TO UNDERSTAND THE EXTENT OF YOGA-RELATED COGNITIVE ENHANCEMENT AND MECHANISMS BY WHICH YOGA MAY ENHANCE COGNITION, IDEALLY BY UTILIZING RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS AND MORE COMPREHENSIVE NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL BATTERIES. 2017 4 1356 33 IMMEDIATE EFFECT OF TWO YOGA-BASED RELAXATION TECHNIQUES ON COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS IN PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM RELAPSING REMITTING MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY. COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT (CI) IS AN IMPORTANT FEATURE OF RELAPSING REMITTING MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS (RRMS). YOGIC RELAXATION TECHNIQUES HAVE BEEN FOUND USEFUL IN IMPROVING VARIOUS COGNITIVE DOMAINS IN HEALTH AND DISEASE. EIGHTEEN SUBJECTS (13 FEMALES) IN THE AGE RANGE OF 51.5 +/- 12.72 YEARS WITH THE DIAGNOSIS OF RRMS BY A NEUROLOGIST (MCDONALD CRITERIA 2010) SINCE LAST 18.16 +/- 12.59 YEARS WERE RECRUITED INTO THE STUDY FROM A NEURO-REHABILITATION CENTRE IN GERMANY. ASSESSMENTS WERE DONE BEFORE AND IMMEDIATELY AFTER TWO RANDOMLY ALLOCATED 30-MIN SESSIONS OF YOGIC RELAXATION: CYCLIC MEDITATION (CM) AND SR (SUPINE REST OR SHAVASANA). ASSESSMENTS WERE DONE FOR ATTENTION, PSYCHOMOTOR PERFORMANCE, INFORMATION PROCESSING SPEED, EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS, AND IMMEDIATE AND DELAYED RECALL USING STANDARD PSYCHOMETRIC TOOLS. RMANOVA WAS APPLIED TO ANALYSE THE DATA USING SPSS VERSION 10. BOTH CM AND SR SESSIONS IMPROVED SCORES ON DIGIT SYMBOL SUBSTITUTION TEST (DSST) (P < 0.01) AND AUDITORY VERBAL LEARNING TEST (AVLT) (P < 0.05). THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER PERFORMANCE IN TRAIL MAKING TEST (TMT)-A AND FORWARD DIGIT SPAN (FDS) AFTER CM AS COMPARED TO SR (P < 0.01). YOGIC RELAXATION TECHNIQUES MAY HAVE AN IMMEDIATE ENHANCING EFFECT ON PROCESSING SPEED, PSYCHOMOTOR PERFORMANCE, AND RECALL OF RRMS PATIENTS. CM IS BETTER THAN SR IN IMPROVING PROCESSING SPEED, SHORT-TERM MEMORY, AND VERBAL WORKING MEMORY. 2016 5 746 32 EFFECT OF SAHAJ YOGA ON NEURO-COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS IN PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM MAJOR DEPRESSION. COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS ARE IMPAIRED IN MAJOR DEPRESSION. STUDIES ON THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS HAVE SHOWN IMPROVEMENT IN MEMORY, VIGILANCE AND ANXIETY LEVELS. 30 PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM MAJOR DEPRESSION (AGE 18 TO 45 YEARS) WERE RANDOMLY DIVIDED INTO TWO GROUPS: GROUP 1: (10 MALES AND 5 FEMALES) PATIENTS WHO PRACTISED SAHAJ YOGA MEDITATION AND ALSO RECEIVED CONVENTIONAL ANTI-DEPRESSANT MEDICATION. GROUP 2: (9 MALES AND 6 FEMALES) PATIENTS WHO ONLY RECEIVED CONVENTIONAL ANTIDEPRESSANT MEDICATION. GROUP 1 PATIENTS WERE ADMINISTERED SAHAJ YOGA PRACTICE FOR 8 WEEKS. NEURO-COGNITIVE TEST BATTERY CONSISTING OF LETTER CANCELLATION TEST (LCT), TRAIL MAKING TEST 'A' (TTA), TRAIL MAKING TEST 'B' (TTB), RUFF FIGURAL FLUENCY TEST (RFFT), FORWARD DIGIT SPAN (FDS) & REVERSE DIGIT SPAN TEST (RDS) WAS USED TO ASSESS FOLLOWING COGNITIVE DOMAINS: ATTENTION SPAN, VISUO-MOTOR SPEED, SHORT-TERM MEMORY, WORKING MEMORY AND EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS. AFTER 8 WEEKS, BOTH GROUP 1 AND GROUP 2 SUBJECTS SHOWED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN LCT, TTA & TTB BUT IMPROVEMENT IN LCT WAS MORE MARKED IN GROUP 1 SUBJECTS. ALSO, THERE WAS SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN RDS SCORES IN ONLY GROUP 1 SUBJECTS (P < 0.05). THE RESULTS THEREBY, DEMONSTRATE THAT SAHAJ YOGA PRACTICE IN ADDITION TO THE IMPROVEMENT IN VARIOUS OTHER COGNITIVE DOMAINS SEEN WITH CONVENTIONAL ANTI-DEPRESSANTS, CAN LEAD TO ADDITIONAL IMPROVEMENT IN EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS LIKE MANIPULATION OF INFORMATION IN THE VERBAL WORKING MEMORY AND ADDED IMPROVEMENT IN ATTENTION SPAN AND VISUO-MOTOR SPEED OF THE DEPRESSIVES. 2006 6 1351 20 IMMEDIATE EFFECT OF A YOGA BREATHING PRACTICE ON ATTENTION AND ANXIETY IN PRE-TEEN CHILDREN. PRE-TEEN CHILDREN FACE STRESSORS RELATED TO THEIR TRANSITION FROM CHILDHOOD TO ADOLESCENCE, WITH A SIMULTANEOUS INCREASE IN ACADEMIC PRESSURE. THE PRESENT STUDY COMPARED THE IMMEDIATE EFFECTS OF 18 MIN OF (I) HIGH FREQUENCY YOGA BREATHING WITH (II) YOGA-BASED BREATH AWARENESS AND (III) SITTING QUIETLY, ON (A) ATTENTION AND (B) ANXIETY, IN 61 PRE-TEEN CHILDREN (AGED BETWEEN 11 AND 12 YEARS; 25 GIRLS). ATTENTION WAS ASSESSED USING A SIX LETTER CANCELLATION TASK AND SPIELBERGER'S STATE TRAIT ANXIETY INVENTORY STAI-S WAS USED TO MEASURE ANXIETY BEFORE AND AFTER THE THREE PRACTICES, PRACTICED ON SEPARATE DAYS. REPEATED MEASURES ANOVA, FOLLOWED BY BONFERRONI ADJUSTED POST-HOC ANALYSES SHOWED AN INCREASE IN TOTAL ATTEMPTS AND NET SCORES AFTER HIGH FREQUENCY YOGA BREATHING (P < 0.05), WHILE WRONG ATTEMPTS INCREASED AFTER YOGA BASED BREATH AWARENESS (P < 0.05). ANXIETY DECREASED COMPARABLY AFTER ALL THREE INTERVENTIONS. THE 25 GIRLS IN THE GROUP HAD THE SAME TREND OF RESULTS AS THE WHOLE GROUP WITH RESPECT TO THE ATTENTION-BASED CANCELLATION TASK, WHILE BOYS SHOWED NO, HOW SINCE CHANGE. FOR BOTH GIRLS AND BOYS, ANXIETY DECREASED AFTER ALL THREE 18MIN INTERVENTIONS. THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT HIGH FREQUENCY YOGA BREATHING COULD BE A SHORT, USEFUL SCHOOL BASED PRACTICE TO IMPROVE ATTENTION AND REDUCE ANXIETY. 2019 7 760 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 8 2085 23 THE EFFECT OF LONG TERM COMBINED YOGA PRACTICE ON THE BASAL METABOLIC RATE OF HEALTHY ADULTS. BACKGROUND: DIFFERENT PROCEDURES PRACTICED IN YOGA HAVE STIMULATORY OR INHIBITORY EFFECTS ON THE BASAL METABOLIC RATE WHEN STUDIED ACUTELY. IN DAILY LIFE HOWEVER, THESE PROCEDURES ARE USUALLY PRACTICED IN COMBINATION. THE PURPOSE OF THE PRESENT STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE NET CHANGE IN THE BASAL METABOLIC RATE (BMR) OF INDIVIDUALS ACTIVELY ENGAGING IN A COMBINATION OF YOGA PRACTICES (ASANA OR YOGIC POSTURES, MEDITATION AND PRANAYAMA OR BREATHING EXERCISES) FOR A MINIMUM PERIOD OF SIX MONTHS, AT A RESIDENTIAL YOGA EDUCATION AND RESEARCH CENTER AT BANGALORE. METHODS: THE MEASURED BMR OF INDIVIDUALS PRACTICING YOGA THROUGH A COMBINATION OF PRACTICES WAS COMPARED WITH THAT OF CONTROL SUBJECTS WHO DID NOT PRACTICE YOGA BUT LED SIMILAR LIFESTYLES. RESULTS: THE BMR OF THE YOGA PRACTITIONERS WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER THAN THAT OF THE NON-YOGA GROUP, AND WAS LOWER BY ABOUT 13 % WHEN ADJUSTED FOR BODY WEIGHT (P < 0.001). THIS DIFFERENCE PERSISTED WHEN THE GROUPS WERE STRATIFIED BY GENDER; HOWEVER, THE DIFFERENCE IN BMR ADJUSTED FOR BODY WEIGHT WAS GREATER IN WOMEN THAN MEN (ABOUT 8 AND 18% RESPECTIVELY). IN ADDITION, THE MEAN BMR OF THE YOGA GROUP WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER THAN THEIR PREDICTED VALUES, WHILE THE MEAN BMR OF NON-YOGA GROUP WAS COMPARABLE WITH THEIR PREDICTED VALUES DERIVED FROM 1985 WHO/FAO/UNU PREDICTIVE EQUATIONS. CONCLUSION: THIS STUDY SHOWS THAT THERE IS A SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED BMR, PROBABLY LINKED TO REDUCED AROUSAL, WITH THE LONG TERM PRACTICE OF YOGA USING A COMBINATION OF STIMULATORY AND INHIBITORY YOGIC PRACTICES. 2006 9 1756 24 PLASTICITY OF VISUAL ATTENTION IN ISHA YOGA MEDITATION PRACTITIONERS BEFORE AND AFTER A 3-MONTH RETREAT. MEDITATION HAS LATELY RECEIVED CONSIDERABLE INTEREST FROM COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE. STUDIES SUGGEST THAT DAILY MEDITATION LEADS TO LONG LASTING ATTENTIONAL AND NEURONAL PLASTICITY. WE PRESENT CHANGES RELATED TO THE ATTENTIONAL SYSTEMS BEFORE AND AFTER A 3 MONTH INTENSIVE MEDITATION RETREAT. WE USED THREE BEHAVIORAL PSYCHOPHYSICAL TESTS - A STROOP TASK, AN ATTENTIONAL BLINK TASK, AND A GLOBAL-LOCAL LETTER TASK-TO ASSESS THE EFFECT OF ISHA YOGA MEDITATION ON ATTENTIONAL RESOURCE ALLOCATION. 82 ISHA YOGA PRACTITIONERS WERE TESTED AT THE BEGINNING AND AT THE END OF THE RETREAT. OUR RESULTS SHOWED AN INCREASE IN CORRECT RESPONSES SPECIFIC TO INCONGRUENT STIMULI IN THE STROOP TASK. CONGRUENTLY, A POSITIVE CORRELATION BETWEEN PREVIOUS MEDITATION EXPERIENCE AND ACCURACY TO INCONGRUENT STROOP STIMULI WAS ALSO OBSERVED AT BASELINE. WE ALSO OBSERVED A REDUCTION OF THE ATTENTIONAL BLINK. UNEXPECTEDLY, A NEGATIVE CORRELATION BETWEEN PREVIOUS MEDITATION EXPERIENCE AND ATTENTIONAL BLINK PERFORMANCE AT BASELINE WAS OBSERVED. REGARDING SPATIAL ATTENTION ORIENTATION AS ASSESSED USING THE GLOBAL-LOCAL LETTER TASK, PARTICIPANTS SHOWED A BIAS TOWARD LOCAL PROCESSING. ONLY SLIGHT DIFFERENCES IN PERFORMANCE WERE FOUND PRE- VS. POST- MEDITATION RETREAT. BIASING TOWARD THE LOCAL STIMULI IN THE GLOBAL-LOCAL TASK AND NEGATIVE CORRELATION OF PREVIOUS MEDITATION EXPERIENCE WITH ATTENTIONAL BLINK PERFORMANCE IS CONSISTENT WITH ISHA PRACTICES BEING FOCUSED-ATTENTION PRACTICES. GIVEN THE RELATIVELY SMALL EFFECT SIZES AND THE ABSENCE OF A CONTROL GROUP, OUR RESULTS DO NOT ALLOW CLEAR SUPPORT NOR REJECTION OF THE HYPOTHESIS OF MEDITATION-DRIVEN NEURONAL PLASTICITY IN THE ATTENTIONAL SYSTEM FOR ISHA YOGA PRACTICE. 2013 10 678 21 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 11 2461 22 YOGA AS A NOVEL ADJUVANT THERAPY FOR PATIENTS WITH IDIOPATHIC INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHIES. CONTEXT: RECENT STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT PHYSICAL ACTIVITY IS WELL TOLERATED BY PATIENTS WITH IDIOPATHIC INFLAMMATORY MYOPATHIES (IIMS) AND CAN HAVE ADDITIONAL BENEFITS AS AN ADJUVANT THERAPY TO PHARMACOLOGIC AGENTS, ESPECIALLY IF STARTED EARLY. TO DATE, NO STUDIES HAVE EXAMINED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON PATIENTS WITH IIMS. AIMS: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON SELF-REPORTED DIFFICULTY IN PERFORMING ACTIVITIES OF DAILY LIVING (ADL) AND MUSCLE STRENGTH IN PATIENTS WITH MILD-TO-MODERATE IIMS. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A LONGITUDINAL COHORT STUDY IN WHICH PARTICIPANTS WERE ASSESSED USING THE MYOSITIS ACTIVITIES PROFILE (MAP) AND MANUAL MUSCLE TESTING (MMT) BEFORE AND AFTER THE COMPLETION OF AN 8-WEEK INSTRUCTOR-GUIDED YOGA COURSE WAS PERFORMED. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: WILCOXON SIGNED-RANKED TEST WAS PERFORMED FOR STATISTICAL ANALYSIS. RESULTS: THE AVERAGE POSTTREATMENT MAP SCORES OF SIX PARTICIPANTS DEMONSTRATED AN INCREASE OF 2.51 POINTS, WHILE THE AVERAGE MMT SCORE OF FOUR PARTICIPANTS DEMONSTRATED AN INCREASE OF 11 POINTS. CONCLUSIONS: THIS STUDY IS THE FIRST STUDY TO DATE TO EXAMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA AS AN ADJUVANT COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY FOR PATIENTS WITH IIM. CONTINUED RESEARCH SHOULD BE DONE ON THE EFFECT OF YOGA AS AN ADJUVANT THERAPY, FOR IN ADDITION TO INCREASE IN MUSCLE STRENGTH AND ABILITY TO PERFORM ADL, YOGA MAY OFFER POTENTIAL IMPROVEMENTS IN MOOD, MENTAL HEALTH, AND SLEEP. 2021 12 1442 20 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 13 2871 25 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 14 1643 16 MOOD CHANGE AND PERCEPTIONS OF VITALITY: A COMPARISON OF THE EFFECTS OF RELAXATION, VISUALIZATION AND YOGA. THE EFFECTS OF THREE DIFFERENT PROCEDURES, RELAXATION, VISUALIZATION AND YOGIC BREATHING AND STRETCH (PRANAYAMA) ON PERCEPTIONS OF PHYSICAL AND MENTAL ENERGY AND ON POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE MOOD STATES HAVE BEEN ASSESSED IN A GROUP OF NORMAL VOLUNTEERS (N = 71, AGE RANGE 21-76). PRANAYAMA PRODUCED A SIGNIFICANTLY GREATER INCREASE IN PERCEPTIONS OF MENTAL AND PHYSICAL ENERGY AND FEELINGS OF ALERTNESS AND ENTHUSIASM THAN THE OTHER TWO PROCEDURES (P < 0.5). RELAXATION MADE SUBJECTS SIGNIFICANTLY MORE SLEEPY AND SLUGGISH IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE SESSION THAN PRANAYAMA (P < 0.05). VISUALIZATION MADE THEM MORE SLUGGISH BUT LESS CONTENT THAN PRANAYAMA (P < 0.05) AND MORE UPSET THAN RELAXATION AFTER THE SECOND SESSION (P < 0.05). THUS, A 30 MIN PROGRAMME OF YOGIC STRETCH AND BREATHING EXERCISES WHICH IS SIMPLE TO LEARN AND WHICH CAN BE PRACTISED EVEN BY THE ELDERLY HAD A MARKEDLY 'INVIGORATING' EFFECT ON PERCEPTIONS OF BOTH MENTAL AND PHYSICAL ENERGY AND INCREASED HIGH POSITIVE MOOD. A MORE EXTENSIVE INVESTIGATION IS PLANNED TO ESTABLISH WHETHER SUCH A PROGRAMME CAN READILY BE INCORPORATED INTO EVERYDAY LIFE, AND WITH WHAT LONG-TERM RESULTS. 1993 15 769 32 EFFECT OF UNILATERAL LEFT NOSTRIL BREATHING (CHANDRA ANGA PRANAYAMA) ON COGNITIVE FUNCTION IN HEALTHY YOGA-NAIVE INDIVIDUALS: A RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED, PILOT STUDY. INTRODUCTION: BREATHING MODULATES CORTICAL NEURONAL ACTIVITY. VARIOUS BREATHING EXERCISES ARE PURPORTED TO HAVE SPECIFIC EFFECTS ON EMOTIONAL AND COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS. OBJECTIVE: TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF UNILATERAL LEFT NOSTRIL BREATHING (ULNB) ON NONLATERALIZED, OVERALL COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS USING COMPUTERIZED PSYCHOMETRIC TESTS. METHODS: A RANDOMIZED, CONTROLLED, PILOT STUDY WAS CONDUCTED AMONG 20 HEALTHY YOGA-NAIVE MEDICAL STUDENTS. ULNB WAS PERFORMED FOR 15 MIN BY THE TEST GROUP (N = 10) AND BREATH AWARENESS BY THE CONTROL GROUP (N = 10). ATTENTION AND PROCESSING SPEED, MEMORY, AND EXECUTIVE FUNCTION WERE ASSESSED USING THE LETTER-DIGIT SUBSTITUTION TEST, STERNBERG MEMORY TASK, AND VICTORIA STROOP TEST, RESPECTIVELY. BASELINE, PRE- AND POSTINTERVENTION SCORES WERE RECORDED. RESULTS: THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE GROUPS IN BASELINE SCORES. IN THE STERNBERG MEMORY TASK, A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN RESPONSE TIME WAS SEEN IN THE TEST (T(9) = 3.855, P = 0.004) AS WELL AS THE CONTROL GROUP (T(9) = 3.120, P = 0.012); THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE GROUPS. NO SIGNIFICANT EFFECT OF UNLB WAS SEEN IN THE LETTER-DIGIT SUBSTITUTION TEST AND STROOP TEST. CONCLUSIONS: OUR STUDY SHOWED NO DIFFERENCE IN THE EFFECTS OF 15-MIN PRACTICE OF ULNB AND BREATH AWARENESS ON COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS; BOTH IMPROVED MEMORY BUT NOT ATTENTION OR EXECUTIVE FUNCTION. 2020 16 677 26 EFFECT OF A YOGA BASED MEDITATION TECHNIQUE ON EMOTIONAL REGULATION, SELF-COMPASSION AND MINDFULNESS IN COLLEGE STUDENTS. BACKGROUND: EMOTION REGULATION IS OFTEN A CHALLENGE FOR THE COLLEGE STUDENTS. YOGA PRACTICE HAS BEEN SHOWN TO REDUCE STRESS AND IMPROVE MINDFULNESS THAT IS RELATED TO EMOTION REGULATION. MASTERING EMOTIONS TECHNIQUE (MEMT) IS ONE OF THE YOGA-BASED MEDITATION TECHNIQUES THAT ARE DESIGNED TO CONTROL EMOTIONS AMONG PRACTITIONERS. HOWEVER, TO THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE, THERE IS NO KNOWN STUDY REPORTING ITS SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE-BASED EFFECTS ON EMOTION AND ITS RELATED VARIABLES. THUS, THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF MEMT ON EMOTION REGULATION, SELF-COMPASSION, AND MINDFULNESS IN COLLEGE STUDENTS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: SEVENTY-TWO SUBJECTS WITH THE AGE VARIED FROM 18 TO 25 YEARS WERE RECRUITED FROM A RESIDENTIAL COLLEGE. ALL THE SUBJECTS UNDERWENT MEMT FOR THE DURATION OF 45 MIN A DAY FOR A PERIOD OF 2 WEEKS. ASSESSMENTS SUCH AS EMOTIONAL REGULATION QUESTIONNAIRE (ERQ), THE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE AFFECT SCHEDULE (PANAS), SELF-COMPASSION SCALE (SCS), AND MINDFUL ATTENTION AWARENESS SCALE (MAAS) WERE TAKEN BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION. RESULTS: RESULTS OF THIS STUDY SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE SCORES OF COGNITIVE REAPPRAISAL, POSITIVE AFFECT, SELF-COMPASSION, AND MAAS ALONG WITH A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN THE SCORES OF NEGATIVE AFFECT, AND EXPRESSIVE SUPPRESSION AFTER THE PRACTICE OF MEMT COMPARED TO ITS RESPECTIVE BASELINE. CONCLUSIONS: RESULTS OF THIS STUDY SUGGEST THAT PRACTICE OF MEMT IS EFFECTIVE IN IMPROVING EMOTION REGULATION, POSITIVE AFFECTS, SELF-COMPASSION, AND MINDFULNESS WHILE IN REDUCING NEGATIVE AFFECTS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS. 2018 17 597 22 DEVELOPMENT AND FEASIBILITY TESTING OF A BRIEF YOGA MODULE ON WELL-BEING AND COGNITION OF POSTGRADUATE MENTAL HEALTHCARE STUDENTS IN TERTIARY SETTINGS. BACKGROUND: MENTAL HEALTH-CARE STUDENTS EXPERIENCE STRESS AND BURNOUT DURING THEIR TRAINING PERIOD. YOGA HAS BEEN FOUND TO BE HELPFUL IN IMPROVING ONE'S MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING. AIM: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY IS TO DEVELOP AND TEST THE FEASIBILITY OF A BRIEF YOGA MODULE FOR POSTGRADUATE MENTAL HEALTH-CARE STUDENTS. METHODS: AMIXED METHOD DESIGN WAS USED. PHASE 1 INVOLVED DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF THE YOGA MODULE USING THE QUALITATIVE EXPLORATORY METHOD. PHASE II TESTED THE FEASIBILITY OF THE MODULE ON A SAMPLE OF 28 FIRST-YEAR POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS. THESE STUDENTS PARTICIPATED IN A 15-DAY (30 MIN/DAY) BRIEF YOGA MODULE FOR IMPROVING THEIR WELL-BEING AND COGNITION (MIRROR NEURON ACTIVATION [MNA] AND TOWER OF LONDON TASK AS ASSESSED ON DAY 0, DAY 15 (2 WEEKS), AND DAY 30 (4 WEEKS). QUALITATIVE FEEDBACK OF THE STUDENT VOLUNTEERS WAS ALSO RECORDED. RESULTS: SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN THE WELL-BEING SCORES WAS OBSERVED IN THE STUDENTS WHO ADHERED TO THE YOGA PRACTICE AFTER 2 WEEKS AND 4 WEEKS. FUNCTIONAL NEAR INFRA-RED SPECTROSCOPY (FNIRS) DATA INDICATED THAT ADHERENTS SHOWED SIGNIFICANT ACTIVATION OF LEFT SOMATOSENSORY REGION OF THE BRAIN AND DEACTIVATION IN THE RIGHT PRIMARY SOMATOSENSORY REGION DURING THE STATIC AND ACTIVE PHASE OF THE MNA TASK, RESPECTIVELY. ADHERENT GROUP SHOWED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN REACTION TIME DURING "ZERO-MOVES" TASKS OF TOWER OF LONDON. THE QUALITATIVE THEMATIC ANALYSIS SHOWED THAT THE MODULE HELPED IMPROVE THE WELL-BEING AND MENTAL HEALTH OF THE STUDENTS. CONCLUSION: THE YOGA PROGRAM WAS FOUND TO HAVE HIGH NEED AND MEDIUM TO HIGH FEASIBILITY. A SYSTEMIC INTEGRATION OF STUDENT WELL-BEING-ORIENTED INTERVENTIONS INCLUDING YOGA IN THE CURRICULUM OF POSTGRADUATE MENTAL HEALTH-CARE COURSES IS ADVOCATED. 2021 18 2137 15 THE EFFECTS OF ACUTE YOGA ON ANXIETY SYMPTOMS IN RESPONSE TO A CARBON DIOXIDE INHALATION TASK IN WOMEN. PURPOSE: WE INVESTIGATED THE EFFICACY OF YOGA FOR IMPROVING COGNITIVE AND PHYSICAL ANXIETY SYMPTOMS, AND ITS POSSIBLE RESPIRATORY MECHANISM, IN HIGH-ANXIOUS WOMEN. METHODS: EIGHTEEN PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED 40MIN OF GUIDED YOGA AND A LIGHT STRETCHING PROTOCOL IN A RANDOMIZED, COUNTERBALANCED ORDER.THE 7.5%CO2-INHALATION TASK WAS ADMINISTERED BEFORE, IMMEDIATELY AFTER AND 1H AFTER THE EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONS.STATE ANXIETY AND PANIC WERE MEASURED BEFORE AND AFTER EACH INHALATION TASK.TIDAL VOLUME, VENTILATION AND RESPIRATORY RATE WERE MEASURED DURING EVERY 7.5%CO2-INHALATION TASKS. RESULTS: THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT 3-WAY INTERACTION(P>.05).THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT MAIN EFFECT OF CO2-INHALATION TASK ON PANIC AND RESPIRATORY MEASURES(P<.05).WHEN COLLAPSED OVER INHALATION TASK AND CONDITION, THERE WAS A SMALL REDUCTION IN COGNITIVE ANXIETY FROM BASELINE TO IMMEDIATELY POST AND 1-H POST-CONDITION(P<.05). CONCLUSIONS: THERE APPEARS TO BE AN OVERALL EFFECT OF GENERAL PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOR ATTENUATING ANXIETY COGNITIONS IRRESPECTIVE OF THE PHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES, INDICATING POSSIBLE DISSOCIATION BETWEEN THE COGNITIVE AND PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS OF ANXIETY AMONG WOMEN WITH ANXIETY SENSITIVITY. 2019 19 2103 22 THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON FUNCTIONAL RECOVERY LEVEL IN SCHIZOPHRENIC PATIENTS. PURPOSE: THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS STUDY IS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON FUNCTIONAL RECOVERY LEVEL IN SCHIZOPHRENIC PATIENTS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: THE STUDY WAS CONDUCTED IN QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN WITH PRETEST-POSTTEST CONTROL GROUP. THE POPULATION OF THE STUDY CONSISTED OF SCHIZOPHRENIC PATIENTS WITH REGISTERED IN MALATYA AND ELAZIG COMMUNITY MENTAL HEALTH CENTERS AND REGULARLY GOING TO THESE CENTERS. THE SAMPLE GROUP OF THE STUDY CONSISTED OF TOTALLY 100 PATIENTS INCLUDING 50 PATIENTS IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP AND 50 PATIENTS IN THE CONTROL GROUP WHO WERE SPECIFIED THROUGH POWER ANALYSIS AND CHOSEN BY USING RANDOM SAMPLING METHOD FROM THIS POPULATION. THE DATA WERE COLLECTED BETWEEN APRIL 2015 AND AUGUST 2015. 'PATIENT DESCRIPTION FORM' AND 'FROGS' WERE USED TO COLLECT THE DATA. YOGA WAS APPLIED TO PATIENTS IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP. ANY INTERVENTION WAS NOT MADE TO PATIENTS IN THE CONTROL GROUP. PERCENTAGE DISTRIBUTION, ARITHMETIC MEAN, STANDARD DEVIATION, CHI-SQUARE, INDEPENDENT SAMPLES T TEST, AND PAIRED T TEST WERE USED TO ASSESS THE DATA. RESULTS: PATIENTS IN THE CONTROL AND EXPERIMENTAL GROUP PRETEST SUBSCALE AND THE TOTAL MEANS SCORES OF FROGS WAS FOUND TO BE LOW. IN THE POSTTEST SUBSCALE AND TOTAL MEANS SCORES OF FROGS IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP WERE HIGHER THAN IN THE CONTROL GROUP AND THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEM WERE FOUND TO BE STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT (P<0.05). IN THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP PRETEST AND POSTTEST SUBSCALE AND TOTAL MEANS SCORES OF FR0GS WAS DETERMINED TO BE STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: YOGA THAT APPLIED TO SCHIZOPHRENIC PATIENTS IT WAS DETERMINED TO INCREASED THE LEVEL OF FUNCTIONAL RECOVERY. IT CAN BE SUGGESTED THAT YOGA SHOULD BE USED AS AN COMPLEMENTARY METHOD IN NURSING PRACTISE IN ORDER TO INCREASE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE TREATMENT. 2016 20 1169 22 EVALUATION OF A SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY-BASED YOGA INTERVENTION TO REDUCE ANXIETY. YOGA IS OFTEN VIEWED AS A FORM OF ALTERNATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE, AS IT STRIVES TO ACHIEVE EQUILIBRIUM BETWEEN THE BODY AND MIND THAT AIDS HEALING. STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THE BENEFICIAL ROLE OF YOGA IN ANXIETY REDUCTION. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DESIGN AND EVALUATE A 10-WEEK SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY BASED YOGA INTERVENTION TO REDUCE ANXIETY. THE YOGA INTERVENTION UTILIZED THE CONSTRUCTS OF BEHAVIORAL CAPABILITY, EXPECTATIONS, SELF-EFFICACY FOR YOGA FROM SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY, AND INCLUDED ASANAS (POSTURES), PRANAYAMA (BREATHING TECHNIQUES), SHAVA ASANA (RELAXATION), AND DHYANA (MEDITATION). A ONE-BETWEEN AND ONE-WITHIN GROUP, QUASI-EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN WAS UTILIZED FOR EVALUATION. SCALES MEASURING EXPECTATIONS FROM YOGA, SELF-EFFICACY FOR YOGA, AND SPEILBERGER'S STATE TRAIT ANXIETY INVENTORY, WERE ADMINISTERED BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION. REPEATED MEASURES ANALYSES OF VARIANCE (ANOVA) WERE PERFORMED TO COMPARE PRE-TEST AND POST-TEST SCORES IN THE TWO GROUPS. YOGA AS AN APPROACH SHOWS PROMISING RESULTS FOR ANXIETY REDUCTION. 2011