1 1806 142 PREVALENCE, PATTERNS, AND PREDICTORS OF YOGA PRACTICE AMONG ADULTS IN AN URBAN POPULATION IN EASTERN INDIA. THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE THE PREVALENCE AND PREDICTORS OF YOGA PRACTICE. THIS CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY WAS CONDUCTED AS A PART OF A LARGER STUDY THAT INCLUDED YOGA AS A FORM OF PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. DATA WERE COLLECTED DURING APRIL AND AUGUST 2019 FROM THE ADULT URBAN POPULATION OF BHUBANESWAR, INDIA. THIS STUDY WAS CONDUCTED USING A CLUSTER RANDOM SAMPLING METHOD. A REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE (N = 1,203) OF ADULTS AGED 18-59 YEARS, IRRESPECTIVE OF GENDER, WAS INTERVIEWED USING A QUESTIONNAIRE ADAPTED FROM THE 2012 U.S. NATIONAL HEALTH INTERVIEW SURVEY, WITH THE EPICOLLECT5 HANDHELD DATA-COLLECTION TOOL. PREDICTORS OF YOGA PRACTICE WERE EXPLORED USING MULTIVARIABLE LOGISTIC REGRESSION. THE MEAN AGE OF THE PARTICIPANTS WAS 35.19 +/- 10.67 YEARS, WITH 55.3% MALES. THE MAJORITY WERE HINDU (93.62%) AND BELONGED TO THE UNRE S E RVED CATEGORY (65.60%), PEOPLE GENERALLY OF HIGHER RELATIVE SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS. THE LIFETIME PREVALENCE OF YOGA WAS 16.9%. PREVALENCE OF ANY FORM OF YOGA (YOGA, PRANAYAMA, OR MEDITATION), ALL FORMS OF YOGA (YOGA, PRANAYAMA, AND MEDITATION), PRANAYAMA, AND MEDITATION WAS 17.0%, 10.7%, 14.3%, AND 11.4%, RESPECTIVELY. AFTER ADJUSTING FOR CONFOUNDERS, FEMALE GENDER, HINDU RELIGION, MINIMUM OF HIGHER-SECONDARY OR GRADUATE-LEVEL EDUCATION, AND HAVING RECEIVED ADVICE FROM PROFESSIONALS FOR YOGA PRACTICE HAD SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER ODDS OF PRACTICING YOGA, AND THOSE OF HIGHER SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS HAD SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER ODDS OF PRACTICING YOGA. WE FOUND A LOW PREVALENCE OF YOGA. SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS LIKE GENDER, RELIGION, EDUCATION, SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS, AND OTHER FACTORS LIKE LEARNING YOGA FROM PROFESSIONALS MAY BE IMPORTANT PREDICTORS OF CONTINUED YOGA PRACTICE. 2021 2 1802 48 PREVALENCE AND PREDICTORS OF YOGIC BREATHING AND MEDITATION USE - A NATIONALLY REPRESENTATIVE SURVEY OF US ADULT YOGA PRACTITIONERS. INTRODUCTION: YOGA PRACTICE IN COMMON USAGE IS OFTEN CONFINED TO THE PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF THE COMPREHENSIVE PRACTICE. THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EXAMINE THE USE OF TWO ADDITIONAL ASPECTS OF YOGA AS PART OF YOGA PRACTICE, I.E. YOGIC BREATHING AND MEDITATION (YOBAM). PREVALENCE AND PREDICTORS OF YOBAM USE AMONG YOGA PRACTITIONERS IN THE US GENERAL POPULATION WERE ANALYZED. METHOD: CROSS-SECTIONAL DATA FROM THE 2012 AND 2017 NATIONAL HEALTH INTERVIEW SURVEY (NHIS) (N = 61,267) WAS USED. 12-MONTH PREVALENCE OF YOGA USE AND YOBAM USE AMONG YOGA PRACTITIONERS WERE ANALYZED DESCRIPTIVELY FOR THE TWO COHORTS RESPECTIVELY. LOGISTIC REGRESSION ANALYSES WERE USED TO ANALYZE SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC AND HEALTH-RELATED PREDICTORS OF YOBAM USE AMONG YOGA PRACTITIONERS. RESULTS: 12-MONTH PREVALENCE OF YOGA USE AND YOBAM USE WERE 8.9 % AND 4.8 % RESPECTIVELY IN 2012. IN 2017, 13.3 % HAD PRACTICED YOGA IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS AND 7.0 % HAD USED YOBAM. YOGA PRACTITIONERS AGED BETWEEN 50 AND 64 COMPARED TO BEING 29 OR YOUNGER, FEMALES, HISPANICS AND THOSE EXPERIENCING MILD TO SEVERE FORMS OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS WERE MORE LIKELY TO USE YOBAM AS PART OF THEIR YOGA PRACTICE. YOGA PRACTITIONERS LIVING IN THE MIDWEST OR IN A RELATIONSHIP WERE LESS LIKELY TO USE YOBAM. CONCLUSION: IN RECENT YEARS, THE NUMBER OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS IN THE US GENERAL POPULATION HAS CONSIDERABLY INCREASED AND YOBAM USE IS COMMON AMONG YOGA PRACTITIONERS. YOBAM USE SEEMS TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH AGE, GENDER, ETHNICITY, REGION, MARITAL STATUS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS DIMENSIONS. 2021 3 1807 51 PREVALENCE, PATTERNS, AND PREDICTORS OF YOGA USE: RESULTS OF A U.S. NATIONALLY REPRESENTATIVE SURVEY. INTRODUCTION: THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE THE PREVALENCE, PATTERNS, AND PREDICTORS OF YOGA USE IN THE U.S. GENERAL POPULATION. METHODS: USING CROSS-SECTIONAL DATA FROM THE 2012 NATIONAL HEALTH INTERVIEW SURVEY FAMILY CORE, SAMPLE ADULT CORE, AND ADULT COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE QUESTIONNAIRES (N=34,525), WEIGHTED FREQUENCIES FOR LIFETIME AND 12-MONTH PREVALENCE OF YOGA USE AND PATTERNS OF YOGA PRACTICE WERE ANALYZED. USING LOGISTIC REGRESSION ANALYSES, SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC PREDICTORS OF LIFETIME YOGA USE WERE ANALYZED. ANALYSES WERE CONDUCTED IN 2015. RESULTS: LIFETIME AND 12-MONTH PREVALENCE OF YOGA USE WERE 13.2% AND 8.9%, RESPECTIVELY. COMPARED WITH NONPRACTITIONERS, LIFETIME YOGA PRACTITIONERS WERE MORE LIKELY FEMALE, YOUNGER, NON-HISPANIC WHITE, COLLEGE EDUCATED, HIGHER EARNERS, LIVING IN THE WEST, AND OF BETTER HEALTH STATUS. AMONG THOSE WHO HAD PRACTICED IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS, 51.2% ATTENDED YOGA CLASSES, 89.9% USED BREATHING EXERCISES, AND 54.9% USED MEDITATION. YOGA WAS PRACTICED FOR GENERAL WELLNESS OR DISEASE PREVENTION (78.4%), TO IMPROVE ENERGY (66.1%), OR TO IMPROVE IMMUNE FUNCTION (49.7%). BACK PAIN (19.7%), STRESS (6.4%), AND ARTHRITIS (6.4%) WERE THE MAIN SPECIFIC HEALTH PROBLEMS FOR WHICH PEOPLE PRACTICED YOGA. CONCLUSIONS: ABOUT 31 MILLION U.S. ADULTS HAVE EVER USED YOGA, AND ABOUT 21 MILLION PRACTICED YOGA IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS. DISEASE PREVENTION AND BACK PAIN RELIEF WERE THE MOST IMPORTANT HEALTH REASONS FOR YOGA PRACTICE. YOGA PRACTICE IS ASSOCIATED WITH AGE, GENDER, ETHNICITY, SES, AND HEALTH STATUS. 2016 4 2748 42 YOGA PRACTICE IN ENGLAND 1997-2008: PREVALENCE, TEMPORAL TRENDS, AND CORRELATES OF PARTICIPATION. BACKGROUND: YOGA IS A HOLISTIC PRACTICE THAT MAY OFFER SEVERAL HEALTH BENEFITS. NO STUDY HAS EXAMINED THE PREVALENCE, TEMPORAL TRENDS, OR CORRELATES OF YOGA PRACTICE AT THE POPULATION LEVEL IN A EUROPEAN COUNTRY AND VERY FEW SUCH STUDIES EXIST WORLDWIDE. THE OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY IS TO EXAMINE THE PREVALENCE, TRENDS AND CORRELATES OF YOGA PRACTICE IN ENGLAND BETWEEN 1997 AND 2008. FINDINGS: ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED IN EARLY 2013 USING HEALTH SURVEY FOR ENGLAND DATA. INDEPENDENT COHORTS, REPRESENTATIVE OF ADULTS LIVING IN ENGLAND, WERE SURVEYED IN ANNUAL CYCLES IN 1997-1999, 2003-2004, AND 2006/2008. PREVALENCE OF YOGA PRACTICE (DEFINED AS ANY PRACTICE IN THE PAST FOUR WEEKS) WAS DETERMINED AT EACH TIME POINT AND MULTIPLE LOGISTIC REGRESSION WAS USED TO EXAMINE TEMPORAL TRENDS (USING 1997-1999 AS REFERENCE TIME POINT) AND THE CORRELATES OF YOGA PRACTICE. THE PREVALENCE OF YOGA PRACTICE WAS 0.46% (95% CI: 0.39%-0.52%) IN 1997-1999, 0.94% (0.83%-1.06%) IN 2003-2004, AND 1.11% (0.95%-1.28%) IN 2006/2008. YOGA PARTICIPANTS IN ENGLAND WERE MORE LIKELY TO BE OLDER, FEMALE, DEGREE EDUCATED, OF NON-MANUAL SOCIAL CLASS, LOWER BMI, BETTER SELF-RATED GENERAL HEALTH, INACTIVE OCCUPATION, AND HIGHER MODERATE-TO-VIGOROUS PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. ADJUSTED FOR AGE, SEX, SOCIAL CLASS, AND LONG STANDING ILLNESSES, THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT INCREASING TREND OF YOGA PRACTICE FROM 1997 TO 2008 (2003/04 OR = 1.93, 95% CI: 1.59-2.34; 2006/08 OR = 2.19, 95% CI: 1.77-2.71). CONCLUSIONS: YOGA PRACTICE HAS INCREASED IN POPULARITY, THOUGH THE ABSOLUTE RATES ARE STILL RELATIVELY LOW. FUTURE POPULATION STUDIES SHOULD MORE COMPREHENSIVELY EXAMINE THE CONTEXTS, SETTINGS, STYLES, CORRELATES AND HEALTH BENEFITS OF YOGA PRACTICE. 2014 5 2890 21 YOGA: POTENTIAL BENEFITS FOR PERSONS WHO STUTTER. YOGA HAS BEEN DEMONSTRATED TO MODULATE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM ACTIVITY, DECREASING ANXIETY AND STRESS, AND IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE. THIS PRELIMINARY STUDY SOUGHT TO EXAMINE THE USE OF YOGIC TECHNIQUES ON PERSONS WHO STUTTER GIVEN THE INTERACTION BETWEEN PHYSIOLOGICAL AROUSAL/ANXIETY AND STUTTERING THAT CURRENT MULTIFACTORIAL MODELS OF STUTTERING PROPOSE. FOUR PARTICIPANTS (M = 52 YR, SD = 10; 2 FEMALE, 2 MALE), RECRUITED FROM LOCAL STUTTERING SUPPORT GROUPS IN THE GREATER PHILADELPHIA COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERED TO PARTICIPATE. STUTTERING SEVERITY, ANXIETY, AND EXPERIENCES REGARDING STUTTERING AND COMMUNICATION WERE MEASURED AT BASELINE, POST INTERVENTION, AND AT 4 MONTHS FOLLOW-UP. THE PARTICIPANTS ATTENDED GROUP YOGA SESSIONS AND ENGAGED IN HOME PRACTICE. DESCRIPTIVE RESULTS REVEALED THAT PARTICIPANTS SHOWED IMPROVEMENTS ACROSS OUTCOME MEASURES, WITH THE MOST IMPROVEMENT RELATED TO ANXIETY. PARTICIPANTS ALSO REPORTED IMPROVEMENTS IN THEIR PERCEPTIONS ABOUT COMMUNICATION AS PER QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF RESPONSES TO THE OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONNAIRES. THE RESULTS SUGGEST THE POTENTIAL BENEFITS OF YOGA FOR PERSONS WHO STUTTER AND WARRANTS FURTHER STUDY USING AN EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN. 2016 6 471 42 CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS, MOTIVATORS, AND YOGA TECHNIQUES OF CHOICE: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY. BACKGROUND: THE CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND FACTORS MOTIVATING PEOPLE TO PRACTICE YOGA HAVE BEEN STUDIED IN THE US AND IN AUSTRALIA. THIS STUDY AIMED TO DETERMINE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF YOGA USERS IN INDIA, THE FACTORS THAT MOTIVATE THEM TO PRACTICE YOGA, AND THE YOGA TECHNIQUES OF CHOICE. MATERIALS AND METHODS: THE STUDY WAS A ONE-TIME, CROSS-SECTIONAL SURVEY BASED ON CONVENIENCE SAMPLING. INCLUSION CRITERIA WERE (A) A MINIMUM OF 1 WEEK EXPERIENCE OF YOGA AND (B) AT LEAST 10 YEARS OF AGE. 14,250 PEOPLE RECEIVED THE SURVEY. AFTER EXCLUDING THOSE WHO DID NOT MEET THE INCLUSION CRITERIA OR FILLED IN THE SURVEY INCOMPLETELY OR INCORRECTLY, 5,157 RESPONDENTS WERE INCLUDED IN THE STUDY. RESULTS: OUT OF 5,157 RESPONDENTS, THERE WERE MORE MALES (67.3%), AGED BETWEEN 21 AND 44 YEARS (33.7% OF THE SAMPLE SURVEYED), EDUCATED UP TO HIGH SCHOOL (62.5%), STUDENTS (39.3%), AND THOSE WHO HAD BETWEEN 1 AND 12 MONTHS OF EXPERIENCE IN YOGA (54.4%). THE FIRST MOST COMMON REASON TO PRACTICE YOGA FOR ALL RESPONDENTS WAS PHYSICAL FITNESS. THREE OF THE REMAINING REASONS TO PRACTICE YOGA DIFFERED SIGNIFICANTLY WITH AGE: (I) YOGA FOR DISEASE MANAGEMENT (CHI(2) = 17.62, P < 0.005), (II) YOGA AS A HOBBY (CHI(2) = 10.87, P < 0.05), AND (III) YOGA BASED ON THE GURU'S (TEACHER'S) INSTRUCTIONS (CHI(2) = 20.05, P < 0.001). THE YOGA TECHNIQUE OF CHOICE [I.E., (I) ASANAS (CHI(2) = 23.17, P < 0.001), (II) PRANAYAMA (CHI(2) = 19.87, P < 0.001), OR (III) MEDITATION (CHI(2) = 9.64, P < 0.05)] DIFFERED SIGNIFICANTLY ACROSS AGE GROUPS. CONCLUSION: IN INDIA, A YOGA PRACTITIONER WAS MORE LIKELY TO BE MALE, BETWEEN 21 AND 44 YEARS OF AGE, HIGH SCHOOL EDUCATED, AND A STUDENT. THE REASONS TO PRACTICE YOGA AND THE YOGA TECHNIQUE OF CHOICE DIFFERED SIGNIFICANTLY WITH AGE. 2017 7 554 27 CORRELATION OF PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND ACQUIRED KNOWLEDGE WITH INTENT TO RECOMMEND ADJUNCTIVE OSTEOPATHIC MANIPULATIVE TREATMENT OR YOGA FOR PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. CONTEXT: OSTEOPATHIC MANIPULATIVE TREATMENT (OMT) AND YOGA ARE BOTH RECOMMENDED BY SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS IN THE EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCH LITERATURE FOR LOW BACK PAIN MANAGEMENT. IT IS UNKNOWN, TO THE AUTHORS' KNOWLEDGE, WHAT THE EFFECT OF PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH OMT OR YOGA, READING RESEARCH ARTICLES ON OMT OR YOGA, OR BOTH WILL HAVE ON MEDICAL STUDENTS' RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THESE TREATMENT OPTIONS TO FUTURE PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. OBJECTIVE: TO EVALUATE THE LIKELIHOOD OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICAL STUDENTS RECOMMENDING OMT OR YOGA TO TREAT PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN BASED ON THEIR PERSONAL EXPERIENCE OR READING RESEARCH ARTICLES THAT RECOMMEND OMT OR YOGA FOR PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. METHODS: IN THIS PROSPECTIVE COHORT STUDY, RESEARCHERS ADMINISTERED AN ANONYMOUS 18-QUESTION ONLINE SURVEY FOR OSTEOPATHIC MEDICAL STUDENTS. THE SURVEY INCLUDED A PATIENT VIGNETTE, 2 EVIDENCE-BASED ARTICLES, AND MULTIPLE CHOICE, YES/NO, AND LIKERT-TYPE QUESTIONS. PARTICIPANTS WERE RECRUITED VIA EMAIL FROM ALL 4 YEARS OF MEDICAL SCHOOL. BETWEEN-GROUP DIFFERENCES IN PROPORTIONS WERE ASSESSED WITH DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS AND CHI2 TESTS; DIFFERENCES WITHIN GROUPS WERE ASSESSED WITH THE MCNEMAR TEST; AND FISCHER EXACT TESTS WERE USED WHEN EXPECTED CELL COUNTS WERE LESS THAN 5. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 180 PARTICIPANTS (100 MALE, 80 FEMALE) COMPLETED THE STUDY. PERSONAL EXPERIENCE INCREASED THE LIKELIHOOD OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICAL STUDENTS RECOMMENDING OMT (P<.018) OR YOGA (P<.001) TO A FUTURE PATIENT OR TO A PATIENT IN A CASE VIGNETTE (P<.05) WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. STUDENTS WHO READ RESEARCH ARTICLES WERE MORE LIKELY TO RECOMMEND OMT TO THE CASE PATIENT AND FUTURE PATIENTS BEFORE AND AFTER READING THE INTERVENTION ARTICLE REGARDLESS OF THEIR EXPERIENCE (P<.001). CONCLUSION: PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND READING EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCH MAY INCREASE THE LIKELIHOOD THAT OSTEOPATHIC MEDICAL STUDENTS WILL RECOMMEND OMT TO FUTURE PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. 2018 8 371 24 AWARENESS AND PRACTICE OF AEROBIC EXERCISE AND YOGA AMONG HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS IN ANAND CITY. BACKGROUND: AEROBIC EXERCISE IS HELPFUL IN REDUCING ELEVATED BLOOD PRESSURE (BP). IT WAS ALSO FOUND THAT YOGA IS USEFUL IN REDUCING RAISED BP. THUS, THEY BOTH CAN BE USED IN PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF HYPERTENSION. HENCE, THE STUDY AIMED TO OBSERVE BOTH AWARENESS AND PRACTICE OF AEROBIC EXERCISE AND YOGA AMONG HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS IN ANAND CITY. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL DESCRIPTIVE STUDY WAS CONDUCTED. A QUESTIONNAIRE WAS PREPARED CONTAINING 24 QUESTIONS ABOUT AWARENESS AND PRACTICE OF AEROBIC EXERCISE AND YOGA AMONG HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS. THE QUESTIONS WERE EXPLAINED TO ALL THE PATIENTS, AND 200 PATIENTS WERE RECRUITED FROM ANAND CITY THROUGH CONVENIENCE SAMPLING. RESULTS: TWO-HUNDRED PATIENTS WERE INCLUDED IN THIS STUDY, OF WHICH 100% WERE AWARE OF HYPERTENSION. 67.68% WERE AWARE OF THE ROLE OF AEROBIC EXERCISE IN HYPERTENSION, OF WHICH 58.29% PRACTICED THEM. THE AWARENESS OF THE ROLE OF YOGA IN HYPERTENSION WAS NOTED IN 33.67% OF PATIENTS, OF WHICH ONLY 13.07% PRACTICED PRANAYAMA AND 9.50% PRACTICED ASANAS. CONCLUSION: THERE WAS A COMPLETE AWARENESS OF HYPERTENSION AMONG HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS. A LARGE NUMBER OF PATIENTS WERE AWARE OF THE ROLE OF AEROBIC EXERCISE IN HYPERTENSION, BUT ONLY FEW OF THE PATIENTS PRACTICED THEM. HOWEVER, THERE WAS LESS AWARENESS OF THE ROLE OF YOGA IN HYPERTENSION AND EVEN LESSER NUMBER PRACTICED THEM. 2019 9 579 30 DESIGNING A YOGA INTERVENTION PROGRAM TO IMPROVE WELL-BEING FOR PHYSICIAN TRAINEES: CHALLENGES AND LESSONS LEARNED. WELL-BEING ACTIVITIES MAY HELP TO COUNTERACT PHYSICIAN BURNOUT. YOGA IS KNOWN TO ENHANCE WELL-BEING, BUT THERE ARE FEW STUDIES OF YOGA AS AN INTERVENTION FOR PHYSICIANS IN TRAINING. THIS PROSPECTIVE METHODOLOGY-DEVELOPMENT STUDY AIMED TO EXPLORE HOW TO ESTABLISH A YOGA-BASED WELL-BEING INTERVENTION FOR PHYSICIAN TRAINEES IN A LARGE URBAN TRAINING HOSPITAL. WE AIMED TO IDENTIFY FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO TRAINEE PARTICIPATION AND EXPLORE AN INSTRUMENT TO MEASURE CHANGES IN SELF-REPORTED WELL-BEING AFTER YOGA. COHORTS INCLUDED A REQUIRED-ATTENDANCE GROUP, A VOLUNTARY-ATTENDANCE GROUP, AND AN UNASSIGNED WALK-IN YOGA GROUP. WEEKLY 1-HOUR YOGA SESSIONS WERE LED BY A QUALIFIED YOGA INSTRUCTOR FOR 4 WEEKS. THE SEVEN-QUESTION RESIDENT PHYSICIAN WELL-BEING INDEX (RPWBI) WAS USED TO MEASURE RESIDENT WELL-BEING BEFORE YOGA, AFTER 4 WEEKS OF YOGA, AND 6 MONTHS POST-YOGA. TRAINEES ATTENDING EACH SESSION RANGED FROM 17 FOR REQUIRED YOGA TO 0-2 FOR VOLUNTARY YOGA, 2-9 FOR LUNCHTIME WALK-IN YOGA, AND 1-7 FOR EVENING WALK-IN YOGA. IN THE REQUIRED-YOGA GROUP (N = 17), OVERALL RPWBI MEAN SCORES DID NOT CHANGE SIGNIFICANTLY ACROSS THE THREE QUERY TIMES, AND PARTICIPATION IN THE SURVEY DECLINED OVER TIME. THE MEAN BASELINE RPWBI SCORE FOR THE REQUIRED GROUP BEFORE YOGA WAS IN THE NON-DISTRESSED RANGE AND ANSWERS TO THE SEVEN INDIVIDUAL QUESTIONS VARIED. REQUIRING A YOGA ACTIVITY FOR MEDICAL TRAINEES MAY BE A GOOD STRATEGY FOR PROMOTING PARTICIPATION IN YOGA. THE RPWBI MAY HAVE LIMITED UTILITY FOR MEASURING CHANGES IN OVERALL GROUP WELL-BEING AFTER A YOGA INTERVENTION. 2021 10 1315 41 HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE OUTCOMES WITH REGULAR YOGA AND HEARTFULNESS MEDITATION PRACTICE: RESULTS FROM A MULTINATIONAL, CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY. BACKGROUND: ALTHOUGH THE BENEFITS OF YOGA ARE WELL ESTABLISHED ACROSS THE WORLD, THERE ARE LIMITED STUDIES EXPLORING THE LONG-TERM INTERRELATION BETWEEN YOGA, MEDITATION, AND HEALTH. SPECIFICALLY, THERE IS LIMITED RESEARCH EXPLORING THE DIFFERENCES IN HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HRQOL) AMONG REGULAR MEDITATORS AND NONMEDITATORS. OBJECTIVE: THIS STUDY EXPLORED THE DIFFERENCES IN 7 DOMAINS OF HRQOL (INCLUDING QUALITY OF LIFE, ABILITY TO ADOPT A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE, ABILITY TO RELAX, FREQUENCY OF NERVOUSNESS AND STRESS, COPING WITH DAY-TO-DAY STRESS, WORKPLACE PRODUCTIVITY, AND STAYING HEALTHY DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC) AMONG PRACTITIONERS OF YOGA AND MEDITATION. METHODS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL, ONLINE SURVEY WAS DISTRIBUTED TO ALL MEMBERS WHO PARTICIPATED IN A 100-DAY YOGA AND MEDITATION PROGRAM, CULMINATING IN THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF YOGA EVENT, ORGANIZED BY THE HEARTFULNESS INSTITUTE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CENTRAL COUNCIL FOR RESEARCH IN YOGA AND NATUROPATHY, MINISTRY OF AYUSH, SVYASA YOGA UNIVERSITY, AND PATANJALI YOGA INSTITUTE, INDIA. THE PROGRAM CONSISTED OF DAILY VIRTUAL YOGA, MEDITATION, AND SPEAKER SESSIONS. THE DATA WERE ANALYZED BY NONPARAMETRIC MANN-WHITNEY U TEST AND KRUSKAL-WALLIS TESTS FOR CONTINUOUS VARIABLES AND CHI-SQUARE TEST FOR CATEGORICAL VARIABLES. RESULTS: A TOTAL OF 3164 PARTICIPANTS FROM 39 COUNTRIES COMPLETED THE SURVEY. MEAN AGE WAS 33.8 (SD 13.6) YEARS. THE MAJORITY OF THE PARTICIPANTS WERE FEMALE (N=1643, 52%) AND STUDENTS (N=1312, 41.5%). REGULAR YOGA AND MEDITATION PRACTICE WAS ASSOCIATED WITH A POSITIVE IMPACT ON ALL 7 DOMAINS OF HRQOL (MANN-WHITNEY P<.05 AND CHI(2)P<.05). NOTABLY, EXPERIENCED HEARTFULNESS (>/=2 YEARS) MEDITATORS REPORTED BETTER OUTCOMES IN ALL THE DOMAINS OF HRQOL AS COMPARED TO THOSE NOT CURRENTLY PRACTICING THIS FORM OF MEDITATION AND PARTICIPANTS WITH 5%) COMPARED TO WEIGHT GAIN. RESULTS: YOGA PRACTICE FOR FOUR OR MORE YEARS WAS ASSOCIATED WITH A 3.1-LB LOWER WEIGHT GAIN AMONG NORMAL WEIGHT (BMI < 25) PARTICIPANTS [9.5 LBS VERSUS 12.6 IBS] AND AN 18.5-LB LOWER WEIGHT GAIN AMONG OVERWEIGHT PARTICIPANTS [-5.0 LBS VERSUS 13.5 IBS] (BOTH P FOR TREND <.001). AMONG OVERWEIGHT INDIVIDUALS, 4+ YEARS OF YOGA PRACTICE WAS ASSOCIATED WITH A RELATIVE ODDS OF 1.85 (95% CONFIDENCE INTERVAL [CI] 0.63-5.42) FOR WEIGHT MAINTENANCE (WITHIN 5%) AND 3.88 (95% CL 1.30-9.88) FOR WEIGHT LOSS (> 5%) COMPARED TO WEIGHT GAIN (P FOR TREND .026 AND .003, RESPECTIVELY). CONCLUSIONS: REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE WAS ASSOCIATED WITH ATTENUATED WEIGHT GAIN, MOST STRONGLY AMONG INDIVIDUALS WHO WERE OVERWEIGHT. ALTHOUGH CAUSAL INFERENCE FROM THIS OBSERVATIONAL STUDY IS NOT POSSIBLE, RESULTS ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE HYPOTHESIS THAT REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE CAN BENEFIT INDIVIDUALS WHO WISH TO MAINTAIN OR LOSE WEIGHT. 2005 17 1539 30 KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE, AND PRACTICE OF YOGA IN MEDICAL STUDENTS: ASSESSMENT OF ANTHROPOMETRY AND LIFESTYLE FACTORS. MEDICAL STUDENTS OFTEN EXPERIENCE SIGNIFICANT STRESS DURING THEIR UNDERGRADUATE TRAINING. EVIDENCE HAS SHOWN SHORT-TERM YOGA TO BE EFFECTIVE IN DECREASING STRESS IN STUDENTS. THIS STUDY AIMED TO ASSESS KNOWLEDGE ABOUT, ATTITUDE TOWARD, AND PRACTICE OF (KAP) YOGA AMONG MEDICAL STUDENTS. A SECONDARY OBJECTIVE WAS TO ANALYZE THEIR DIETARY HABITS AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. PARTICIPANTS CONSISTED OF 224 MEDICAL STUDENTS AGED 18-23 YEARS IN PRE- AND PARACLINICAL GROUPS. A CLOSED-ENDED KAP QUESTIONNAIRE WAS USED TO COLLECT DATA. ANTHROPOMETRIC MEASUREMENTS WERE TAKEN. RESULTS SHOWED THAT PARACLINICAL STUDENTS (70.5%) FAVORABLY PERCEIVED THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF YOGA. NEARLY THREE-FOURTHS OF STUDY SUBJECTS HAD PREVIOUSLY PRACTICED YOGA; GREATER NUMBERS INTENDED TO PRACTICE YOGA IN THE FUTURE. ABOUT 95.5% OF THE PRECLINICAL STUDENTS WHO HAD DONE YOGA HAD DISCONTINUED THE PRACTICE. PERCEIVED BARRIERS TO THE PRACTICE OF YOGA WERE LACK OF TIME, INSUFFICIENT FACILITIES, LACK OF COMPANY, AND LACK OF INTEREST. CONSIDERATION OF THE UNDERGRADUATES' LIFESTYLE REVEALED THAT 50.4% OF PRECLINICAL STUDENTS DID NOT EXERCISE, AND THEY ROUTINELY CONSUMED MORE JUNK FOOD WITH FEWER SERVINGS OF FRESH FRUITS/SALADS. PRECLINICAL STUDENTS EXHIBITED HIGHER BMI AND WAIST CIRCUMFERENCE COMPARED TO PARACLINICAL STUDENTS. FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT KNOWLEDGE OF AND ATTITUDE REGARDING YOGA WERE GOOD AMONG MEDICAL UNDERGRADUATES. 2018 18 1213 32 EXPLORING PERCEIVED BENEFITS, MOTIVES, BARRIERS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PRESCRIBING YOGA EXERCISES AS A NONPHARMACOLOGICAL INTERVENTION FOR PATIENTS WITH EPILEPSY: A QUALITATIVE STUDY FROM PALESTINE. OBJECTIVES: YOGA IS BELIEVED TO PLAY A ROLE IN STABILIZING THE ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAM AND THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM, THUS MIGHT HELP CONTROL SEIZURES IN PEOPLE WITH EPILEPSY (PWE). THIS QUALITATIVE STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO EXPLORE EXPERIENCES OF PALESTINIAN PWE WITH REGARD TO BENEFITS, MOTIVES, BARRIERS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF PRESCRIBING YOGA EXERCISES AS A NONPHARMACOLOGICAL INTERVENTION. METHODS: PURPOSIVE AND SNOWBALL SAMPLING TECHNIQUES WERE USED TO RECRUIT PWE WHO PRACTICED YOGA. SEMI-STRUCTURED IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS (N=18) WERE CONDUCTED WITH THE STUDY PARTICIPANTS. THE INTERPRETIVE DESCRIPTION METHOD WAS USED TO QUALITATIVELY ANALYZE THE DATA COLLECTED DURING THE INTERVIEWS. RESULTS: FOLLOWING THE THEMATIC ANALYSIS ADOPTED FOR THIS STUDY, FOUR MAJOR THEMES EMERGED. THESE THEMES WERE AS FOLLOWS: PERCEIVED BENEFITS OF YOGA, MOTIVES TO PRACTICE YOGA, BARRIERS TO PRACTICE YOGA, AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON EFFECTIVE YOGA PRACTICE FOR PWE. THE PERCEIVED BENEFITS INCLUDED IMPROVEMENTS IN MANAGEMENT OF SEIZURES, PSYCHOLOGICAL, PHYSICAL, AND SOCIAL WELL-BEING. PEOPLE WITH EPILEPSY WERE MOTIVATED BY THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF YOGA. BARRIERS OF ADHERENCE TO PRACTICE INCLUDED PERSONAL AND LOGISTIC FACTORS. THE INTERVIEWEES RECOMMENDED TAILORING YOGA SESSIONS TO THE NEEDS OF PWE. CONCLUSION: THIS EXPLORATIVE QUALITATIVE STUDY REPORTED PERCEIVED BENEFITS, MOTIVES, BARRIERS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF YOGA AS A NONPHARMACOLOGICAL INTERVENTION FOR PWE. PEOPLE WITH EPILEPSY USED YOGA AS A BENEFICIAL NONPHARMACOLOGICAL INTERVENTION TO IMPROVE THEIR HEALTH AND REDUCE THE NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF EPILEPSY ON THEIR PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL WELL-BEING. FUTURE STUDIES ARE NEEDED TO INVESTIGATE THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF YOGA WHEN SESSIONS ARE TAILORED TO THE NEEDS OF PWE. 2020 19 2085 28 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 20 24 26 #YOGA ON INSTAGRAM: UNDERSTANDING THE NATURE OF YOGA IN THE ONLINE CONVERSATION AND COMMUNITY. BACKGROUND AND AIM: THE PURPOSE OF THE PRESENT STUDY WAS TO INVESTIGATE #YOGA ON INSTAGRAM TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE NATURE OF WHO IS POSTING ABOUT YOGA, IN ADDITION TO WHETHER THE TRADITIONAL TEACHINGS ARE PRESENT. METHODS: A MULTIMETHOD APPROACH WAS UTILIZED FOR THIS STUDY. USING THE NETLYTIC PROGRAM, A TEXT AND CONTENT ANALYSIS (N = 35,000) WAS CONDUCTED TO EXAMINE AUTHORS' CAPTIONS/COMMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH #YOGA COLLECTED OVER 9 DAYS. AN IMAGE AND CAPTION CODING SCHEME WAS DEVELOPED AND USED TO ANALYZE 100 UNIQUE AUTHORS AND IMAGES FROM THE LARGER DATASET. RESULTS: THE TEXT ANALYSIS REVEALED #FITNESS WAS THE MOST CITED WORD (N = 5491), SUGGESTING AN EMPHASIS ON THE PHYSICAL ASPECT OF YOGA. THE CONTENT ANALYSIS SUGGESTED THAT THE MAJORITY OF WORDS WERE CATEGORIZED AS GOOD FEELINGS (N = 32,747; 51%) AND APPEARANCE (N = 30,351; 42%), WHILE ONLY A SMALL AMOUNT WAS CATEGORIZED AS TRADITIONAL TEACHINGS (N = 1703; 3%). IMAGES REVEALED MOSTLY WOMEN (N = 89; 89%), WHO WERE UNDERWEIGHT (N = 68; 68%), IN MINIMAL CLOTHING (70%), DEMONSTRATING A BASIC POSE (N = 51; 51%), IN AN INDOOR ENVIRONMENT (N = 57; 57%). CONCLUSION: ACCORDING TO THE TEXT, CONTENT, AND IMAGE ANALYSES, #YOGA ON INSTAGRAM SEEMS TO EMPHASIZE THE PHYSICAL NATURE OF YOGA AS CONSISTENT WITH THE COMMERCIALIZATION OF YOGA AND NOT TRADITIONAL TEACHINGS OF THE PRACTICE. 2019