1 2307 144 TRAINING TO YOGA RESPIRATION SELECTIVELY INCREASES RESPIRATORY SENSATION IN HEALTHY MAN. BECAUSE YOGA PRACTITIONERS THINK THEY ARE BENEFITING FROM THEIR BREATH TRAINING WE HYPOTHESIZED THAT YOGA RESPIRATION TRAINING (YRT) COULD MODIFY THE RESPIRATORY SENSATION. YOGA RESPIRATION (YR) ("UJJAI") CONSISTED OF VERY SLOW, DEEP BREATHS (2-3 MIN(-1)) WITH SUSTAINED BREATH-HOLD AFTER EACH INSPIRATION AND EXPIRATION. AT INCLUSION IN THE STUDY AND AFTER A 2-MONTH YRT PROGRAM, WE DETERMINED IN HEALTHY SUBJECTS THEIR EUPNEIC VENTILATORY PATTERN AND THEIR CAPACITY TO DISCRIMINATE EXTERNAL INSPIRATORY RESISTIVE LOADS (RESPIRATORY SENSATION), DIGITAL TACTILE MECHANICAL PRESSURES (SOMESTHETIC SENSATION) AND SOUND-PRESSURE STIMULATIONS (AUDITORY SENSATION). DATA WERE COMPARED TO A GENDER-, AGE-, AND WEIGHT-MATCHED CONTROL GROUP OF HEALTHY SUBJECTS WHO DID NOT UNDERGO THE YRT PROGRAM BUT WERE EXPLORED AT THE SAME EPOCHS. AFTER THE 2-MONTH YRT PROGRAM, THE RESPIRATORY SENSATION INCREASED. THUS, BOTH THE EXPONENT OF THE STEVEN'S POWER LAW (PSI=KPHIN) AND THE SLOPE OF THE LINEAR-LINEAR PLOT BETWEEN PSI AND MOUTH PRESSURE (PM) WERE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER, AND THE INTERCEPT WITH ORDINATE AXIS OF THE PSI VERSUS PM RELATIONSHIP WAS LOWER. AFTER YRT, THE PEAK PM DEVELOPED AGAINST INSPIRATORY LOADS WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER, REDUCING THE LOAD-INDUCED ACTIVATION OF RESPIRATORY AFFERENTS. YRT INDUCED LONG-LASTING MODIFICATIONS OF THE VENTILATORY PATTERN WITH A SIGNIFICANT LENGTHENING OF EXPIRATORY DURATION AND A MODEST TIDAL VOLUME INCREASE. NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN SOMESTHETIC AND AUDITORY SENSATIONS WERE NOTED. IN THE CONTROL GROUP, THE RESPIRATORY SENSATION WAS NOT MODIFIED DURING A 15-MIN PERIOD OF YOGA RESPIRATION, DESPITE THE PEAK PM CHANGES IN RESPONSE TO ADDED LOADS WERE THEN SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED. THESE DATA SUGGEST THAT TRAINING TO YOGA RESPIRATION SELECTIVELY INCREASES THE RESPIRATORY SENSATION, PERHAPS THROUGH ITS PERSISTENT CONDITIONING OF THE BREATHING PATTERN. 2005 2 484 17 CLINICAL EVALUATION OF THE EFFICACY OF KHADIRADI YOGA AVACHOORNANA IN KACHCHU WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO GENITOINGUINAL INTERTRIGO. KACHCHU IS A SIMPLE LOCALIZED DERMATOLOGICAL INFECTION OF THE GENITOINGUINAL REGION, WHICH OCCURS BECAUSE OF UNHYGIENIC OBSERVANCE, AND MANIFESTS IN THE FORM OF INFLAMMATION FOLLOWED BY SECONDARY BACTERIAL OR FUNGAL INFECTIONS THAT CAN BE BEST CORRELATED TO GENITOINGUINAL INTERTRIGO. EVEN THOUGH IT RARELY CAUSES SYSTEMIC MANIFESTATIONS, ITS MERE PRESENCE ITSELF IS DISTURBING BECAUSE OF INTRACTABLE ITCHING AND PAIN. IT MAY DELAY THE PROPER HEALING OF THE EPISIOTOMY WOUND AND MAY CAUSE DIFFICULTY IN WALKING BECAUSE OF SEVERE PAIN. CANDIDA POWDER IS THE HIGHEST SELLING MEDICINE FOR THE INTERTRIGO, AS THE INCIDENCE OF INTERTRIGO IS AS HIGH AS 40% IN SOME PARTICULAR SEASONS. IN THE AYURVEDA FRATERNITY, THERE IS NO ESTABLISHED PREPARATION THAT CAN BE PRESERVED SAFELY IN ALL THE EPOCHS OF LIFE IN FEMALES AND WHICH IS EASY TO APPLY. AFTER UNDERSTANDING THE DISEASE IN THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE AYURVEDIC AND MODERN MEDICINAL SYSTEMS, KHADIRADI YOGA CHOORNA - A NEW AYURVEDIC FORMULATION - WAS PREPARED ON THE BASIS OF STRINGENT AYURVEDIC PRINCIPLES. HENCE, AN ATTEMPT HAS BEEN MADE TO STUDY THE EFFICACY OF THE KHADIRADI YOGA AVACHURNANA(1) IN KACHCHU, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO GENITOINGUINAL INTERTRIGO IN FEMALES. 2010 3 1875 25 REACTION TIME FOLLOWING YOGA BELLOWS-TYPE BREATHING AND BREATH AWARENESS. THE REACTION TIME (RT) WAS ASSESSED IN TWO GROUPS OF HEALTHY MALES, YOGA GROUP (M AGE = 29.0 YR.) AND NON-YOGA OR CONTROL GROUP (M AGE = 29.0 YR.), WITH 35 PARTICIPANTS EACH. THE YOGA GROUP HAD AN AVERAGE EXPERIENCE OF 6 MONTHS, WHILE THE CONTROL GROUP WAS YOGA-NAIVE. THE YOGA GROUP WAS ASSESSED IN TWO SESSIONS, (I) BHASTRIKA PRANAYAMA OR BELLOWS BREATHING AND (II) BREATH AWARENESS, WHILE THE CONTROL GROUP HAD A SINGLE CONTROL SESSION. THE TWO EXPERIMENTAL SESSIONS, ONE WITH EACH TYPE OF BREATHING, AND THE CONTROL SESSION CONSISTED OF PRE- (5 MIN.), DURING (18 MIN.), AND POST-SESSION EPOCHS (5 MIN.). ASSESSMENTS WERE MADE IN THE PRE- AND POST-SESSION EPOCHS USING A MULTI-OPERATIONAL APPARATUS FOR REACTION TIME. FOLLOWING 18 MIN. OF BHASTRIKA PRANAYAMA THERE WAS A STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN NUMBER OF ANTICIPATORY RESPONSES COMPARED TO BEFORE THE PRACTICE. THIS SUGGESTS THAT THE IMMEDIATE EFFECT OF BHASTRIKA PRANAYAMA IS TO INHIBIT UNNECESSARY RESPONDING TO STIMULI. 2013 4 887 22 EFFECT OF YOGA TYPE BREATHING ON HEART RATE AND CARDIAC AXIS OF NORMAL SUBJECTS. EFFECT OF INSPIRATORY AND EXPIRATORY PHASES OF NORMAL QUIET BREATHING, DEEP BREATHING AND SAVITRI PRANAYAM TYPE BREATHING ON HEART RATE AND MEAN VENTRICULAR QRS AXIS WAS INVESTIGATED IN YOUNG, HEALTHY UNTRAINED SUBJECTS. PRANAYAM TYPE BREATHING PRODUCED SIGNIFICANT CARDIOACCELERATION AND INCREASE IN QRS AXIS DURING THE INSPIRATORY PHASE AS COMPARED TO EUPNEA. ON THE OTHER HAND, EXPIRATORY EFFORT DURING PRANAYAM TYPE BREATHING DID NOT PRODUCE ANY SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN HEART RATE OR QRS AXIS. THE CHANGES IN HEART RATE AND QRS AXIS DURING THE INSPIRATORY AND EXPIRATORY PHASES OF PRANAYAM TYPE BREATHING WERE SIMILAR TO THE CHANGES OBSERVED DURING THE CORRESPONDING PHASES OF DEEP BREATHING. 1986 5 1508 20 IS MAN ABLE TO BREATHE ONCE A MINUTE FOR AN HOUR?: THE EFFECT OF YOGA RESPIRATION ON BLOOD GASES. THE VENTILATORY RESPONSE TO HYPERCAPNIA AND ARTERIAL BLOOD GASES DURING UJJAI RESPIRATION OF ONCE PER MINUTE FOR AN HOUR WERE DETERMINED IN A PROFESSIONAL HATHA YOGI. THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT LOWER CHEMOSENSITIVITY TO HYPERCAPNIA IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS MAY BE DUE TO AN ADAPTATION TO LOW ARTERIAL PH AND HIGH PACO2 FOR LONG PERIODS. 2002 6 1706 33 PATTERN OF BREATHING AND VENTILATORY RESPONSE TO CO2 IN SUBJECTS PRACTICING HATHA-YOGA. WE STUDIED EIGHT BELGIAN SUBJECTS WELL ADVANCED IN THE PRACTICE OF HATHA-YOGA AND COMPARED THEM WITH EIGHT SEX-, AGE-, AND HEIGHT-MATCHED CONTROL SUBJECTS. PRACTICE OF YOGA (RANGE 4-12 YR) INVOLVES CONTROL OF POSTURE AND MANIPULATION OF BREATHING, INCLUDING SLOW NEAR-VITAL CAPACITY MANEUVERS ACCOMPANIED BY APNEA AT END INSPIRATION AND END EXPIRATION. AVERAGE VALUES FOR THE YOGA AND THE CONTROL GROUP (IN PARENTHESES) ARE AS FOLLOWS: VENTILATION (VE) 5.53 1 X MIN-1 (7.07); TIDAL VOLUME (VT), 1.03 LITERS (0.56); RATE OF BREATHING, 5.5 MIN-1 (13.4); END-TIDAL PCO2, 39.0 TORR (35.3). ALL DIFFERENCES ARE SIGNIFICANT (P LESS THAN 0.05). VENTILATORY RESPONSE TO CO2 (REBREATHING TECHNIQUE) WAS SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER IN THE YOGA GROUP (P LESS THAN 0.01). THE REGRESSION RELATING VE TO VT DURING REBREATHING OF CO2 WAS VE = 8.1 (VT - 0.23) FOR THE YOGA GROUP AND VE = 15.8 (VT - 0.16) FOR THE CONTROL GROUP (P LESS THAN 0.005). WE ATTRIBUTE THESE CHANGES TO CHRONIC MANIPULATION OF RESPIRATION. 1981 7 457 25 CHANGES IN P300 FOLLOWING ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING AND BREATH AWARENESS. THIS STUDY ASSESSED THE EFFECT OF ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING (NADISUDDHI PRANAYAMA) ON P300 AUDITORY EVOKED POTENTIALS COMPARED TO A SESSION OF BREATH AWARENESS OF EQUAL DURATION, IN 20 MALE ADULT VOLUNTEERS WHO HAD AN EXPERIENCE OF YOGA BREATHING PRACTICES FOR MORE THAN THREE MONTHS. PEAK AMPLITUDES AND PEAK LATENCIES OF THE P300 WERE ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER THE RESPECTIVE SESSIONS. THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE P300 PEAK AMPLITUDES AT FZ, CZ, AND PZ AND A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN THE PEAK LATENCY AT FZ ALONE FOLLOWING ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING. FOLLOWING BREATH AWARENESS THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN THE PEAK AMPLITUDE OF P300 AT CZ. THIS SUGGESTS THAT ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING POSITIVELY INFLUENCES COGNITIVE PROCESSES WHICH ARE REQUIRED FOR SUSTAINED ATTENTION AT DIFFERENT SCALP SITES (FRONTAL, VERTEX AND PARIETAL), WHEREAS BREATH AWARENESS BRINGS ABOUT CHANGES AT THE VERTEX ALONE. 2013 8 462 29 CHANGES IN REACTION TIME AFTER YOGA BELLOWS-TYPE BREATHING IN HEALTHY FEMALE VOLUNTEERS. BACKGROUND: PREVIOUSLY, YOGA BELLOWS-TYPE BREATHING (BHASTRIKA PRANAYAMA) REDUCED REACTION TIME (RT) OR REDUCED ANTICIPATORY RESPONSES IN MALE PARTICIPANTS OR A MIXED GROUP OF MALE AND FEMALE PARTICIPANTS. AIMS: THE PRESENT STUDY AS A CONTROL TRIAL AIMED TO ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF YOGA BELLOWS-TYPE BREATHING ON RT IN FEMALES EXCLUSIVELY. METHODS: THE SAMPLE CONSISTED OF 25 HEALTHY FEMALES, AGED BETWEEN 19 AND 32 YEARS (GROUP MEAN +/- STANDARD DEVIATION, 22.8 +/- 3.5 YEARS). ALL OF THEM HAD PRIOR MINIMUM EXPERIENCE OF YOGA INCLUDING YOGA BELLOWS-TYPE BREATHING OF 12 MONTHS. THE RT WAS ASSESSED IN EACH PARTICIPANT BEFORE AND AFTER THREE RANDOMIZED SESSIONS DIFFERED IN THE INTERVENTION GIVEN HELD ON THREE SEPARATE DAYS. THE SESSIONS WERE (I) YOGA BELLOWS-TYPE BREATHING OR BHASTRIKA PRANAYAMA(BHK), (II) BREATH AWARENESS (BAW), AND (III) SITTING QUIETLY (CTL) AS A CONTROL SESSION. THE DURATION OF THE INTERVENTION WAS 18 MIN, AND THE PARTICIPANTS WERE ASSESSED FOR RT BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION. RESULTS: REPEATED MEASURES ANOVA, POST HOC TESTS WITH BONFERRONI ADJUSTED SHOWED THAT THE TIME TAKEN TO OBTAIN A CORRECT RESPONSE REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY AFTER 18 MIN OF BAW (P < 0.05) AND CTL (P < 0.05). HOWEVER, NO CHANGES WERE SEEN IN THE RT AFTER BHK. CONCLUSIONS: THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT DIFFERENT INTERVENTIONS MAY OPTIMIZE PERFORMANCE IN TASKS REQUIRING ATTENTION IN FEMALES COMPARED TO MALES. 2018 9 757 17 EFFECT OF SLOW AND DEEP BREATHING ON BRAIN WAVES IN REGULAR YOGA PRACTITIONERS. VARIOUS YOGIC PRACTICES FOCUS ON BREATHING. BREATHING MAY AFFECT BRAIN WAVES. THIS CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY WAS CONDUCTED TO SEE THE EFFECT SLOW AND DEEP RESPIRATION ON EEG ACTIVITY IN EXPERIENCED YOGA PRACTITIONERS AT THE DEPARTMENT OF PHYSIOLOGY AT AIIMS, BHOPAL, INDIA. THE DURATION OF THE STUDY WAS ABOUT ONE YEAR. EEG WAS TAKEN AND WAS ANALYZED BY DINAMIKA - ADVANCED TEST SYSTEM, MOSCOW, RUSSIA. PAIRED T-TEST USING GRAPH PAD SOFTWARE WAS USED FOR STATISTICAL ANALYSIS. THE DELTA PERCENTAGE DECREASED AND THE OTHER WAVE'S PERCENTAGES THETA, ALPHA, AND BETA INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY. THE PERSON BECOMES DEEPLY RELAXED AND MORE FOCUSSED ON SLOW AND DEEP BREATHING. 2021 10 1354 19 IMMEDIATE EFFECT OF THREE YOGA BREATHING TECHNIQUES ON PERFORMANCE ON A LETTER-CANCELLATION TASK. THE EFFECTS OF THREE YOGA BREATHING PRACTICES WERE EVALUATED ON PERFORMANCE ON A LETTER-CANCELLATION TASK WHICH IS A LEFT-HEMISPHERE DOMINANT TASK. THE THREE YOGA BREATHING PRACTICES (RIGHT, LEFT, AND ALTERNATE NOSTRIL BREATHING) WERE SELECTED BECAUSE UNILATERAL FORCED NOSTRIL BREATHING STIMULATES THE CONTRALATERAL HEMISPHERE. THERE WERE 20 MALE VOLUNTEERS WHOSE AGES RANGED FROM 20 TO 45 YEARS (M AGE=28.4 YR., SD=5.7). ALL SUBJECTS WERE ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER FOUR SESSIONS, I.E., RIGHT NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING, LEFT NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING, ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING, AND BREATH AWARENESS AS A CONTROL. THE LETTER-CANCELLATION TASK SCORES WERE SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED, I.E., THERE WERE FEWER ERRORS FOLLOWING RIGHT AND ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING (WILCOXON PAIRED SIGNED-RANKS TEST). THE IMPROVED PERFORMANCE MAY BE RELATED TO THE ENHANCEMENT OF CONTRALATERAL HEMISPHERE FUNCTION FOUND WITH SELECTIVE NOSTRIL BREATHING. 2007 11 889 13 EFFECT OF YOGA-BASED AND FORCED UNINOSTRIL BREATHING ON THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM. SOME REPORTS HAVE DESCRIBED THE EFFECTS OF FORCED UNINOSTRIL BREATHING ON AUTONOMIC ACTIVITY AS SEX-SPECIFIC, WHILE OTHER REPORTS DESCRIBED SELECTIVE EFFECTS OF BREATHING THROUGH A SPECIFIC NOSTRIL ON THE TWO DIVISIONS OF THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM, IRRESPECTIVE OF SEX. THERE ARE ALSO YOGA BREATHING TECHNIQUES WHICH INVOLVE VOLUNTARY UNINOSTRIL BREATHING. THESE TECHNIQUES ALSO INFLUENCED THE AUTONOMIC ACTIVITY BASED ON THE PATENT NOSTRIL RATHER THAN SEX. THESE DESCRIPTIONS WERE IN LINE WITH EXPERIENTIAL OBSERVATIONS OF THE ANCIENT SAGES DESCRIBED IN CLASSICAL YOGA TEXTS. THIS PAPER SUMMARIZES THESE PERSPECTIVES ON UNINOSTRIL BREATHING. 2003 12 2570 15 YOGA FOR DERMATOLOGIC CONDITIONS. AS BOTH A DERMATOLOGY RESIDENT AND YOGA INSTRUCTOR, I FIND THE POTENTIAL CORRELATION BETWEEN THE 2 DISCIPLINES TO BE INTERESTING AND A GROWING TOPIC OF ATTENTION IN THE MEDIA TODAY. WITH THE RISING TREND OF PRACTICING YOGA, WHICH ENCOMPASSES PHYSICAL POSTURES, BREATHING EXERCISES, AND MEDITATION OR MINDFULNESS, IT IS INEVITABLE THAT PATIENTS WILL INQUIRE ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF YOGA IN MANAGING DERMATOLOGIC PROBLEMS. IN THIS COLUMN, I WILL DISCUSS THE DERMATOLOGIC MANIFESTATIONS OF STRESS AS WELL AS THE KNOWN HEALTH BENEFITS OF YOGA AS DESCRIBED IN THE LITERATURE SO THAT RESIDENTS MAY OFFER AN OBJECTIVE OPINION ABOUT YOGA IN RESPONSE TO PATIENT INQUIRIES. 2015 13 1321 26 HEMISPHERE SPECIFIC EEG RELATED TO ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING. BACKGROUND: PREVIOUSLY, FORCED UNILATERAL NOSTRIL BREATHING WAS ASSOCIATED WITH IPSILATERAL, OR CONTRALATERAL CEREBRAL HEMISPHERE CHANGES, OR NO CHANGE. HENCE IT WAS INCONCLUSIVE. THE PRESENT STUDY WAS CONDUCTED ON 13 NORMAL HEALTHY PARTICIPANTS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECTS OF ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING ON (A) CEREBRAL HEMISPHERE ASYMMETRY, AND (B) CHANGES IN THE STANDARD EEG BANDS. METHODS: PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMLY ALLOCATED TO THREE SESSIONS (A) ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING (ANYB), (B) BREATH AWARENESS AND (C) QUIET SITTING, ON SEPARATE DAYS. EEG WAS RECORDED FROM BILATERALLY SYMMETRICAL SITES (FP1, FP2, C3, C4, O1 AND O2). ALL SITES WERE REFERENCED TO THE IPSILATERAL EAR LOBE. RESULTS: THERE WAS NO CHANGE IN CEREBRAL HEMISPHERE SYMMETRY. THE RELATIVE POWER IN THE THETA BAND WAS DECREASED DURING ALTERNATE NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING (ANYB) AND THE BETA AMPLITUDE WAS LOWER AFTER ANYB. DURING QUIET SITTING THE RELATIVE POWER IN THE BETA BAND INCREASED, WHILE THE AMPLITUDE OF THE ALPHA BAND REDUCED. CONCLUSION: THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT ANYB WAS ASSOCIATED WITH GREATER CALMNESS, WHEREAS QUIET SITTING WITHOUT SPECIFIC DIRECTIONS WAS ASSOCIATED WITH AROUSAL. THE RESULTS IMPLY A POSSIBLE USE OF ANYB FOR STRESS AND ANXIETY REDUCTION. 2017 14 438 32 CARDIOVASCULAR AND RESPIRATORY EFFECT OF YOGIC SLOW BREATHING IN THE YOGA BEGINNER: WHAT IS THE BEST APPROACH? SLOW BREATHING INCREASES CARDIAC-VAGAL BAROREFLEX SENSITIVITY (BRS), IMPROVES OXYGEN SATURATION, LOWERS BLOOD PRESSURE, AND REDUCES ANXIETY. WITHIN THE YOGA TRADITION SLOW BREATHING IS OFTEN PAIRED WITH A CONTRACTION OF THE GLOTTIS MUSCLES. THIS RESISTANCE BREATH "UJJAYI" IS PERFORMED AT VARIOUS RATES AND RATIOS OF INSPIRATION/EXPIRATION. TO TEST WHETHER UJJAYI HAD ADDITIONAL POSITIVE EFFECTS TO SLOW BREATHING, WE COMPARED BRS AND VENTILATORY CONTROL UNDER DIFFERENT BREATHING PATTERNS (EQUAL/UNEQUAL INSPIRATION/EXPIRATION AT 6 BREATH/MIN, WITH/WITHOUT UJJAYI), IN 17 YOGA-NAIVE YOUNG HEALTHY PARTICIPANTS. BRS INCREASED WITH SLOW BREATHING TECHNIQUES WITH OR WITHOUT EXPIRATORY UJJAYI (P < 0.05 OR HIGHER) EXCEPT WITH INSPIRATORY + EXPIRATORY UJJAYI. THE MAXIMAL INCREASE IN BRS AND DECREASE IN BLOOD PRESSURE WERE FOUND IN SLOW BREATHING WITH EQUAL INSPIRATION AND EXPIRATION. THIS CORRESPONDED WITH A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN OXYGEN SATURATION WITHOUT INCREASE IN HEART RATE AND VENTILATION. UJJAYI SHOWED SIMILAR INCREASE IN OXYGEN SATURATION BUT SLIGHTLY LESSER IMPROVEMENT IN BAROREFLEX SENSITIVITY WITH NO CHANGE IN BLOOD PRESSURE. THE SLOW BREATHING WITH EQUAL INSPIRATION AND EXPIRATION SEEMS THE BEST TECHNIQUE FOR IMPROVING BAROREFLEX SENSITIVITY IN YOGA-NAIVE SUBJECTS. THE EFFECTS OF UJJAYI SEEMS DEPENDENT ON INCREASED INTRATHORACIC PRESSURE THAT REQUIRES GREATER EFFORT THAN NORMAL SLOW BREATHING. 2013 15 458 25 CHANGES IN P300 FOLLOWING TWO YOGA-BASED RELAXATION TECHNIQUES. CYCLIC MEDITATION (CM) IS A TECHNIQUE THAT COMBINES "STIMULATING" AND "CALMING" PRACTICES, BASED ON A STATEMENT IN ANCIENT YOGA TEXTS SUGGESTING THAT SUCH A COMBINATION MAY BE ESPECIALLY HELPFUL TO REACH A STATE OF MENTAL EQUILIBRIUM. THE CHANGES IN THE PEAK LATENCY AND PEAK AMPLITUDE OF P300 AUDITORY EVENT-RELATED POTENTIALS WERE STUDIED BEFORE AND AFTER THE PRACTICE OF CYCLIC MEDITATION COMPARED TO AN EQUAL DURATION OF SUPINE REST IN 42 VOLUNTEERS (GROUP MEAN AGE +/- SD, 27 +/- 6.3 YEARS), FROM FZ, CZ, AND PZ ELECTRODE SITES REFERENCED TO LINKED EARLOBES. THE SESSIONS WERE ONE DAY APART AND THE ORDER WAS ALTERNATED. THERE WAS REDUCTION IN THE PEAK LATENCIES OF P300 AFTER CYCLIC MEDITATION AT FZ, CZ, AND PZ COMPARED TO THE "PRE" VALUES. A SIMILAR TREND OF REDUCTION IN P300 PEAK LATENCIES AT FZ, CZ, AND PZ WAS ALSO OBSERVED AFTER SUPINE REST, COMPARED TO THE RESPECTIVE "PRE" VALUES, ALTHOUGH THE MAGNITUDE OF CHANGE IN EACH CASE WAS LESS AFTER SUPINE REST COMPARED TO AFTER CYCLIC MEDITATION. THE P300 PEAK AMPLITUDES AFTER CM WERE HIGHER AT FZ, CZ, AND PZ SITES COMPARED TO THE "PRE" VALUES. IN CONTRAST, NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES WERE OBSERVED IN THE P300 PEAK AMPLITUDES AT FZ, CZ, AND PZ AFTER SUPINE REST COMPARED TO THE RESPECTIVE "PRE" STATE. THE PRESENT RESULTS SUPPORT THE IDEA THAT "CYCLIC" MEDITATION ENHANCES COGNITIVE PROCESSES UNDERLYING THE GENERATION OF THE P300. 2006 16 741 32 EFFECT OF REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE ON RESPIRATORY REGULATION AND EXERCISE PERFORMANCE. YOGA ALTERS SPONTANEOUS RESPIRATORY REGULATION AND REDUCES HYPOXIC AND HYPERCAPNIC VENTILATORY RESPONSES. SINCE A LOWER VENTILATORY RESPONSE IS ASSOCIATED WITH AN IMPROVED ENDURANCE CAPACITY DURING WHOLE-BODY EXERCISE, WE TESTED WHETHER YOGIC SUBJECTS (YOGA) SHOW AN INCREASED ENDURANCE CAPACITY COMPARED TO MATCHED NON-YOGIC INDIVIDUALS (CON) WITH SIMILAR PHYSICAL ACTIVITY LEVELS. RESTING VENTILATION, THE VENTILATORY RESPONSE TO HYPERCAPNIA, PASSIVE LEG MOVEMENT AND EXERCISE, AS WELL AS ENDURANCE PERFORMANCE WERE ASSESSED. YOGA (N = 9), COMPARED TO CONTROL (N = 6), HAD A HIGHER TIDAL VOLUME AT REST (0.7+/-0.2 VS. 0.5+/-0.1 L, P = 0.034) AND A REDUCED VENTILATORY RESPONSE TO HYPERCAPNIA (33+/-15 VS. 47+/-15 L.MIN(-1), P = 0.048). A YOGA SUBGROUP (N = 6) WITH MAXIMAL PERFORMANCE SIMILAR TO CONTROL SHOWED A BLUNTED VENTILATORY RESPONSE TO PASSIVE CYCLING (11+/-2 VS. 14+/-2 L.MIN(-1), P = 0.039) AND A TENDENCY TOWARDS LOWER EXERCISE VENTILATION (33+/-2 VS. 36+/-3 L.MIN(-1), P = 0.094) WHILE CYCLING ENDURANCE (YOGA: 17.3+/-3.3; CON: 19.6+/-8.5 MIN, P = 0.276) DID NOT DIFFER. THUS, YOGA PRACTICE WAS NOT ASSOCIATED WITH IMPROVED EXERCISE CAPACITY NOR WITH SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN EXERCISE VENTILATION DESPITE A SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT RESPIRATORY REGULATION AT REST AND IN RESPONSE TO HYPERCAPNIA AND PASSIVE LEG MOVEMENT. 2016 17 2257 24 THE PHYSIOLOGICAL CORRELATES OF KUNDALINI YOGA MEDITATION: A STUDY OF A YOGA MASTER. THIS STUDY EXPLORES THE PHYSIOLOGICAL CORRELATES OF A HIGHLY PRACTICED KUNDALINI YOGA MEDITATOR. THORACIC AND ABDOMINAL BREATHING PATTERNS, HEART RATE (HR), OCCIPITAL PARIETAL ELECTROENCEPHALOGRAPH (EEG), SKIN CONDUCTANCE LEVEL (SCL), AND BLOOD VOLUME PULSE (BVP) WERE MONITORED DURING PREBASELINE, MEDITATION, AND POSTBASELINE PERIODS. VISUAL ANALYSES OF THE DATA SHOWED A DECREASE IN RESPIRATION RATE DURING THE MEDITATION FROM A MEAN OF 11 BREATHS/MIN FOR THE PRE- AND 13 BREATHS/MIN FOR THE POSTBASELINE TO A MEAN OF 5 BREATHS/MIN DURING THE MEDITATION, WITH A PREDOMINANCE OF ABDOMINAL/DIAPHRAGMATIC BREATHING. THERE WAS ALSO MORE ALPHA EEG ACTIVITY DURING THE MEDITATION (M = 1.71 MICROV) COMPARED TO THE PRE- (M = .47 MICROV) AND POSTBASELINE (M = .78 MICROV) PERIODS, AND AN INCREASE IN THETA EEG ACTIVITY IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE MEDITATION (M = .62 MICROV) COMPARED TO THE PRE-BASELINE AND MEDITATIVE PERIODS (EACH WITH M = .26 MICROV). THESE FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT A SHIFT IN BREATHING PATTERNS MAY CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF ALPHA EEG, AND THOSE PATTERNS NEED TO BE INVESTIGATED FURTHER. 2001 18 1909 23 RIGHT UNINOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING INFLUENCES IPSILATERAL COMPONENTS OF MIDDLE LATENCY AUDITORY EVOKED POTENTIALS. A PREVIOUS REPORT DESCRIBED SELECTIVE ELECTRICAL ACTIVITY OF THE CEREBRAL HEMISPHERES WITH UNINOSTRIL BREATHING. IN THE PRESENT STUDY, MIDDLE LATENCY AUDITORY EVOKED POTENTIALS (MLAEPS) WERE RECORDED FROM SYMMETRICAL SCALP SITES DURING THE PRACTICE OF UNINOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING. THERE WERE TWO SESSIONS (40 MIN EACH) OF RIGHT NOSTRIL YOGA BREATHING (RNB) AND OF BREATH AWARENESS (BAW), WITH (I) 'BEFORE', (II) TEST (EITHER RNB OR BAW) AND (III) 'AFTER' PERIODS. THE PARTICIPANTS WERE 14 MALE VOLUNTEERS AGED BETWEEN 18 AND 33 YEARS, AND THE SETTING WAS A YOGA CENTRE. MLAEPS WERE RECORDED FROM SYMMETRICAL SCALP SITES (C4 AND C3). DURING RNB, THE PEAK AMPLITUDES OF TWO NEGATIVE COMPONENTS (VIZ. NA WAVE AND NB WAVE) WERE SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED ON THE RIGHT SIDE. INCREASED PEAK AMPLITUDES OF NA AND NB WAVES SUGGESTED THAT RNB INCREASED THE NUMBER OF NEURONS RECRUITED ON THE RIGHT SIDE, SUGGESTING A POSSIBLE APPLICATION OF RNB IN CERTAIN PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS WITH CEREBRAL HEMISPHERIC IMBALANCE. 2004 19 744 22 EFFECT OF ROSARY PRAYER AND YOGA MANTRAS ON AUTONOMIC CARDIOVASCULAR RHYTHMS: COMPARATIVE STUDY. OBJECTIVE: TO TEST WHETHER RHYTHMIC FORMULAS SUCH AS THE ROSARY AND YOGA MANTRAS CAN SYNCHRONISE AND REINFORCE INHERENT CARDIOVASCULAR RHYTHMS AND MODIFY BAROREFLEX SENSITIVITY. DESIGN: COMPARISON OF EFFECTS OF RECITATION OF THE AVE MARIA (IN LATIN) OR OF A MANTRA, DURING SPONTANEOUS AND METRONOME CONTROLLED BREATHING, ON BREATHING RATE AND ON SPONTANEOUS OSCILLATIONS IN RR INTERVAL, AND ON BLOOD PRESSURE AND CEREBRAL CIRCULATION. SETTING: FLORENCE AND PAVIA, ITALY. PARTICIPANTS: 23 HEALTHY ADULTS. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: BREATHING RATE, REGULARITY OF BREATHING, BAROREFLEX SENSITIVITY, FREQUENCY OF CARDIOVASCULAR OSCILLATIONS. RESULTS: BOTH PRAYER AND MANTRA CAUSED STRIKING, POWERFUL, AND SYNCHRONOUS INCREASES IN EXISTING CARDIOVASCULAR RHYTHMS WHEN RECITED SIX TIMES A MINUTE. BAROREFLEX SENSITIVITY ALSO INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY, FROM 9.5 (SD 4.6) TO 11.5 (4.9) MS/MM HG, P<0.05. CONCLUSION: RHYTHM FORMULAS THAT INVOLVE BREATHING AT SIX BREATHS PER MINUTE INDUCE FAVOURABLE PSYCHOLOGICAL AND POSSIBLY PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS. 2001 20 655 18 EEG PAROXYSMAL GAMMA WAVES DURING BHRAMARI PRANAYAMA: A YOGA BREATHING TECHNIQUE. HERE WE REPORT THAT A SPECIFIC FORM OF YOGA CAN GENERATE CONTROLLED HIGH-FREQUENCY GAMMA WAVES. FOR THE FIRST TIME, PAROXYSMAL GAMMA WAVES (PGW) WERE OBSERVED IN EIGHT SUBJECTS PRACTICING A YOGA TECHNIQUE OF BREATHING CONTROL CALLED BHRAMARI PRANAYAMA (BHPR). TO OBTAIN NEW INSIGHTS INTO THE NATURE OF THE EEG DURING BHPR, WE ANALYZED EEG SIGNALS USING TIME-FREQUENCY REPRESENTATIONS (TFR), INDEPENDENT COMPONENT ANALYSIS (ICA), AND EEG TOMOGRAPHY (LORETA). WE FOUND THAT THE PGW CONSISTS OF HIGH-FREQUENCY BIPHASIC RIPPLES. THIS UNUSUAL ACTIVITY IS DISCUSSED IN RELATION TO PREVIOUS REPORTS ON YOGA AND MEDITATION. IT IS CONCLUDED THIS EEG ACTIVITY IS MOST PROBABLY NON-EPILEPTIC, AND THAT APPLYING THE SAME METHODOLOGY TO OTHER MEDITATION RECORDINGS MIGHT YIELD AN IMPROVED UNDERSTANDING OF THE NEUROCORRELATES OF MEDITATION. 2009