1 2832 154 YOGA'S BIOPHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS ON LOWER URINARY TRACT SYMPTOMS: A SCOPING REVIEW. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: YOGA IS A MIND AND BODY PRACTICE THAT INCLUDES RELAXATION, MEDITATION, BREATHING EXERCISES, AND BODY POSTURES. IT CAN BE EFFECTIVE IN ENHANCING THE FUNCTIONING OF SEVERAL BODY SYSTEMS, INCLUDING THE LOWER URINARY TRACT. NORMAL LOWER URINARY TRACT FUNCTIONING DEPENDS IN PART ON THE COORDINATION OF THE BLADDER, URETHRA, PELVIC FLOOR AND OTHER MUSCLES, AND THE NERVES THAT CONTROL THEM. LOWER URINARY TRACT DYSFUNCTION CAN LEAD TO SYMPTOMS, THAT IS, STRESS URINARY INCONTINENCE (UI), URINARY FREQUENCY, NOCTURIA, URINARY URGENCY WITH AND WITHOUT INCONTINENCE, AND MIXED UI. RECENT EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT YOGA CAN IMPROVE LOWER URINARY TRACT SYMPTOMS (LUTS). THUS, WE PERFORMED A SCOPING REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE WITH REGARD TO THE EVIDENCE FOR THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON LUTS AND FACTORS THAT MAY MEDIATE YOGA'S EFFECTS ON LUTS WITH THE GOAL TO IDENTIFY GAPS IN KNOWLEDGE REGARDING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOGA PRACTICE AND LUTS. METHODS: THE AUTHORS EMPLOYED THE PRISMA EXTENSION FOR SCOPING REVIEWS (PRISMA-SCR) METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH, PROPOSED BY TRICCO ET AL., BY SEARCHING THE ELECTRONIC DATABASES, PUBMED, EMBASE, AND PSYCINFO, FOR ARTICLES USING THE FOLLOWING KEYWORDS: YOGA, URINARY INCONTINENCE, URINARY TRACT, BLADDER, AND URETHRA. WE ASSESSED THE QUALITY OF THE STUDIES USING THE JOANNA BRIGGS INSTITUTE CRITICAL APPRAISAL CHECKLIST. RESULTS: OF THE 172 ARTICLES WE FOUND, 8 ARTICLES MET THE INCLUSION CRITERIA AND WERE REVIEWED. WE FOUND THAT, DESPITE THE USE OF DIFFERENT PROTOCOLS, YOGA MAY REDUCE CERTAIN LUTS BY INCREASING THE STRENGTH OF PELVIC FLOOR MUSCLE AND/OR REGULATING THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM AND ACTIVATING THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA IS A NONINVASIVE PRACTICE THAT MAY IMPROVE SOME LUTS. RIGOROUS STUDIES ARE NEEDED TO DETERMINE THE SPECIFIC MECHANISMS THROUGH WHICH YOGA MAY AFFECT LUTS. 2019 2 2085 33 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 3 2213 25 THE HYPOTENSIVE EFFECT OF YOGA'S BREATHING EXERCISES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. THE AIM OF THIS REVIEW WAS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF PRANAYAMA (YOGA'S BREATHING EXERCISES) ON BP AND ITS APPLICABILITY IN THE TREATMENT OF HYPERTENSION. THIRTEEN TRIALS, ASSESSING ACUTE (EIGHT STUDIES) AND CHRONIC (FIVE STUDIES) BP RESPONSE TO PRANAYAMA WERE INCLUDED. SIGNIFICANT BP REDUCTIONS AFTER PRANAYAMA WERE FOUND IN BOTH ACUTE (2-10 MMHG MEAN SBP REDUCTION, N = 5 STUDIES; 1 MMHG MEAN DBP REDUCTION, N = 1 STUDY) AND CHRONIC STUDIES (4-21 MMHG MEAN SBP REDUCTION, N = 3 STUDIES; 4-7 MMHG MEAN DBP REDUCTION, N = 2 STUDIES). THE PRANAYAMA'S EFFECT ON BP WERE NOT ROBUST AGAINST SELECTION BIAS DUE TO THE LOW QUALITY OF STUDIES. BUT, THE LOWERING BP EFFECT OF PRANAYAMA IS ENCOURAGING. THE PRANAYAMA WITH SLOWER RHYTHMS AND MANIPULATION OF THE NOSTRILS, MAINLY WITH BREATHS BY THE LEFT, PRESENT BETTER RESULTS WHEN COMPARED WITH THE OTHER TYPES AND SHOULD BE THE MAIN PRANAYAMA APPLIED WHEN THE GOAL IS TO REDUCE BLOOD PRESSURE ESPECIALLY IN HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS. 2017 4 703 36 EFFECT OF INTEGRAL YOGA ON PSYCHOLOGICAL AND HEALTH VARIABLES AND THEIR CORRELATIONS. OBJECTIVE: CERTAIN PSYCHOLOGICAL AND HEALTH VARIABLES ARE COMMONLY MEASURED IN INDIA. THIS STUDY EVALUATES THE EFFECTS OF INTEGRAL YOGA PRACTICES ON THESE VARIABLES AND ALSO THE CONSISTENCY OF CORRELATIONS OBSERVED BETWEEN THEM. MATERIALS AND METHODS: THE STUDY WAS A PRE-POST INTERVENTION STUDY. THE VARIABLES WERE MEASURED AT THE BEGINNING AND THE END OF A ONE-MONTH YOGA COURSE. THERE WAS NO CONTROL GROUP.THE STUDY WAS CARRIED OUT AT SWAMI VIVEKANANDA YOGA ANUSANDHANA SAMSTHANA (S-VYASA) UNIVERSITY, IN ITS RURAL CAMPUS SOUTH OF BANGALORE. BASED ON HEALTH CRITERIA, 108 SUBJECTS WERE SELECTED OUT OF 198 VOLUNTEERS TO FORM THE EXPERIMENTAL YOGA GROUP. AGES RANGED FROM 17 TO 63 YEARS. THE YOGASANAS (POSTURES), PRANAYAMA (BREATHING EXERCISES), RELAXATION TECHNIQUES, MEDITATION, CHANTING AND LECTURES WERE THE COMPONENTS OF YOGA INTERVENTION. THE VARIABLES MEASURED WERE SUSTAINED ATTENTION, EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE - EQ, GENERAL HEALTH - GHQ, GUNA PERSONALITY - SATTVA, RAJAS AND TAMAS. RESULTS: SIGNIFICANT PRE-POST CHANGES WERE FOUND IN ALL VARIABLES. SIGNIFICANT CORRELATIONS WERE FOUND BETWEEN THE FOLLOWING PAIRS: THE TWO SUSTAINED ATTENTION VARIABLES; EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND GENERAL HEALTH; GHQ AND TAMAS; SATTVA AND TAMAS; AND RAJAS AND TAMAS. CONCLUSION: THE STUDY SHOWS THAT THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN ALL VARIABLES (P< 0.001) EXCEPT IN SATTVA. IT ALSO CONFIRMS THAT EQ AND GENERAL HEALTH VARIABLES CORRELATE SIGNIFICANTLY WITH EACH OTHER AND NEGATIVELY WITH TAMAS. EQ AND TAMAS FORM POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE PREDICTORS OF HEALTH RESPECTIVELY. SATTVA CORRELATES POSITIVELY WITH EQ SUGGESTING THAT A SATTVIC PERSONALITY INDICATES BETTER SELF-CONTROL. THIS SUGGESTS THAT, BY IMPROVING GUNA PERSONALITY, LONG-TERM YOGA PRACTICE MAY STABILIZE EQ. 2011 5 985 27 EFFECTS OF HATHA YOGA AND OMKAR MEDITATION ON CARDIORESPIRATORY PERFORMANCE, PSYCHOLOGIC PROFILE, AND MELATONIN SECRETION. OBJECTIVES: TO EVALUATE EFFECTS OF HATHA YOGA AND OMKAR MEDITATION ON CARDIORESPIRATORY PERFORMANCE, PSYCHOLOGIC PROFILE, AND MELATONIN SECRETION. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: THIRTY HEALTHY MEN IN THE AGE GROUP OF 25-35 YEARS VOLUNTEERED FOR THE STUDY. THEY WERE RANDOMLY DIVIDED IN TWO GROUPS OF 15 EACH. GROUP 1 SUBJECTS SERVED AS CONTROLS AND PERFORMED BODY FLEXIBILITY EXERCISES FOR 40 MINUTES AND SLOW RUNNING FOR 20 MINUTES DURING MORNING HOURS AND PLAYED GAMES FOR 60 MINUTES DURING EVENING HOURS DAILY FOR 3 MONTHS. GROUP 2 SUBJECTS PRACTICED SELECTED YOGIC ASANAS (POSTURES) FOR 45 MINUTES AND PRANAYAMA FOR 15 MINUTES DURING THE MORNING, WHEREAS DURING THE EVENING HOURS THESE SUBJECTS PERFORMED PREPARATORY YOGIC POSTURES FOR 15 MINUTES, PRANAYAMA FOR 15 MINUTES, AND MEDITATION FOR 30 MINUTES DAILY, FOR 3 MONTHS. ORTHOSTATIC TOLERANCE, HEART RATE, BLOOD PRESSURE, RESPIRATORY RATE, DYNAMIC LUNG FUNCTION (SUCH AS FORCED VITAL CAPACITY, FORCED EXPIRATORY VOLUME IN 1 SECOND, FORCED EXPIRATORY VOLUME PERCENTAGE, PEAK EXPIRATORY FLOW RATE, AND MAXIMUM VOLUNTARY VENTILATION), AND PSYCHOLOGIC PROFILE WERE MEASURED BEFORE AND AFTER 3 MONTHS OF YOGIC PRACTICES. SERIAL BLOOD SAMPLES WERE DRAWN AT VARIOUS TIME INTERVALS TO STUDY EFFECTS OF THESE YOGIC PRACTICES AND OMKAR MEDITATION ON MELATONIN LEVELS. RESULTS: YOGIC PRACTICES FOR 3 MONTHS RESULTED IN AN IMPROVEMENT IN CARDIORESPIRATORY PERFORMANCE AND PSYCHOLOGIC PROFILE. THE PLASMA MELATONIN ALSO SHOWED AN INCREASE AFTER THREE MONTHS OF YOGIC PRACTICES. THE SYSTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE, DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE, MEAN ARTERIAL PRESSURE, AND ORTHOSTATIC TOLERANCE DID NOT SHOW ANY SIGNIFICANT CORRELATION WITH PLASMA MELATONIN. HOWEVER, THE MAXIMUM NIGHT TIME MELATONIN LEVELS IN YOGA GROUP SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT CORRELATION (R = 0.71, P < 0.05) WITH WELL-BEING SCORE. CONCLUSION: THESE OBSERVATIONS SUGGEST THAT YOGIC PRACTICES CAN BE USED AS PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGIC STIMULI TO INCREASE ENDOGENOUS SECRETION OF MELATONIN, WHICH, IN TURN, MIGHT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR IMPROVED SENSE OF WELL-BEING. 2004 6 2004 36 STUDY OF IMMEDIATE NEUROLOGICAL AND AUTONOMIC CHANGES DURING KAPALBHATI PRANAYAMA IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS. BACKGROUND: KAPALBHATI IS A FAST PACE RESPIRATORY EXERCISE OR PRANAYAM, WHICH IS SUPPOSED TO BE PRACTICED BY YOGIS TO CLEAN THEIR BRAIN. PRANAYAMAS ARE WELL KNOWN TO IMPROVE HEART RATE VARIABILITY (HRV) ULTIMATELY LEADING TO BETTER AUTONOMIC FUNCTIONS. OTHER STUDIES HAVE OBSERVED THE IMMEDIATE EFFECT OF KAPALBHATI ON VARIOUS NEUROLOGICAL (BRAIN AND SPINE) AND AUTONOMIC FUNCTIONS, BUT THEIR RESULTS ARE VARIED AND INCONCLUSIVE. OBJECTIVE: THE AIM OF THIS STUDY IS TO FIND OUT THE CHANGES IN HRV AND BRAIN WAVES DURING AND AFTER PRACTICE OF KAPALBHATI AS COMPARED WITH THE BASELINE VALUES OF DIFFERENT PARAMETERS. METHODS: VARIOUS PARAMETERS WERE MEASURED AT BASELINE, DURING AND AFTER KAPALBHATI PRANAYAM WITH THE HELP OF DINAMIKA HRV-ADVANCED HRV TEST SYSTEM, MOSCOW, RUSSIA. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS WAS ACCOMPLISHED EMPLOYING REPEATED MEASURES ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE WITH BONFERRONI POST-HOC ANALYSIS AND HOLM'S MULTIPLE COMPARISONS USING THE VERSION 28.0.0.0 OF THE STATISTICAL PACKAGE FOR THE SOCIAL SCIENCES (SPSS) FOR WINDOWS (190) SPSS INC., CHICAGO. RESULTS: WE FOUND THAT DURING AND AFTER KAPALBHATI, CHANGES IN HRV WERE SIGNIFICANT IN TIME AND FREQUENCY DOMAIN SHOWING PARASYMPATHETIC WITHDRAWAL AND INSIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN BRAIN WAVES AS COMPARED WITH REFERENCE POINT VALUES. CONCLUSION: KAPALBHATI IS INITIALLY ENERGIZING, CLEANSING, AND HEATING. THERE OCCURS PARASYMPATHETIC WITHDRAWAL AND SYMPATHETIC ACTIVATION DURING PRANAYAMA. THERE IS AN INCREASE GAMMA WAVE ACTIVATION POST PRANAYAMA SHOWING CONTROL OF THE DEFAULT MODE NETWORK. 2022 7 859 22 EFFECT OF YOGA PRACTICE ON LEVELS OF INFLAMMATORY MARKERS AFTER MODERATE AND STRENUOUS EXERCISE. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA PRACTICE AND EXERCISE CHALLENGE ON TUMOUR NECROSIS FACTOR ALPHA (TNF-ALPHA), INTERLEUKIN-6 (IL-6) LEVELS AND LIPID PROFILE. MATERIALS AND METHODS: TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHTEEN SUBJECTS PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY. ONE HUNDRED AND NINE VOLUNTEERS (51 MALES AND 58 FEMALES) IN THE AGE GROUP OF 20 TO 60 YEARS, WHO PRACTICED YOGA REGULARLY FOR OVER FIVE YEARS FOR A PERIOD OF ONE HOUR DAILY, PERFORMED A BOUT OF MODERATE EXERCISE AND A BOUT OF STRENUOUS EXERCISE AS PER STANDARDIZED SHUTTLE WALK TEST PROTOCOL. ANTHROPOMETRICALLY MATCHED, AGE MATCHED AND GENDER MATCHED SUBJECTS, WHO DID NOT PRACTICE YOGA (NON-YOGA GROUP) WERE CHOSEN AS CONTROLS (NON-YOGA, N=109). THE NON-YOGA GROUP ALSO PERFORMED SIMILAR EXERCISES. THE BLOOD SAMPLES OF BOTH THE GROUPS WERE COLLECTED BEFORE AND AFTER THE EXERCISES. TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 WAS ANALYSED BEFORE AND AFTER THE EXERCISE BY SANDWICH ELISA (ENZYME LINKED IMMUNOSORBENT ASSAY). RESULTS: RESTING PLASMA TNF-ALPHA CONCENTRATION WAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER IN NON-YOGA GROUP WHEN COMPARED TO YOGA GROUP (P<0.05). THERE WAS AN INCREASE IN TNF-ALPHA LEVELS IN BOTH THE GROUPS IN RESPONSE TO STRENUOUS EXERCISE. THERE WAS NO GENDER DIFFERENCE IN TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 LEVELS BEFORE AND AFTER EXERCISE IN YOGA AND NON-YOGA GROUPS. CONCLUSION: REGULAR PRACTICE OF YOGA LOWERS BASAL TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 LEVELS. IT ALSO REDUCES THE EXTENT OF INCREASE OF TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 TO A PHYSICAL CHALLENGE OF MODERATE EXERCISE AND STRENUOUS EXERCISE. THERE IS NO SIGNIFICANT GENDER DIFFERENCE IN THE TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 LEVELS. REGULAR PRACTICE OF YOGA CAN PROTECT THE INDIVIDUAL AGAINST INFLAMMATORY DISEASES BY FAVOURABLY ALTERING PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINE LEVELS. 2015 8 811 42 EFFECT OF YOGA ON BLOOD PRESSURE IN PREHYPERTENSION: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS. INTRODUCTION: PREHYPERTENSION IS A PRECURSOR FOR DEVELOPING HYPERTENSION AND IS A RISK FACTOR FOR CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES. YOGA THERAPY MAY HAVE A ROLE IN LOWERING THE BLOOD PRESSURES IN PREHYPERTENSION AND HYPERTENSION. THIS SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AIMS TO SYNTHESIZE THE AVAILABLE LITERATURE FOR THE SAME. METHODOLOGY. DATABASES SUCH AS PUBMED, EMBASE, SCOPUS, AND WEB OF SCIENCE WERE SEARCHED FOR RANDOMISED CONTROL TRIALS ONLY IN THE TIME DURATION OF 2010-2021. THE MAIN OUTCOME OF INTEREST WAS SYSTOLIC AND DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURES. ARTICLES WERE SCREENED BASED ON THE INCLUSION CRITERIA, AND 8 ARTICLES WERE RECRUITED FOR THE REVIEW. META-ANALYSIS WAS DONE FOR SUITABLE ARTICLES. REVMAN 5.4 BY COCHRANE WAS USED FOR META-ANALYSIS AND FOREST PLOT CONSTRUCTION. RISK OF BIAS WAS DETERMINED USING THE DOWNS AND BLACK CHECKLIST BY THREE INDEPENDENT AUTHORS. RESULTS: THE META-ANALYSIS OF THE ARTICLES FAVOURED YOGA INTERVENTION OVER THE CONTROL INTERVENTION. YOGA THERAPY HAD SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED THE SYSTOLIC PRESSURE (-0.62 STANDARD MEAN DIFFERENCE, AT IV FIXED 95% CI: -0.83, -0.41) AND DIASTOLIC PRESSURE (-0.81 STANDARD MEAN DIFFERENCE, AT IV RANDOM 95% CI: -1.39, -0.22). SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES STUDIED WERE HEART RATE, WEIGHT, BMI, WAIST CIRCUMFERENCE, AND LIPID PROFILE. THE MAIN PROTOCOL OF YOGA THERAPY INCLUDED POSTURES, BREATHING EXERCISES, AND DIFFERENT MEDITATION TECHNIQUES. A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN SECONDARY OUTCOMES WAS OBSERVED, EXCEPT FOR HDL VALUES IN LIPID PROFILE WHICH SHOWED A GRADUAL INCREASE IN YOGA GROUP IN COMPARISON WITH ALTERNATIVE THERAPY. CONCLUSION: YOGA THERAPY HAS SHOWN TO BE SIGNIFICANT IN THE REDUCTION OF SYSTOLIC AND DIASTOLIC PRESSURE IN PREHYPERTENSIVE POPULATION. SUPPORTING EVIDENCE LACKS IN PROVIDING A PROPER STRUCTURED DOSAGE OF YOGA ASANAS AND BREATHING TECHNIQUES. CONSIDERING THE EXISTING LITERATURE AND EVIDENCE, YOGA THERAPY CAN BE USED AND RECOMMENDED IN PREHYPERTENSIVE POPULATION AND CAN BE BENEFICIAL IN REDUCING THE CHANCES OF DEVELOPING HYPERTENSION OR CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES. 2021 9 1578 34 MEASUREMENT OF THE EFFECT OF ISHA YOGA ON CARDIAC AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM USING SHORT-TERM HEART RATE VARIABILITY. BACKGROUND: BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF YOGA HAVE BEEN POSTULATED TO BE DUE TO MODULATION OF THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM. OBJECTIVE: TO ASSESS THE EFFECT OF ISHA YOGA PRACTICES ON CARDIOVASCULAR AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM THROUGH SHORT-TERM HEART RATE VARIABILITY (HRV). DESIGN OF THE STUDY: SHORT-TERM HRV OF LONG-TERM REGULAR HEALTHY 14 (12 MALES AND 2 FEMALES) ISHA YOGA PRACTITIONERS WAS COMPARED WITH THAT OF AGE- AND GENDER-MATCHED 14 (12 MALES AND 2 FEMALES) NON-YOGA PRACTITIONERS. METHODS AND MATERIALS: ECG LEAD II AND RESPIRATORY MOVEMENTS WERE RECORDED IN BOTH GROUPS USING POLYRITE DURING SUPINE REST FOR 5 MIN AND CONTROLLED DEEP BREATHING FOR 1 MINUTE. FREQUENCY DOMAIN ANALYSIS [RR INTERVAL IS THE MEAN OF DISTANCE BETWEEN SUBSEQUENT R WAVE PEAKS IN ECG], LOW FREQUENCY (LF) POWER, HIGH FREQUENCY (HF) POWER, LF NORMALIZED UNITS (NU), HF NU, LF/HF RATIO] AND TIME DOMAIN ANALYSIS [STANDARD DEVIATION OF NORMAL TO NORMAL INTERVAL (SDNN), SQUARE OF MEAN SQUARED DIFFERENCE OF SUCCESSIVE NORMAL TO NORMAL INTERVALS (RMSSD), NORMAL TO NORMAL INTERVALS WHICH ARE DIFFERING BY 50 MS (NN50), AND PERCENTAGE OF NN50 (PNN50)] OF HRV VARIABLES WERE ANALYZED FOR SUPINE REST. TIME DOMAIN ANALYSIS WAS RECORDED FOR DEEP BREATHING. RESULTS: RESULTS SHOWED STATISTICALLY SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ISHA YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND CONTROLS IN BOTH FREQUENCY AND TIME DOMAIN ANALYSES OF HRV INDICES, WITH NO DIFFERENCE IN RESTING HEART RATE BETWEEN THE GROUPS. CONCLUSIONS: PRACTITIONERS OF ISHA YOGA SHOWED WELL-BALANCED BENEFICIAL ACTIVITY OF VAGAL EFFERENTS, AN OVERALL INCREASED HRV, AND SYMPATHOVAGAL BALANCE, COMPARED TO NON-YOGA PRACTITIONERS DURING SUPINE REST AND DEEP BREATHING. 2012 10 1927 35 ROLE OF YOGA IN CARDIAC DISEASE AND REHABILITATION. PURPOSE: CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE CONTINUES TO BE THE LEADING CAUSE OF MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY AROUND THE WORLD. YOGA, A COMBINATION OF PHYSICAL POSTURES (ASANA), BREATHING EXERCISES (PRANAYAMA), AND MEDITATION (DHYANA), HAS GAINED INCREASING RECOGNITION AS A FORM OF MIND-BODY EXERCISE. IN THIS NARRATIVE REVIEW, WE INTENDED TO REVIEW THE EMERGING EVIDENCE ASSESSING THE PHYSIOLOGIC AND CLINICAL EFFECTS OF YOGA ON THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM AND THE POTENTIAL ROLE OF YOGA AS A COMPONENT OF COMPREHENSIVE CARDIAC REHABILITATION. METHODS: WE SEARCHED PUBMED, GOOGLE SCHOLAR, EMBASE, AND COCHRANE DATABASES FOR LITERATURE RELATED TO CARDIOVASCULAR EFFECTS OF YOGA FROM INCEPTION UP UNTIL 2017. RESULTS: YOGA HAS BEEN SHOWN TO HAVE FAVORABLE EFFECTS ON SYSTEMIC INFLAMMATION, STRESS, THE CARDIAC AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM, AND TRADITIONAL AND EMERGING CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA HAS SHOWN PROMISE AS A USEFUL LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION THAT CAN BE INCORPORATED INTO CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE MANAGEMENT ALGORITHMS. ALTHOUGH MANY INVESTIGATORS HAVE REPORTED THE CLINICAL BENEFITS OF YOGA IN REDUCING CARDIOVASCULAR EVENTS, MORBIDITY, AND MORTALITY, EVIDENCE SUPPORTING THESE CONCLUSIONS IS SOMEWHAT LIMITED, THEREBY EMPHASIZING THE NEED FOR LARGE, WELL-DESIGNED RANDOMIZED TRIALS THAT MINIMIZE BIAS AND METHODOLOGICAL DRAWBACKS. 2019 11 297 24 ALTERNATE NOSTRIL BREATHING AT DIFFERENT RATES AND ITS INFLUENCE ON HEART RATE VARIABILITY IN NON PRACTITIONERS OF YOGA. INTRODUCTION: HEART RATE VARIABILITY IS A MEASURE OF MODULATION IN AUTONOMIC INPUT TO THE HEART AND IS ONE OF THE MARKERS OF AUTONOMIC FUNCTIONS. THOUGH THERE ARE MANY STUDIES ON THE LONG TERM INFLUENCE OF BREATHING ON HRV (HEART RATE VARIABILITY) THERE ARE ONLY A FEW STUDIES ON THE IMMEDIATE EFFECT OF BREATHING ESPECIALLY ALTERNATE NOSTRIL BREATHING ON HRV. THIS STUDY FOCUSES ON THE IMMEDIATE EFFECTS OF ALTERNATE NOSTRIL BREATHING AND THE INFLUENCE OF DIFFERENT BREATHING RATES ON HRV. MATERIALS AND METHODS: THE STUDY WAS DONE ON 25 SUBJECTS IN THE AGE GROUP OF 17-35 YEARS. ECG AND RESPIRATION WERE RECORDED BEFORE INTERVENTION AND IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE SUBJECTS WERE ASKED TO PERFORM ALTERNATE NOSTRIL BREATHING FOR FIVE MINUTES. RESULTS: LOW FREQUENCY (LF) WHICH IS A MARKER OF SYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY INCREASED, HIGH FREQUENCY (HF) WHICH IS A MARKER OF PARASYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY DECREASED AND THEIR RATIO LF/HF WHICH IS A MARKER OF SYMPATHO/VAGAL BALANCE INCREASED IMMEDIATELY AFTER 6 AND 12 MINUTES IN COMPARISON TO BASELINE VALUES WHEREAS THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN THE MEANS OF THESE COMPONENTS WHEN BOTH 6 AND 12 MINUTES WERE COMPARED. CONCLUSION: IMMEDIATE EFFECTS OF ALTERNATE NOSTRIL BREATHING ON HRV IN NON PRACTITIONERS OF YOGIC BREATHING ARE VERY DIFFERENT FROM THE LONG TERM INFLUENCE OF YOGIC BREATHING ON HRV WHICH SHOW A PREDOMINANT PARASYMPATHETIC INFLUENCE ON THE HEART. 2016 12 1359 35 IMMEDIATE EFFECTS OF OM CHANTING ON HEART RATE VARIABILITY MEASURES COMPARED BETWEEN EXPERIENCED AND INEXPERIENCED YOGA PRACTITIONERS. BACKGROUND: CHANTING "OM" IS A FORM OF MEDITATION THAT HAS NUMEROUS HEALTH BENEFITS. HOWEVER, THE NEUROPHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS UNDERPINNING ITS EFFECT ARE SURPRISINGLY SCARCE. THE PRESENT STUDY AIMED TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFECT OF OM CHANTING ON AUTONOMIC MODULATION, USING HEART RATE VARIABILITY (HRV), ON EXPERIENCED YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND YOGA NAIVE PERSONS. METHODS: THIS PROSPECTIVE STUDY INCLUDED 19 YOGA PRACTITIONERS (9 FEMALES AND 10 MALES; GROUP MEAN AGE +/- STANDARD DEVIATION [SD]; 25.9 +/- 3.2 YEARS) AND 17 YOGA NAIVE PERSONS (8 FEMALES AND 9 MALES; GROUP MEAN AGE +/- SD; 24.8 +/- 3.6 YEARS) OF BOTH SEXES AND SIMILAR AGE RANGE. BOTH THE GROUPS WERE ASSESSED FOR HRV INDICES (TIME AND FREQUENCY DOMAIN MEASURES) BEFORE AND AFTER LOUD OM CHANTING FOR 5 MIN. RESULTS: BASELINE COMPARISON USING MANN-WHITNEY U TEST BETWEEN GROUPS SHOWED YOGA PRACTITIONERS HAD SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED HIGH FREQUENCY (HF) POWER (P < 0.029) THAN NONYOGA PRACTITIONERS, SIGNIFYING A STATE OF TRANQUILITY BEFORE THE CHANTING OF OM. AFTER 5 MIN OF LOUD CHANTING OF OM, A COMPARISON BETWEEN GROUPS ASSESSED USING WILCOXON SIGNED RANKS TEST REVEALED: HF POWER, A COMPONENT OF THE PARASYMPATHETIC NERVOUS SYSTEM, WAS FURTHER AMPLIFIED WITH A SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE (P < 0.001) IN THE YOGA PRACTITIONERS GROUP COMPARED TO NONYOGA PRACTITIONERS. FURTHERMORE, THIS INCREASE IN HF POWER WAS POSITIVELY CORRELATED WITH THE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN YOGA. CONCLUSION: THE PRESENT STUDY SHOWED THAT A BRIEF CHANTING OF OM (5 MIN) MIGHT ENHANCE PARASYMPATHETIC NERVOUS SYSTEM ACTIVITY, PROMOTE RELAXATION, AND PROVIDE CALMNESS. FURTHER, THIS EXPERIENCE MAY BE ACHIEVED EFFECTIVELY IN INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCED IN YOGA THAN NONYOGA PRACTITIONERS. 2022 13 324 20 ANTHROPOMETRIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND CLINICAL PARAMETERS IN CLIMACTERIC YOGA PRACTITIONERS. OBJECTIVE: THIS STUDY AIMED TO EVALUATE ANTHROPOMETRIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND CLINICAL PARAMETERS IN CLIMACTERIC YOGA PRACTITIONERS. METHODS: THIS STUDY INVESTIGATED 108 CLIMACTERIC WOMEN. WE RECRUITED 28 WOMEN BETWEEN 40 AND 65 YEARS OLD WHO STARTED YOGA PRACTICES IN PREMENOPAUSE AND HAD ALREADY PRACTICED FOR AT LEAST 5 YEARS. AS CONTROLS, WE SELECTED 30 PHYSICAL ACTIVITY (PA) PRACTITIONERS WHO HAD PRACTICED FOR AT LEAST 5 YEARS AND 50 SEDENTARY WOMEN IN THE SAME AGE RANGE. WE CONDUCED ANTHROPOMETRIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND BLOOD PRESSURE MEASUREMENTS. RESULTS: THE YOGA GROUP HAD SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER FASTING BLOOD GLUCOSE THAN THE PA PRACTITIONERS AND SEDENTARY WOMEN. YOGA PRACTITIONERS ALSO HAD LOWER WEIGHT, BODY MASS INDEX, WAIST CIRCUMFERENCE, BODY FAT PERCENTAGE AND WAIST-TO-HEIGHT RATIO; HIGHER LEVELS OF HIGH-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN CHOLESTEROL; LOWER LEVELS OF TRIGLYCERIDES, INSULIN, HOMEOSTASIS MODEL ASSESSMENT OF INSULIN RESISTANCE, URIC ACID, APOLIPOPROTEIN B AND HIGH-SENSITIVITY C-REACTIVE PROTEIN; AND LOWER FREQUENCY OF METABOLIC SYNDROME, LIPID ACCUMULATION PRODUCT, VISCERAL ADIPOSITY INDEX AND SYSTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE THAN THE SEDENTARY WOMEN. CONCLUSION: YOGA PRACTITIONERS HAD LOWER GLUCOSE SERUM CONCENTRATIONS THAN THE PA PRACTITIONERS AND SEDENTARY WOMEN. OVERALL, THE YOGA GROUP ALSO HAD BETTER ANTHROPOMETRIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND CLINICAL VARIABLES THAN THE OTHER GROUPS. ALTHOUGH FURTHER INVESTIGATION IS REQUIRED, YOGA PRACTICE IN PREMENOPAUSE SEEMS TO BE BENEFICIAL FOR WOMEN WHEN THEY REACH MENOPAUSE. 2022 14 1266 25 FLUID INTELLIGENCE AND BRAIN FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATION IN AGING YOGA AND MEDITATION PRACTITIONERS. NUMEROUS STUDIES HAVE DOCUMENTED THE NORMAL AGE-RELATED DECLINE OF NEURAL STRUCTURE, FUNCTION, AND COGNITIVE PERFORMANCE. PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT MEDITATION MAY REDUCE DECLINE IN SPECIFIC COGNITIVE DOMAINS AND IN BRAIN STRUCTURE. HERE WE EXTENDED THIS RESEARCH BY INVESTIGATING THE RELATION BETWEEN AGE AND FLUID INTELLIGENCE AND RESTING STATE BRAIN FUNCTIONAL NETWORK ARCHITECTURE USING GRAPH THEORY, IN MIDDLE-AGED YOGA AND MEDITATION PRACTITIONERS, AND MATCHED CONTROLS. FLUID INTELLIGENCE DECLINED SLOWER IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND MEDITATORS COMBINED THAN IN CONTROLS. RESTING STATE FUNCTIONAL NETWORKS OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND MEDITATORS COMBINED WERE MORE INTEGRATED AND MORE RESILIENT TO DAMAGE THAN THOSE OF CONTROLS. FURTHERMORE, MINDFULNESS WAS POSITIVELY CORRELATED WITH FLUID INTELLIGENCE, RESILIENCE, AND GLOBAL NETWORK EFFICIENCY. THESE FINDINGS REVEAL THE POSSIBILITY TO INCREASE RESILIENCE AND TO SLOW THE DECLINE OF FLUID INTELLIGENCE AND BRAIN FUNCTIONAL ARCHITECTURE AND SUGGEST THAT MINDFULNESS PLAYS A MECHANISTIC ROLE IN THIS PRESERVATION. 2014 15 2245 42 THE INFLUENCE OF YOGA-BASED PROGRAMS ON RISK PROFILES IN ADULTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. THERE IS GROWING EVIDENCE THAT YOGA MAY OFFER A SAFE AND COST-EFFECTIVE INTERVENTION FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS (DM 2). HOWEVER, SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS ARE LACKING. THIS ARTICLE CRITICALLY REVIEWS THE PUBLISHED LITERATURE REGARDING THE EFFECTS OF YOGA-BASED PROGRAMS ON PHYSIOLOGIC AND ANTHROPOMETRIC RISK PROFILES AND RELATED CLINICAL OUTCOMES IN ADULTS WITH DM 2. WE PERFORMED A COMPREHENSIVE LITERATURE SEARCH USING FOUR COMPUTERIZED ENGLISH AND INDIAN SCIENTIFIC DATABASES. THE SEARCH WAS RESTRICTED TO ORIGINAL STUDIES (1970-2006) THAT EVALUATED THE METABOLIC AND CLINICAL EFFECTS OF YOGA IN ADULTS WITH DM 2. STUDIES TARGETING CLINICAL POPULATIONS WITH CARDIOVASCULAR DISORDERS THAT INCLUDED ADULTS WITH COMORBID DM WERE ALSO EVALUATED. DATA WERE EXTRACTED REGARDING STUDY DESIGN, SETTING, TARGET POPULATION, INTERVENTION, COMPARISON GROUP OR CONDITION, OUTCOME ASSESSMENT, DATA ANALYSIS AND PRESENTATION, FOLLOW-UP, AND KEY RESULTS, AND THE QUALITY OF EACH STUDY WAS EVALUATED ACCORDING TO SPECIFIC PREDETERMINED CRITERIA. WE IDENTIFIED 25 ELIGIBLE STUDIES, INCLUDING 15 UNCONTROLLED TRIALS, 6 NON-RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS AND 4 RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS). OVERALL, THESE STUDIES SUGGEST BENEFICIAL CHANGES IN SEVERAL RISK INDICES, INCLUDING GLUCOSE TOLERANCE AND INSULIN SENSITIVITY, LIPID PROFILES, ANTHROPOMETRIC CHARACTERISTICS, BLOOD PRESSURE, OXIDATIVE STRESS, COAGULATION PROFILES, SYMPATHETIC ACTIVATION AND PULMONARY FUNCTION, AS WELL AS IMPROVEMENT IN SPECIFIC CLINICAL OUTCOMES. YOGA MAY IMPROVE RISK PROFILES IN ADULTS WITH DM 2, AND MAY HAVE PROMISE FOR THE PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT OF CARDIOVASCULAR COMPLICATIONS IN THIS POPULATION. HOWEVER, THE LIMITATIONS CHARACTERIZING MOST STUDIES PRECLUDE DRAWING FIRM CONCLUSIONS. ADDITIONAL HIGH-QUALITY RCTS ARE NEEDED TO CONFIRM AND FURTHER ELUCIDATE THE EFFECTS OF STANDARDIZED YOGA PROGRAMS IN POPULATIONS WITH DM 2. 2007 16 1698 34 PAIN-RELATED ENCEPHALIC REGIONS INFLUENCED BY YOGA MEDITATION: AN INTEGRATIVE REVIEW. INTRODUCTION: THE MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THE USE OF YOGA IN PAIN RELIEF ARE STILL UNCLEAR. THIS STUDY REVIEWED LITERATURE REPORTS ON ENCEPHALIC ACTIVITY RELATED TO ANALGESIA INDUCED BY YOGA MEDITATION PRACTICE. METHODS: THIS INTEGRATIVE REVIEW EXAMINED STUDIES PUBLISHED IN THE PUBMED, LILACS AND MEDLINE DATABASES WITHOUT RESTRICTION OF THE YEAR OF PUBLICATION. THE RESEARCH INVOLVED 16 DESCRIPTORS RELATED TO THE WORDS: YOGA, PAIN AND NEUROIMAGING METHODS. INCLUSION CRITERIA INVOLVED ONLY THE PUBLICATIONS AVAILABLE ONLINE, WITH FREE ACCESS AND WRITTEN IN ENGLISH. RESULTS: 2 CASE STUDIES AND 1 PILOT STUDY MET THE CRITERIA. YOGA MEDITATION PRACTICE INDUCES ANALGESIA PRIMARILY THROUGH ATTENUATION OF THE MEDIAL PAIN PERCEPTION SYSTEM INCLUDING THE ANTERIOR CINGULATE CORTEX AND INSULA REGIONS, AS WELL AS THE LATERAL SYSTEM INCLUDING THE SECONDARY SENSORY CORTEX AND THALAMUS. CONCLUSION: YOGA INDUCED ANALGESIA IS A POTENTIALLY IMPORTANT ADJUNCT TO CURRENT PAIN MANAGEMENT. THIS INTEGRATIVE REVIEW REVEALED THAT THERE IS A NEED FOR FURTHER RESEARCH THAT ANALYZES THE ENCEPHALIC REGIONS RELATED TO ANALGESIA INDUCED BY YOGA PRACTICE. 2018 17 2151 36 THE EFFECTS OF REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE ON PULMONARY FUNCTION IN HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS: A LITERATURE REVIEW. OBJECTIVES: YOGA IS A POPULAR FORM OF EXERCISE IN THE WESTERN WORLD, AND YOGA'S EFFECTS ON PULMONARY FUNCTION HAVE BEEN INVESTIGATED PREVIOUSLY. THE PURPOSE OF THIS ARTICLE IS TO REVIEW THIS RESEARCH SYSTEMATICALLY AND DETERMINE IF REGULAR YOGA TRAINING IMPROVES PULMONARY FUNCTION IN APPARENTLY HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS. METHODS: USING THE ALTERNATIVE HEALTH WATCH, THE PHYSICAL EDUCATION INDEX, MEDLINE,((R)) AND THE SPORTDISCUS DATABASES; AND THE KEYWORDS YOGA, RESPIRATION, AND PULMONARY FUNCTION, A COMPREHENSIVE SEARCH WAS CONDUCTED THAT YIELDED 57 STUDIES. OF THESE STUDIES SELECTIONS WERE MADE TO INCLUDE ONLY EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES WRITTEN IN ENGLISH, PUBLISHED IN PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS AFTER 1980, AND INVESTIGATING THE EFFECTS OF REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE ON PULMONARY FUNCTION IN HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS PARTICIPATING IN THE STUDIES. RESULTS: YOGA IMPROVED PULMONARY FUNCTION, AS MEASURED BY MAXIMUM INSPIRATORY PRESSURE, MAXIMUM EXPIRATORY PRESSURE, MAXIMUM VOLUNTARY VENTILATION, FORCED VITAL CAPACITY, FORCED EXPIRATORY VOLUME IN 1 SECOND, AND PEAK EXPIRATORY FLOW RATE, IN ALL (N=9), BUT 1, STUDY. CONCLUSIONS: OVERALL, PULMONARY FUNCTION APPEARS TO IMPROVE WITH A MINIMUM OF 10 WEEKS OF REGULAR YOGA PRACTICE, AND THE MAGNITUDE OF THIS IMPROVEMENT IS RELATED TO FITNESS LEVEL AND/OR THE LENGTH OF TIME THE SUBJECTS SPEND PRACTICING PRANAYAMA (I.E., BREATHING EXERCISES). IN OTHER WORDS, GREATER IMPROVEMENTS IN PULMONARY FUNCTION ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE SEEN IN LESS-FIT INDIVIDUALS AND/OR THOSE THAT ENGAGE IN LONGER PERIODS OF PRANAYAMA. ADDITIONAL STUDIES EXAMINING VARIOUS YOGA PRACTICES ARE WARRANTED TO GAIN A MORE COMPREHENSIVE UNDERSTANDING OF THE EFFECTS OF YOGA TECHNIQUES ON PULMONARY FUNCTIONS. 2013 18 1951 25 SCIENCE OF THE MIND: ANCIENT YOGA TEXTS AND MODERN STUDIES. THE PRACTICE OF YOGA IS GAINING IN POPULARITY WITH A WIDE RANGE OF PRACTICES. RECENT RESEARCH AND DESCRIPTIONS FROM THE ANCIENT TEXTS ARE OFTEN CONCURRENT WITH REGARD TO THE EFFECTS OF THE PRACTICE, TAKING INTO ACCOUNT EXPECTED DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MODERN SCIENTIFIC TERMS AND THOSE USED IN THE ORIGINAL TEXTS. VOLUNTARILY REGULATED YOGA BREATHING PRACTICES FORM A BRIDGE BETWEEN PHYSICAL AND MENTAL CHANGES. THE VOLUNTARILY REGULATED YOGA BREATHING HAS DISTINCT EFFECTS ON METABOLISM, THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM, HIGHER BRAIN FUNCTIONS, AND MENTAL STATE. THE EFFECTS OF MEDITATION ON THE NERVOUS SYSTEM AND MENTAL STATE ARE EVEN CLEARER. 2013 19 350 36 ASSESSMENT OF CARDIAC AUTONOMIC TONE FOLLOWING LONG SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA IN ART OF LIVING PRACTITIONERS. OBJECTIVE: THE BREATHING PROCESSES ARE KNOWN TO MODULATE CARDIAC AUTONOMIC TONE AND IMPROVE PSYCHOLOGICAL STATUS. WE INVESTIGATED CARDIAC AUTONOMIC TONE FOLLOWING LONG SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA (SKY) USING HEART RATE VARIABILITY (HRV) AND SKIN CONDUCTANCE LEVEL (SCL). METHODS: THIRTY HEALTHY VOLUNTEERS (AGE 28.3 +/- 8.4 YEARS; 23 M: 7 F) PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY. ELECTROCARDIOGRAM (ECG) AND SCL WERE RECORDED FOR 5 MIN EACH, BEFORE AND AFTER LONG SKY. LONG SKY IS A COMBINATION OF PRANAYAMA AND CYCLIC RHYTHMIC BREATHING AND IS PERFORMED BY FOLLOWING THE GUIDED AUDIO INSTRUCTIONS. HRV ANALYSIS WAS USED FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF CARDIAC AUTONOMIC TONE. TIME AND FREQUENCY DOMAIN PARAMETERS OF HRV WERE CALCULATED BY USING RR INTERVAL OF ECG. SCL WAS ACQUIRED USING GALVANIC SKIN RESPONSE (GSR) AMPLIFIER OF POWERLAB IN MICROSEIMENS (MUS). RESULTS: TIME DOMAIN PARAMETERS OF HRV, INCLUDING MEAN RR INTERVAL (P = 0.000), RESPIRATORY SINUS ARRHYTHMIA (RSA) (P = 0.037), STANDARD DEVIATION OF ALL NN INTERVALS (SDNN) (P = 0.013), NN50 COUNT DIVIDED BY THE TOTAL NUMBER OF ALL NN INTERVALS (PNN50) (P = 0.004), AND SQUARE ROOT OF THE MEAN OF THE SUM OF THE SQUARES OF DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ADJACENT NN INTERVALS (RMSSD) (P = 0.002) INCREASED, AND MEAN HEART RATE DECREASED (P = 0.000) FOLLOWING LONG SKY. IN FREQUENCY DOMAIN ANALYSIS, POWER OF LOW-FREQUENCY (LF) COMPONENT (P = 0.010) AND LF/HF RATIO (P = 0.008) DECREASED SIGNIFICANTLY, WHEREAS POWER OF HIGH FREQUENCY (HF) SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED (P = 0.010). SCL DECREASED FOLLOWING LONG SKY, ALTHOUGH IT DID NOT ATTAIN STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE. CONCLUSIONS: THE RESULTS SUGGEST THAT LONG SKY INDUCES SIGNIFICANT OSCILLATIONS IN CARDIAC AUTONOMIC TONE. PARASYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY INCREASES AND SYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY DECREASES AND SYMPATHOVAGAL BALANCE IMPROVES FOLLOWING LONG SKY. DECREASE IN SYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY IS ALSO DEMONSTRATED BY DECREASE IN CONDUCTANCE ALTHOUGH IT DID NOT REACH STATISTICAL SIGNIFICANCE. FROM THIS STUDY IT CAN BE CONCLUDED THAT LONG SKY HAS A BENEFICIAL EFFECT ON CARDIAC AUTONOMIC TONE, AND PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL RELAXATION. IT MAY SERVE AS A TOOL TO IMPROVE HRV, WHICH IS THE MARKER OF CARDIOVASCULAR HEALTH. 2017 20 2014 35 SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA: BREATHING FOR HEALTH. BREATHING TECHNIQUES ARE REGULARLY RECOMMENDED FOR RELAXATION, STRESS MANAGEMENT, CONTROL OF PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL STATES, AND TO IMPROVE ORGAN FUNCTION. YOGIC BREATHING, DEFINED AS A MANIPULATION OF BREATH MOVEMENT, HAS BEEN SHOWN TO POSITIVELY AFFECT IMMUNE FUNCTION, AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM IMBALANCES, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL OR STRESS-RELATED DISORDERS. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS AND PROVIDE A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE PHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS, THE MIND-BODY CONNECTION, AND THE BENEFITS OF SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA (SKY) IN A WIDE RANGE OF CLINICAL CONDITIONS. VARIOUS ONLINE DATABASES SEARCHED WERE MEDLINE, PSYCHINFO, EMBASE, AND GOOGLE SCHOLAR. ALL THE RESULTS WERE CAREFULLY SCREENED AND ARTICLES ON SKY WERE SELECTED. THE REFERENCES FROM THESE ARTICLES WERE CHECKED TO FIND ANY OTHER POTENTIALLY RELEVANT ARTICLES. SKY, A UNIQUE YOGIC BREATHING PRACTICE, INVOLVES SEVERAL TYPES OF CYCLICAL BREATHING PATTERNS, RANGING FROM SLOW AND CALMING TO RAPID AND STIMULATING. THERE IS MOUNTING EVIDENCE TO SUGGEST THAT SKY CAN BE A BENEFICIAL, LOW-RISK, LOW-COST ADJUNCT TO THE TREATMENT OF STRESS, ANXIETY, POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER, DEPRESSION, STRESS-RELATED MEDICAL ILLNESSES, SUBSTANCE ABUSE, AND REHABILITATION OF CRIMINAL OFFENDERS. 2013