Which Type of Yoga is Best for Me?

Right now, the only things that are in your experience are your body, your mind, and your emotions.You know them to some extent, and you can infer that if these three things have to happen the way they are happening, there must be an energy that makes them happen. So these are the only four realities in your life: body, mind, emotion, and energy.

Whatever you wish to do with yourself, it must be on these four levels. Whatever you wish to do you can only do it with your body, your mind, your emotions or your energy.

5 Beginner Yoga Positions You Need to Know

By Nancy Terence

Yoga can help you achieve peacefulness and a harmonious balance between your mind and body. It has a lot of health benefits such as improving your posture, relieving stress and stretching your tight muscles. However, if you are only a beginner in this art and science of yoga, you might get that natural feeling of uneasiness when you see the different yoga positions. Add to that the fact that each position has a strange and sometimes intimidating name to it.

But don't you worry because there are beginner yoga positions that are designed to help you get started. While some can be quite challenging at first, these are all relaxing and will pave the way for you to achieve more complicated yoga poses.

Padmasana - Lotus Pose

Padmasana or the Lotus Position has acquired its name from Sanskrit word Padma means lotus because in this asana position of the legs look like blooming lotus. This is a cross-legged sitting posture that originated in representations and meditative practices of Hinduism. This asana has been given a great importance in the Yogashastra as it is best suited for Pranayam, Meditation & concentration. This excellent posture encourages proper breathing and foster physical stability.

Procedure For Doing Padamasana - Lotus Pose

1. Sit on the floor or on a mat.
   
2. Bend your left knee as if you were sitting in a regular cross legged position.
   
3. Bring your lower right leg to your upper left leg.
   
4. Leaning back slightly, lift your lower left leg over your right shin. Rest your lower left leg on your upper right leg. You may need to reposition your lower legs slightly with your hands.
   
5. Hold for several breaths.
   
6. Repeat on the other side.
   

Benefits Of Padamasana - Lotus Pose

• Sitting in Padmasana will help to reduce excess fat in the abdomen, buttocks and thighs.
  
• This posture strengthens the thighs and calves and provides elasticity to the hamstring muscles.
  
• Padmasana develops the correct carriage of the body with perfect equilibrium since the spine has to be kept straight during the practise.
  
• The important muscles, ligaments and tendons of the lower extremities are extended and flexed while sitting in Padmasana and relaxed when it is released.
  
• This posture promotes a rich supply of blood to the organs in the pelvic and the abdomino-genital regions while the flow of blood to the lower extemities is limited.
• Since more blood is made to circulate in the lumbar region of the spine and the abdomen, the spine and the abdominal organs are toned up.
  
• It firms up the coccygeal and sacral regions of the spine and the sciatic nerve.
• It also tones up the colon.
  
• It limbers up stiff knees and ankles and improves the flexibility of the hip-joints. It relieves arthritic pain in these areas.
  
• Minor spinal deformities are set right.
  
• The erect spine prevents the compression of the abdominal viscera while sitting in this posture.
  

Caution With Padmasana - Lotus Pose

This is an advanced yoga posture and is not meant to be practiced without consulting a yoga instructor. If you are learning from home, practice the half lotus position. The lotus yoga position is not for those suffering from ankle or knee injuries.

Padmasana - Lotus Pose Video

Mudras Yoga For Your Hands And Fingers

By Carole Fogarty

Mudras are my new found love. They are now part of my daily life and the mudra I have chosen for this month promises to offer me calm, inner core strength and improved focus (yeah, no more distractions for me) plus a healthier flow of energy throughout my entire body giving me more vitality. My clever hands, thumbs and fingers have quickly got my mind into shape and the body has eagerly followed.

The ancient Indian wisdom of Mudras are definitely my new well being energy tool.

Mudras are simple and I love simple. They are gentle and gracious in their actions and can literally be done while you are standing, sitting or in meditation. All you need is five minutes.

The ancient Indian texts explain how they can support the healing of many illnesses along with balancing all your chakras and bringing harmony back into your body, mind and soul. Used as a remedy for disease they are generally practiced for 30 - 45 minutes.

What are mudras?:

Mudras are healing hand postures and are a powerful aspect of yoga. There are Indian texts which explain how mudras are an ancient science that have been used for thousands of years to restore health. Mudras are literally health in your hand. Our thumbs, fingers and the palms of our hands are constantly emitting electromagnetic currents of energy and by creating certain postures with your hands, fingers and thumbs you opening up energy channels to encourage flow and healing.

The most familiar mudra’s:

If you practice yoga or meditation you will definitely be familiar with the Gyan Mudra. This is when the thumb and index finger connect whilst the other three fingers are left open and spread. The benefit of holding this mudra while in meditation is that it increases the flow of energy to your astral self. On a physical level it improves concentration, focus and memory. This mudra I have used for many years to support my meditations

Another mudra which I have used often in certain yoga postures is to hold the hands in prayer pose over the heart chakra. For me personally this is a very nurturing and calming hand posture and tends to bring the energy of peace into my body.

My chosen mudra for this month is the Prana Mudra:

I have chosen just one mudra this month to practice and absorb myself into. The prana mudra or life mudra seemed the obvious choice for me as I can get easily distracted and felt I needed more internal stability.

When doing this pose I sit on my meditation cushion in a peaceful environment (the kids are at school) calm my breathing, focus on my breath and place my subtle awareness on the energy currents being created with this pose. I'll observe the sensations, the blocks and the lightness flowing to different parts of my body. I'll do my best to just let thoughts float by and stay calm and centred. My intention is to repeat this pose twice a day for five minutes at a time. I’ll keep you posted with my progress and share my experiences before I move onto another mudra next month . All mudras will be filed under healing mudras.

The benefits of the prana mudra:

This particular mudra is said to benefit and increase the life force energy within you. Strengthen immunity, muscles, eyes and remove nervousness.

Nervousness or anxiousness can be an indication of weakness and reveals itself by being easily distracted due to lack of internal stability. This mudra strengthens the base chakra which will in turn strengthen and calm your inner core. The finger positions stimulates the nourishing energy in the pelvic flow and gently increases vitality and assists in reducing fatigue.

Keen to learn more about mudra’s:

My research, reading and study of mudra’s is in full swing. I’ll be featuring once a month a specific healing mudra that I am personally working with.

In the meantime I’ve ordered a book, DVD and a card set from amazon which I must say looks absolutely fabulous by Sabrina Mesko. She was taught sacred mudra techniques by a Master of White tantric yoga; Yogi Bhajan who then gave her the responsibility to share it with the western world. She is also an executive member of the world yoga council in India so I figured her books and DVD was a great place to start.

I’ve also enquired about her practitioner training program which looks like being held in 2008 in America. Now that is something I would definitely be keen to put on my schedule for 2008.

Tips for Yoga Beginners

By Maggie Spilner, Prevention

Try to force yourself into a yoga posture to look like the instructor or a picture in a book, and you may end up in worse shape than if you had run a marathon.

"Yoga is meant to be a nurturing form of exercise, not a rigid imitation of poses," says Richard Faulds, author of the upcoming Kripalu Yoga: A Complete Guide to Practice On and Off the Mat (Bantam, 2004). It's very possible to stretch and strengthen your body without having to touch your nose to your knees or your feet to your head.

Here's how to help ensure that you leave yoga class serene, not sorry!

Style Guide: Look for gentle styles such as Kripalu, Viniyoga, or Integral Yoga. Bikram, Ashtanga, and Power Yoga are generally too vigorous for beginners and inflexible people.

Teacher Training: Find an experienced, certified yoga instructor who asks about your physical limitations and will modify pace or offer alternative poses to meet your needs. To find a certified instructor in your area, go to the Yoga Alliance Web site, or call them toll-free at (877) 964-2255 (from the US) or (610) 777-7793 (from Canada).

The Warm-up: Ten minutes of easy movements will increase circulation, lubricate joints, and ready your body to stretch. Poses should progress from simple to more difficult.

X-rated Postures: These poses can place tremendous strain on joints and disks: the plow, full shoulder stand, headstand, and full lotus. Beware!

Back Protection: Keep knees slightly bent, and hinge from the hips when bending forward from standing positions. When arching backward in any pose, concentrate on opening the front of the body by lengthening from the navel to the sternum. Don't overarch the lower back, which compresses lumbar disks.

Knee-savers: Don't lock your knees in standing postures, despite what a teacher may say. If you feel any strain during sitting or kneeling postures, place a cushion or folded blanket under your bottom.

Neck Care: Always keep your neck in alignment with the rest of your spine when arching backward. Don't let it flop back or down.

Your Limits: Get to know your body and its injury-prone zones. Back off from any movement that causes pain or cramping. Don't compare yourself with others.

Hands On or Off: Many teachers assist students during classes. In general, a light touch that brings your awareness to an area and allows you to make your own adjustments is safest. Teachers who adjust you by moving your body for you or forcing you into a posture may cause injuries. Just say no!

Yoga Vinyasas – Which Ones Are Right For You?

When you think about yoga, you likely think first of poses that emphasize self awareness and flexibility. You can, though, link poses in series called yoga vinyasas. In these vinyasas, the poses are done in a free-flowing sequence that adds to your overall yoga experience. While your yoga teacher is trained to create vinyasas for you, there are also certain existing sequences that you can do on your own once you know what poses they involve. Two that are particularly popular in the West are the Sun Salutation and Warrior II.

Sun Salutation

One of the most popular sequences is known as the Sun Salutation. It is a single flow of 12 different yoga postures. With each, you should inhale to accompany your stretching and exhale as you contract or fold your body in. This particular vinyasas is designed to build your strength and increase your overall flexibility. Like with most vinyasas, you may find variations on this depending on what style of yoga you are using, but there are a few basic poses and a flow that is fairly consistent among the variations.

For the Sun Salutation, you go through the flow twice in order to complete one round. Do it one time for the right side of the body and the other time for your left. If you are crunched for time, still try to do at least one. Even that one half of a sequence will help you to feel revitalized.

The sun salutation starts with mountain. From there you go with hands up, head to knees, lunge, plank, and stick. Still flowing, you go into upward dog, downward dog, and lunge. Finally, the sequence finishes with head to knees, hands up, and mountain again. As you can see, the Sun Salutation is naturally circular just as many other yoga sequences are.

Warrior II

Another popular sequence for yogis in the West is called Triangle, or the Warrior II. This particular vinyasas emphasizes your breathing. Though it is usually recommended to try this moving between positions on the beat of your breath, you can experiment with different breathing patters to see what is best for you and how each affects you. In fact, this ability to freely experiment is what has made this such a popular vinyasas.

The sequence for Warrior II works through four poses. You will use Mountain, Triangle, Warrior II and the standing Yoga Mudra. Moving in that order, you will flow through the sequence in time with your breathing. This particular sequence will have a tendency to release stress and help with your flexibility. Be sure, as with all yoga, to pay careful attention to your breathing patterns while staying focused on yourself.

Once you begin to learn a number of yoga poses, you can begin to experiment with vinyasas on your own or with a teacher. They allow you to not only work within the poses, but also to maintain both a physical and mental flow when you perform your daily yoga. Additionally, you can find other yoga sequences that suit your skill level, need, and style of yoga. Overall, the vinyasas are a part of yoga that may help you see and feel results more quickly and more consistently.

Bikram Yoga Can Assist Your Healing Progress

By Dennis Francis

I've been moving more and more toward the benefits of Bikram yoga after a brief visit to a local studio. I found that the addition of heat and sweat to the smooth movements made my middle aged body feel great.

Bikram Yoga is widely known as Hot Yoga. Some know it as The Bikram Method. Bikram yoga is derived from Hatha yoga; a healing style designed for the recovery of mind and body. There are many Bikram enthusiasts who have been swear by this system for their recuperation from alcoholism to shingles. Many people have changed their lives after mastering the basic positions.

Bikram Choudhury, the founder of the yoga style was born in Calcutta in 1946. Bikram began practicing yoga at the age of four with India's most-renowned physical culturist, Bishnu Ghosh. As a youth, this heavily muscled and vigorous practitioner was very competitive in the exhibition circuit.

Bikram Yoga developed his system after recovering from a leg injury. Some people practice Bikram Yoga for healing purposes and physical therapy. This type of Yoga was proven helpful in bringing health and wellness to many of its practitioners.

In fact, there was a patient who suffered from a knee injury. He tried to practice Bikram Yoga and just six weeks after continuous practice, his knees started to feel better. Some difficulties and pains that he suffered from were all disappearing.

In order to be successful with the healing process of Bikram Yoga, you need devotion in practicing it.

With the help of scientists Bikram Choudhury developed his yoga style. These scientists from the Tokyo University Hospital proved that Bikram Yoga created valid therapeutic results. Some of its benefits include tissue repair and even remedial effects of chronic ailments.

What Bikram was able to produce was a process that replenishes the cells of the body and the flushed toxins from your body. It also oxygenates blood throughout your body in order to keep it healthy and clean. The scientists were able to validate all the findings.

He discovered that the healing process takes place when all the body's systems are functioning normally. If the subject was weak, applying the practice to produce healing was difficult.

Bikram developed twenty-six posture exercises which were to be practiced daily. The posture exercises focused on stretching the muscles, tendons and ligaments; while stimulating the organs, nerves, and glands.

The series of postures were designed to work in order and to promote specific effects on the body. Once the body returned to its optimum level of stability, healing was much easier to accomplish.

Through contraction and extension, the postures attend to every bodily system including: digestive, respiratory, circulatory, immune, endocrine, lymphatic, skeletal, muscular, and nervous. It stretches and strengthens every single muscle, ligament and joint in the body down to cell membrane stretching.

It is an excellent compliment to all other forms of exercise and sport. Bikram yoga has proven itself effective for more than thirty years.

Cure Diabetes Through Yoga

Diabetes in various forms affects up to 5percent of the world population with 12 million diabetics in Western Europe alone. Of the different ways in which diabetes presents, noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) is probably the most commonly encountered genetic disease. NIDDM or Type II diabetes is multifactorial, depending also on environmental factors including obesity, sedentary lifestyles and nutritional imbalances.

Yoga has shown some beneficial results in curing diabetes. The yoga exercises that are prescribed for curing diabetes is different from hatha yoga exercise because it involves positions tailored to treat certain conditions, as well as meditation, relaxation and stretching exercises.

One of the studies conducted to cure diabetes was the one set up by the Yoga Biomedical Trust, founded in 1982 by biochemist Dr Robin Monro, and an Indian yoga research foundation which discovered that practicing yoga for 30 minutes a day for one month helped reduce blood glucose levels in some diabetics.

The yoga patients took part in one or two 90-minute sessions a week and were asked to practice at home. The classes included the specific yoga exercises of the spinal twist, the bow and abdominal breathing.

At the end of the 12 weeks blood sugar levels fell significantly in all patients in the group and were slightly raised in a control group which had not joined in the yoga sessions. Three yoga students managed to reduce their medication, including one man who had not changed his drug regime for 20 years.

It has been known for a long time that exercise is helpful for diabetics. Yoga therapy may help reduce stress levels which could play a part in maturity onset diabetes. But one drawback is that some patients would find it hard to keep up the regular sessions needed to sustain the benefit. All the patients said they would like to see these classes set up on a permanent basis but we don't have the money.

It is not necessarily the exercise component of the yoga therapy package which is most important, because there is not enough physical exercise to account for the changes, but stress reduction has a lot to do with it. Stress hormones increase sugar levels in the blood. People also benefit from the stabilization of their moods which yoga brings, an increased feeling of well-being and a feeling of being more in control, which may help with their diet control.

Yoga Therapy - Benefits of Learning Yoga Therapy and Understanding Its 7 Key Principles

By Heather Greaves

Do you secretly wish you could share yoga with others so they too can benefit? Is he idea of teaching yoga a little scary? Have courage. Learn more by looking at key principles of yoga as a healing path.

Principle 1 - Yoga Therapy is the application of the science of yoga to enhance health and wellness. All 3 levels of the whole person are taken into consideration: body mind spirit.

Benefit - Anyone going through a life change, or a transition, can benefit from this therapy as it is much more than a yoga prescription for yoga exercises.

Principle 2 - Yoga Therapy recognizes that the body and mind will be balanced when an individual experiences a sense of oneness within. This is considered an awakening to the spiritual dimensions of life, and the key to health and healing.

Benefit - When body and mind imbalances manifest as a health condition, this is seen as a signal on life's healing path that there is disconnect with some level of our being.

Principle 3 - The healing path is unique to each individual. The techniques from the yoga tradition must be adapted and modified according to age, culture, religion, and specific physical challenge.

Benefit - However you are, whatever you are, at the right time and place, you can experience health and healing through the skilful application of yoga techniques.

Principle 4 - Yoga philosophy and psychology form the basis of Yoga Therapy and state that lack of knowledge of the true Self is the source of all dis-ease and illness.

Benefit - Even though symptoms are alleviated or have gone, health and healing is still possible at deeper levels of being.

Principle 5 - The 8 limbs of Ashtanga Yoga serve as the primary foundation of Yoga Therapy.

Benefit - In the Yoga Sutras there is a clear path to gain knowledge of the true Self. (1) Moral disciplines (2) Restraints (3) Postures (4) Breathing (5) Drawing senses inward (6) Concentration (7) Meditation (8) Ecstasy

Principle 6 - Yoga techniques must be combined with the vision of yoga and the healing path of yoga for a successful treatment.

Benefit - Health, healing and awakening are achieved through the integration of body mind spirit.

Principle 7 - While remaining rooted in Yoga Tradition, the Yoga Therapist brings his/her own knowledge, interests, and healing approaches to guide the client in balancing body and mind.

Benefit - The yoga therapist remains grounded in the vision and foundations of Yoga, and offers a unique and safer environment for the client to explore body mind and emotions on the path to health and healing.

Kundalini Yoga Helps Connect the Physical and Spiritual Self

By Anne Clarke

Kundalini yoga is a certain type of yoga that consists of specific movements. Its movements are often difficult and complicated. Like other forms of yoga, Kundalini should only be practiced by those that have been instructed properly. It is a difficult type of yoga, which a person may need to practice a lot in order to excel at it.

The word kundalini is a word that is from the language of Sanskrit. Sanskrit is a classical language that originated in the country of India. It is commonly spoken in India and Nepal and is used in Hindu religious ceremonies. As a result of yoga's roots being in and around the country of India, Sanskrit is also used to describe poses and elements in various forms of yoga.

In Sanskrit the word kundalini means life force. Literally translated the word kundalini actually means "that which is coiled." Many yoga practitioners refer to the kundalini as a serpent. The serpent in the body is also known as the person's life force.

Kundalini is a type of yoga that focuses on communication between mind and body. People who practice kundalini believe that such communication is important for physical and mental health. They also believe that this yoga will promote psychospiritual growth. That is why people who practice kundalini are masters of concentration. Concentration is essential for communication. It is the first step for connecting the physical and spiritual self.

The basic practice of kundalini yoga can be taught in a live class with an experienced instructor that is advanced in the practice of kundalini and other forms of yoga or on a video. Regardless of where or how it is taught, kundalini is somewhat complicated discipline. A basic class often consists of a series of bodily postures, movements and utterances. Like any form of yoga, proper breathing and concentration is important for success in each pose, posture and movement.

Besides the necessity of proper breathing and concentration, kundalini is a form of yoga that requires great attention to detail. The complicated movements and postures, or even the simple ones, should be done with care and extreme consideration of self, surroundings and great attention to detail and the body's movements. Kundalini yoga should not be practiced as a series of stretching or gymnastics types exercises, they are much more than that. Also, if the movements are not completed correctly the result can be injury, whether it is minor or severe.

Anyone can successfully practice any type of yoga. There are just different levels of difficulty for each type of movement, posture and position. Advanced students and teachers can help to tailor specific movements for different types of people. Supports can be added to help individuals that have injuries and movements can be modified for people that have a decreased amount of flexibility or strength. The trick is to ask for help to achieve yoga fitness goals. Other students and teachers are always glad to assist another yoga lover.

Relax And Refocus With Yoga

The essence of optimal health is a healthy mind in a health body. Yoga, which has been practiced for more than 5,000 years, is a way to achieve both.

The November issue of Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource offers an overview of yoga and its health benefits.

Rooted in ancient India, today's yoga is broadly understood as a system of relaxation, postures and breathing. Over the centuries, different forms of yoga have evolved. Some focus more on spirituality, others on mediation and mastering the conscious mind. Some are more physically challenging than others.

A number of research studies have been conducted on the potential health benefits of yoga. Some commonly acknowledged benefits include:

Relaxation and stress relief. Yoga's quiet precise movements focus your mind less on your busy day and more on movement as you breathe deeply and progress through a series of poses.

Increased flexibility and balance. As you learn and practice new poses, you'll find that each time you can reach a little farther.

Although evidence isn't definitive, studies have also shown that yoga may help manage certain chronic health conditions, such as:

Depression, anxiety and other mental health disorders
Asthma
Cardiovascular diseases, including high blood pressure and high cholesterol
Chronic pain
Diabetes

If you'd like to try yoga, look for classes in your area. You also can learn from books and videos, but an instructor can help you adjust poses to your needs. Ask about the instructor's training and experience in working with your particular needs or health concerns.

At the end of the yoga class, you should feel invigorated yet calm. If that's not the case, talk to the instructor for suggestions. Otherwise, another yoga class may be better suited to your needs.

Mayo Clinic

Evaluating Benefits Of Yoga - American Council On Exercise (ACE) First

Today more than 11 million Americans pack fitness studios around the country seeking the mind-body benefits of yoga, including increased flexibility, strength, balance and muscle tone. But is yoga also a good calorie-burning workout? In an exclusive study, the American Council on Exercise (ACE), America's nonprofit fitness advocate, examined the aerobic benefits and calorie expenditure of Hatha yoga, the most beginner-friendly and widespread practice.

Lead researchers Dawn Boehde and John Porcari, Ph.D., FACSM, from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse recruited 34 healthy but sedentary women (average age of 33) for the study. Before beginning the study, participants were given the same series of tests evaluating their flexibility, balance, aerobic fitness level and muscular strength and endurance.

The subjects where divided into two groups: a yoga group and a non-yoga control group. The yoga group participated in 55-minute Hatha yoga classes three times a week during the eight-week study period while the non-yoga group was barred from any form of exercise.

The study concluded that while the yoga group showed numerous improvements in strength and endurance as well as improved balance and flexibility, they did not burn a significant amount of calories. In fact, one 50-minute session of Hatha yoga burns just 144 calories, similar to a slow walk.

"Yoga is designed to relax the body and help improve musculoskeletal fitness. If you attempt to incorporate calorie-burning elements in a yoga session you may compromise the essential purpose and beneficial effects of the practice," said Dr. Cedric X. Bryant, chief exercise physiologist for ACE. "While the ACE study shows that a Hatha yoga session burns a relatively small amount of calories, yoga is still a valuable addition to any exercise routine offering the essential elements of flexibility, balance and relaxation; factors often neglected in traditional workouts."

Yoga group participants did show the following improvements:

-- Yoga participants' total body flexibility improved by 13 percent, with significant results in shoulder and trunk flexibility

-- Muscular fitness also improved in the yoga group enabling them to do an average of six more push-ups and 14 more curl-ups

-- Yoga participants experienced a 17-second increase in their one-legged stand time

It's Not A Stretch - Yoga May Help Cancer Patients

It's been around for more than 5,000 years,* and still, yoga is one of the fastest growing fitness programs in the country.* Those who do it will tell you yoga can make you stronger and more flexible. Could it be doing more than that? Some believe yoga might even bolster the immune system in women who are battling breast cancer. To find out if that's a stretch, scientists are now weighing in.

Even though she's been doing yoga for 20 years and teaching for nine, Linda Oshins says she got into it almost accidentally. Doctors removed a breast because of cancer and Linda originally went to yoga class so she could get back into the swimming pool.

"I went to regain mobility in my arm so that I could swim and realized that yoga was helping me through the fear and stress," says Oshins.

Suddenly, Linda says she was not only feeling better, she believed she was getting better. The yoga was relieving stress and exhaustion, which are common complaints of women coping with cancer.

"The consequences of treatment or just having the cancer itself, the emotional stress of it all can affect health," says Charles Shapiro, MD, at Ohio State University's James Cancer Hospital.

Can yoga really make that big of a difference? Dr. Janice Kiecolt-Glaser of Ohio State University Medical Center wants to find out. She and her colleagues are enlisting some 250 women with breast cancer to take yoga classes to measure their impact. Even if those women report feeling better, scientists want to take that a step further, by taking evidence to the lab.

"We're going to be looking at blood - before, after, and then three months after that. We want to see what yoga actually does in terms of altering the immune response and affecting fatigue as well," says Kiecolt-Glaser.

By measuring stress hormones in the blood, researchers will see what kind of scientific impact yoga can have on physical health. In the meantime, Linda will keep teaching her class - certain of the role yoga already plays in her emotional health.

Women in the study will go through two 90-minute yoga classes every week and will continue doing yoga at home after their classes are done. Scientists will test them throughout to see how their bodies are reacting. The study is being funded by the National Cancer Institute.

Research Review Finds Yoga Beneficial In Reducing Hypertension

Hypertension, or high blood pressure, remains the most common reason for office visits to physicians for non-pregnant adults in the United States. Some 50 million Americans are believed to have hypertension. Despite its prevalence and the complications associated with it, control of the disease is far from adequate. As a result, hypertension will likely remain the most common risk factor for stroke, heart failure, and kidney disease for years to come.

At the same time, some 42 percent of Americans have used complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) approaches to meet their health care needs, spending more out-of-pocket for CAM than the amount projected for expenditures in 1997 for all U.S. physician services. Nearly three million people are estimated to have tried mind-body techniques to treat their hypertension; approximately eight percent of the hypertensive population.

Mind-Body medicine, one of five major branches of CAM therapeutics, uses behavioral techniques to augment the mind's capacity to affect bodily function and symptoms, utilizing varied approaches such as meditation, prayer, mental healing, and therapies that use creative outlets such as art, music, or dance. The 2002 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) found nearly 30 million users of relaxation techniques including meditation and yoga, and 10 million users of yoga therapies. One-fourth of those who used mind-body therapies rated them "very helpful."

The Study

There has been little quality research to discriminate between positive anecdotal evidence, marketing schemes, and practices that are consistently effective and safe. As a result, a team of researchers conducted a systematic review aims to assess the efficacy of mind-body therapies (MBT) versus placebo or active control in the treatment of hypertension. The main outcome measures include change in systolic and diastolic blood pressure pre- and post-intervention period.

The team reviewed randomized, or quasi-randomized, controlled trials comparing mind-body techniques (meditation, yoga, and guided imagery) alone or in combination with conventional treatment to conventional treatment alone or no intervention/waiting list control. Relevant trials were identified in the register of trials maintained by the Cochrane Complementary Medicine Field Registry, The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Medline, EMBASE, PsycInfo, and CINAHL.

Mind-Body Therapies (MBTs

Participants in these trials were men and non-pregnant women, greater than 18 years of age with hypertension defined as a systolic blood pressure of >140 mm Hg and/or diastolic blood pressure >90 mm Hg. (Normal is defined as systolic >140 and/or diastolic >90 mmHg). The types of intervention undertaken by the study participants were mind-body techniques with the greatest rates of utilization (>3.5 percent prevalence of use in the general population) being meditation, yoga, and guided imagery techniques. A description of each follows:

Meditation: A systematic mental focus on particular aspects of inner or outer experience involving engaging in an activity that directs the mind to single point of focus, using breathing techniques, or imagery in order to feel a state of calmness.

Yoga: The Sanskrit word yoga connotes "the joining of the lower human nature to the higher." Yoga techniques comprise a series of body positions and movements developed in order to help relax the body and calm the mind. It involves breath control, physical exercises and meditation.

Imagery: The generation (either by oneself or guided by a practitioner) of different mental images. Using the capacities of visualization and imagination, individuals evoke images, usually either sensory or affective. These images are typically visualized with the goal of evoking a psychophysiological state of relaxation or with some specific outcome in mind.

Results

The review and synthesis of 12 published randomized trials found largely favorable effects of the most popular mind-body therapies on systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Mind-Body Therapies (MBT) significantly reduced systolic blood pressure (SBP) by a mean 11.52 mm Hg and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) by 6.83 mm Hg. Of the three MBT analyzed, yoga therapies demonstrated results of the greatest magnitude, with mean SBP reductions of 19.07 mm Hg and DBP by 13.13 mm Hg. Significant results were seen in SBP reductions by yoga and meditation therapy, while only yoga therapies demonstrated significant reductions in DBP.

The absolute reductions in blood pressure were comparable to pharmacologic monotherapy in both effect size and temporality. Additionally, reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure to the degree found in yoga interventions were associated with reductions in vascular death rates as well as decreased overall cardiac risk.

Conclusions

According to Dr. Ali, the lead author, "This review shows that there is some high quality scientific literature supporting the use of mind-body therapies as a treatment for hypertension, and the magnitude of effect is clinically significant." Despite the limitations of a review, he suggests mind-body interventions may be prudent choices for adjunctive treatment for motivated patients.

Authors

The systematic review is entitled, "Mind-Body Practices for Hypertension: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis." The study was conducted by Ather Ali, ND, MPH and David L. Katz, MD, MPH, of the Prevention Research Center, School of Medicine, Yale University; and Michael B. Bracken, PhD, MPH, of the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale University, New Haven, CT. Dr. Ali is presenting his team's findings at the 22nd annual meting of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP; http://www.Naturopathic.org). The conference will be held at the Palm Springs Convention Center, Palm Springs, CA, August 22-25, 2007.

Naturopathic physicians are trained in the art and science of natural healthcare at accredited medical colleges. Integrative partnerships between conventional medical doctors and licensed naturopaths are becoming more available. This cooperation makes more effective therapies available to consumers. It increases patient satisfaction in their relationships with their care providers. More people are recovering their health by adding naturopathic medicine to their health care options.

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Hatha Yoga Practice Lessens Fear Of Falling In Older Adults, Study Suggests

Indiana University researchers found promising results in an exploratory study involving yoga practice by older adults who expressed a fear of falling. After a 12-week, twice weekly hatha yoga class, taught by a professional yoga therapist, study participants reported a reduced fear of falling, increased lower body flexibility and a reduction in their leisure constraints.

Fear of falling is an important public health concern because it can cause older adults -- even those who have not fallen -- to limit their social and physical activity. This effort to avoid falls can create a harmful cycle that can diminish health and quality of life.

"Our study found that yoga was a feasible intervention with older adults and that they perceived great benefit from it," said Marieke Van Puymbroeck, assistant professor in the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Studies in IU's School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation.

Van Puymbroeck discussed some of her findings this month at the International Association of Yoga Therapists' Symposium for Yoga Therapy and Research in Los Angeles and will discuss her findings further at conferences hosted by the American Geriatrics Society and the American Therapeutic Recreation Association. More about the study:

The study involved 14 men and women with an average age of 78. Five participants had fallen previously.

Van Puymbroeck said the 90 percent weekly attendance rate was notable, as was the 6 percent dropout rate, which she said was much lower than most physical activity and yoga studies. The participants took a class in hatha yoga, which is a gentle form of yoga that easily can be adapted for individual needs and can be performed from a seated position. The twice weekly classes each lasted 60 minutes.

After the 12-week class, participants reported a 6 percent reduction in their fear of falling, a 34 percent increase in lower body flexibility, and a statistically significant reduction in leisure constraints.

Van Puymbroeck said participants reported "tremendous benefits," with emerging themes that included the ability to generalize principals of posture to other situations, increased range of motion, increased flexibility and improved balance.

Co-investigators include David Koceja, Department of Kinesiology in IU Bloomington's School of HPER; and Arlene Schmid, Department of Occupational Therapy and Department of Veterans Affairs, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis.

Adapted from materials provided by Indiana University, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.