Stretching the body, strengthening the heart
Study proves yoga as effective as aerobic exercise to prevent heart disease
The ancient Indian practice of yoga has long had a reputation for reducing stress and promoting relaxation and a sense of well being. Now, it seems that a team of researchers based in Rotterdam, Netherlands has proof that yoga is also excellent for preventing cardiovascular disease.
The study, published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, reveals that yoga is just as good as cycling, brisk walking and other types of aerobic exercise when it comes to lowering your risk of certain heart diseases and conditions.
The study encompassed 37 randomised trials of nearly 2,768 people, revealing that those who practised yoga noted a lower systolic blood pressure and BMI, and higher levels of HDL (“good” cholesterol) than those who did not. Subjects were, on average, 2.75kg lighter than those who did no exercise, the BBC reported.
For those with existing heart disease and taking statins, i.e. cholesterol-lowering drugs, at the same time, the benefits were even greater. In fact, all but two of the trials supported the fact that yoga is beneficial for heart health.
“These results indicate that yoga is potentially very useful and in my view worth pursuing as a risk improvement practice,” lead researcher Professor Myriam Hunink of Erasmus University Medical Centre told The Telegraph. “Yoga has the potential to be a cost-effective treatment and prevention strategy, given its low cost and lack of expensive equipment or technology.”
The team believes that yoga could prove particularly useful for heart patients who cannot do strenuous exercise, such as the elderly or those with arthritis.
“The benefits could be due to working the muscles and breathing, which can bring more oxygen into the body, leading to lower blood pressure. A larger study is recommended though to assess the effects of yoga more fully,” senior cardiac nurse Maureen Talbot at the British Heart Foundation told BBC.
Further links:
Bbc.co.uk
Telegraph.co.uk
Theguardian.com
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