International Yoga Day: Yoga Can Ease Depression And Anxiety

This International Yoga Day learn about the idea of " Yoga for Peace". International Yoga Day 2018 will be celebrated on 21st of June. Yoga Day was first celebrated on 21st June 2015.  Depression is a very painful mental health disorders to live with. But there are few effective treatments. Meditation and yoga are very beneficial in treating depression. Both brain studies and behavioral studies have shown that the yoga and meditation have reasonable effects on depression symptoms and well-being. This week, several new studies from institutions in the U.S. and the Netherlands were presented at the American Psychological Association's annual convention. They have provided with some strong evidence that yoga may be advantageous for some types of depression.

Two studies from Center for Integrative Psychiatry in the Netherlands looked at the benefits of yoga for people with chronic depression. The first was a pilot study, where participants were 11 women and one man who suffered from depression for around 11 years. They were already getting usual care (therapy and antidepressants), which they continued with the yoga treatment. The participants took weekly 2 hour classes for nine weeks the classes consisted of physical exercises, deep breathing, and mindfulness techniques. At the end of the treatment, and four months after, patients' scores of depression, anxiety, stress, and rumination were reduced compared to where they'd started.

Next, the team looked at a shorter yoga intervention in 74 moderately depressed college students. Participants were divided into two groups: Yoga instruction and a relaxation treatment. Each group received 30 minutes of their respective treatments with an instructor, and then continued the practice at home for the next eight days, with the help of an instructional video. At the end of the short study period, the two groups showed similar improvement in symptoms, suggesting that mindful yoga is as helpful as relaxation techniques. But at the end of a two-month follow-up period, the participants in the yoga group reported a reduction in depression and stress symptoms that was more pronounced than the relaxation group.

Lindsey Hopkins from the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Centre in the U.S. said "Yoga has become increasingly popular in the West, and many new yoga practitioners cite stress-reduction and other mental health concerns as their primary reason for practicing."

Hopkins noted the research on yoga as a treatment for depression is still preliminary."At this time, we can only recommend yoga as a complementary approach, likely most effective in conjunction with standard approaches delivered by a licensed therapist" .

She further commented "Clearly, yoga is not a cure all. However, based on empirical evidence, there seems to be a lot of potential."

Happy International Yoga Day!

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