Researchers from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada reviewed the literature to investigate whether Eastern techniques, such as mindfulness, acupuncture or yoga might be used to improve unsatisfying sexual experiences in women (problems with desire, arousal or orgasm).

The search revealed only two empirical studies of mindfulness, two of acupuncture, and one of yoga in the treatment of sexual dysfunction.  These limited results revealed that mindfulness significantly improved several aspects of sexual response and reduced sexual distress in women with sexual desire and arousal disorders. 

Researchers from the Department of Psychobiology at the Universidade Federal de São Paulo in Brazil looked at the efficacy of Siddha Samadhi Yoga, a program of meditation and pranayama (breathing exercises).  Twenty-two volunteers with anxiety complaints (Median age = 42.8 yr., Standard deviation = 10.3) were assigned to two groups: 14 attended the yoga group, and 8 attended a waiting-list or control group.

Subjects were evaluated before the intervention and 1 month after it on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Beck Depression Inventory, Tension Feelings Self-evaluation Scales, and the Well-being Self-evaluation Scales. 

Dear Belleruth, Health Journeys and friends,

I am a post-menopausal, 57-year-old woman from Iowa who long ago gave up the battle to achieve slimness.  My husband and I have always liked my healthy, robust, well-larded, corn-fed look, but I recently started having problems with my knees and back. 
 

Researchers from the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine at Bridgeport Hospital, Connecticut examined the question of why stress reduction is so good for cardiovascular health, hypothesizing that yoga and meditation improve parameters of endothelial function.

In a 6-week pilot study, 33 subjects (mean age 55 +/- 11 years) both with (30%) and without (70%) established coronary artery disease (CAD) were given a course in yoga & meditation for an hour and a half, three times a week, and encouraged to continue their practice at home.

A team from Yale conducts a systematic review of the literature and finds that mind-body therapies such as meditation, yoga and guided imagery are effective in reducing hypertension, with yoga having the strongest effect.

Dr. Ather Ali & his colleagues, of the Prevention Research Center, Yale School of Medicine, conducted a systematic review to assess the efficacy of mind-body therapies (MBT) versus placebo or active control in the treatment of hypertension or high blood pressure. The main outcome measures include change in systolic and diastolic blood pressure pre- and post-intervention period.

Ali’s team reviewed randomized, or quasi-randomized, controlled trials comparing mind-body techniques alone or in combination with conventional treatment to conventional treatment alone or no intervention/waiting list control.

 

When researchers at Stockholm University in Sweden compared a stress management program based on cognitive behavioural therapy principles with a Kundalini yoga program, they found that both methods delivered excellent results.

Researchers at Stockholm University in Sweden compared a stress management program based on cognitive behavioural therapy principles with a Kundalini yoga program. A study sample of 26 women and 7 men from a large Swedish company were divided randomly into 2 groups for each of the different forms of intervention; a total of 4 groups. The groups were instructed by trained group leaders and 10 sessions were held with each of groups, over a period of 4 months. Psychological (self-rated stress and stress behaviour, anger, exhaustion, quality of life) and physiological (blood pressure, heart rate, urinary catecholamines, salivary cortisol) measurements obtained before and after treatment showed significant improvements on most of the variables in both groups as well as medium-to-high effect sizes. However, no significant difference was found between the 2 programs. The results indicate that both cognitive behaviour therapy and yoga are promising stress management techniques.

Citation: Granath J, Ingvarsson S, von Thiele U, Lundberg U. Stress management: a randomized study of cognitive behavioural therapy and yoga. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. 2006;35 (1): pages 3-10.

Researchers in Oregon discover that Yoga and exercise help alleviate fatigue in people suffering with multiple sclerosis, but do not seem to help with mood or cognitive function..

Researchers from The Department of Neurology at The Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, investigated the effects of yoga and of aerobic exercise on the cognitive function, fatigue, mood, and quality of life in people challenged by multiple sclerosis (MS).

Sixty-nine subjects were randomly assigned to one of three groups lasting 6 months: (1) weekly Iyengar yoga class, along with home practice; (2) weekly exercise class using a stationary bicycle along with home exercise; or (3) a waiting-list control group. Outcome assessments were performed at baseline and at the end of the 6-month period, and included a battery of cognitive measures focused on attention, physiologic measures of alertness, Profile of Mood States, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Multi-Dimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI), and Short Form (SF)-36 health-related quality of life.