FOOD NEWS: Yoga

Showing posts with label Yoga. Show all posts

Saturday, 30 April 2016

Yoga May Reduce Impact of Asthma in Your Life

If you are suffering from asthma, practising yoga may offer some relief from the chronic disease and improve your quality of life, suggests a new research. Asthma is a common chronic disease affecting about 300 million people worldwide. The many typical symptoms of asthma include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness and shortness of breath.

"Our findings suggest that yoga exercise may lead to small improvements in asthma quality of life and symptoms," said lead author Zuyao Yang from Chinese University of Hong Kong.The study, published in the journal Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, involved 15 randomised controlled trials which involved 1,048 men and women. Most of the trials were conducted in India, followed by Europe and the US.The majority of participants had mild to moderate asthma for six months to more than 23 years. Six studies looked into the effects of breathing alone during yoga exercise, while the other studies assessed the effects of yoga that included breathing, posture and meditation.Most people continued to take their usual asthma medication while participating in the studies. The studies were conducted over a time period of two weeks to over four years. The researchers found some moderate quality evidence from five studies that yoga exercise reduces the impact of asthma on people's quality of life."However, it is unclear whether yoga has a consistent impact on lung function and we don't yet know if yoga can reduce people's medication usage, or if there are any side-effects of yoga for people with asthma," Yang noted.

By: Rohit On 10:45

Thursday, 21 April 2016

The Fidgety, Bored, Tired, Frustrated Person's Guide to Meditation

If you're not already into meditation, there's something slightly comical about trying to do it. You have to think about thinking. Or, stop thinking about thinking. Or think about not thinking. What you're mostly thinking is "Why can't I meditate?"Which happens to be the title of Nigel Wellings's new book (subtitle: "How to Get Your Mindfulness Practice on Track").

Wellings, a British psychoanalytic psychotherapist who's been interested in meditation since he was a teenager 40 years ago, aims his book not at skeptics or raw beginners but at the many people who perceive the value of meditation, who have tried it, maybe taken a class, but can't keep it up. As a frustrated student named Tess puts it: "My mind still goes blah, blah, blah!"There are more than 300 pages of explanation, anecdotes, encouragement, examples and so on, but let's jump to the end of the book, where there's a "Quick-Fix Chart for the Struggling Meditator."Problem: Can't find time to meditate every day. Possible solution: Don't wait for the meditation mood to strike you - do it routinely, like brushing your teeth, whether you feel like it or not.Problem: Falling asleep. Possible solution: Keep your eyes open. Or try meditating while walking.Problem: Boredom. Possible solution: Be mindful of the experience of boredom itself - what is it like? (That's also a possible solution for being distracted, Wellings says - the biggest problem for would-be meditators. "A distraction you are mindfully aware of . . . is not a distraction - it is your object of mindfulness.")Problem: Disappointment, the feeling that meditation just isn't working for you. Possible solution: Cultivate loving kindness toward yourself. Be patient. Develop a sense of humor.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

By: Rohit On 11:00

Wednesday, 16 March 2016

Yoga Could Make Life Better for People with Abnormal Heart Rhythm

Yoga may improve quality of life in patients suffering from abnormal heart rhythm because it gives them a method to gain some self control over their symptoms instead of feeling helpless, says a new study. The researchers examined the effects of yoga on patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) in which faulty electrical signals and rapid heart rate begin suddenly and then stop on their own.

"Many patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) can't live their lives as they want to - they refuse dinners with friends, concerts and travelling - because they are afraid of an AF episode occurring," said one of the researchers Maria Wahlstrom from Sophiahemmet University in Sweden.

"AF episodes are accompanied by chest pain, dyspnoea and dizziness," added Wahlstrom in the study published in the European journal of cardiovascular nursing.

These symptoms are unpleasant and patients feel anxious, worried and stressed that an AF episode would occur. AF is the most common cardiac rhythm disorder and has no cure, the researches pointed out. Patients with paroxysmal AF experience episodes of AF usually lasting less than 48 hours. These episodes stop by themselves, although in some patients they can last up to seven days.

The team included 80 patients with paroxysmal AF who were randomised to yoga or a control group that did not do yoga. Yoga was performed for one hour, once a week, for 12 weeks in the hospital with an experienced instructor, which included light movements, deep breathing and meditation.

After 12 weeks, the yoga group had higher "SF-36" mental health scores, lower heart rate and lower systolic and diastolic blood pressure than the control group.

"We found that patients who did yoga had a better quality of life, lower heart rate and lower blood pressure than patients who did not do yoga. The breathing and movement may have beneficial effects on blood pressure," Wahlstrom stated.

"Patients in the yoga group said it felt good to let go of their thoughts and just be inside themselves for awhile," Wahlstrom noted.

By: Rohit On 23:21

Sunday, 13 March 2016

Yoga for Back Pain: 4 Poses That Have a Healing Effect

You’ll have to agree, back pain is one of the most common health complaints. If you look at how most of us spend our day, it is easy to see why. We’re spend our time sitting at home, in the car or at work with minimal physical activity. Sitting or sleeping in the wrong posture, improper distribution of body weight or skeletal imbalances can trigger back pain.

“The muscles between your shoulder blades, the Rhomboid and Trapezius muscles, work hard to keep your head straight in line with the centre of gravity. When these are stressed, you need to soothe them. If they’re overworked, it make lead to knots which are caused by the lactic acid deposit and they need to be massaged to release tension. Similarly, when you use one of your arms more often than the other to do day to day chores, your body weight tends to shift and it becomes less flexible. Such skeletal imbalances can affect your spine muscles and nerves,” explains Zubin Atré, founder of AtréYoga Studio in ..

Looking for a better way to relieve back soreness than popping pills? Give yoga a go. There are six basic actions that you need to perform to rejuvenate your muscles. These are - bending forward, bending backwards, twisting to the right, twisting to the left, tilting to the right and tilting to the left, shares Zubin.

You don’t naturally experience these movements daily and therefore, you need to move your body in certain ways to revive tired muscles that are working constantly. But before you do, you must note that these poses help in relieving muscular back pain. If you are suffering from pain related to spine ailments, degenerative disc disease or arthritis, please consult a doctor.

1. Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose)
This pose will strengthen the lower back muscles while cushioning the spine. “It brings a uniform arch in the spine, increases blood circulation to the spine, boosts muscle quality and flexibility,” says Zubin.

Lie on your stomach with your feet together and toes flat. Place your hands downwards below your shoulders on the mat, lift your waist and raise your head while inhaling in. Pull your torso back with the support of your hands. Keep your elbows straight and make sure you put equal pressure on both palms. Tilt your head back and make sure your shoulders are away from your ears. Exhale while coming back to the ground.

By: Rohit On 01:52

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