Yoga soothies

Researchers from the Boston University School of Medicine have thrown yet more fuel on the fire which is sending up smoke signals saying that yoga is powerful medicine for mind and body.

The researchers wanted to compare yoga to walking in terms of affect on mood. Walking is a wonderful exercise and we all know that time spent outdoors has a positive impact on mood. Time and again however, yoga is showing up as having effects beyond the physical and beyond the emotional; there seems to be profound changes in the whole being that result from yoga practise.

As far as the psychological impact of yoga goes, these Boston researchers decided to focus on the brain neurotransmitter gamma amino butyric acid (GABA). Low levels of GABA are linked to depression and anxiety disorders. For the study the researchers followed two groups of people over a twelve week period.

One group engaged in three one hour yoga classes per week. The other group went for a one hour walk three times per week. The exercise was matched in terms of metabolic outcomes to the yoga. All subjects completed mood questionnaires at the beginning of the study and then every four weeks. The researchers also took MRI scans of the participants’ brains at the beginning of the study and then after the twelve weeks just before and then after their yoga class or walk.

The results showed that doing the yoga resulted in greater improvements in mood and anxiety levels than matched exercise. Those improvements in mood exactly matched increases in GABA and the final yoga class was shown to sharply increase GABA levels in the thalamus.

Given that pharmaceuticals that increase GABA levels are used to improve mood and decrease anxiety a strong argument could be made that yoga would be a valuable holistic approach to treating mood and anxiety disorders.

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