Yoga Medical News Daily

2002 National Health Interview Survey data: demographics focusing on women (40-59)

The article, "Demographic, behavioral, and health correlates of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and prayer use among midlife women: 2002," appearing in the Journal of Women's Health [2010 Jan;19(1):23-30] reviewed the data from the 2002 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), a cross-sectional, household survey representative of the U.S. civilian adult population. 

Focusing on data for women aged 40-59 years showed that 46% of midlife women had used some type of complementary and alternative medicine in the past 12 months, while 54% reported using prayer for health reasons. The top five specific CAM therapies used were herbs and natural products; relaxation techniques; chiropractic care; yoga, tai chi, or qi gong; and massage. A higher percentage of women used chiropractic care than those using relaxation techniques, and few women used CAM specifically for menopausal symptoms. 

The findings of the study "underscore the importance, particularly in the clinical setting, of asking women about their use of individual CAM therapies," because of the potential for interactions of CAM therapies with prescribed therapies. Abstract: PubMed.

Balancing lymphedema risk: should breast cancer survivors do yoga, pilates?

The article "Balancing Lymphedema Risk: Exercise Versus Deconditioning for Breast Cancer Survivors," by Kathryn H. Schmitz, in Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews [Volume 38(1), January 2010, pp 17-24], provides an excellent overview on the current state of approaches to dealing with lymphedema risk by breast cancer survivors. 

Article abstract: "Lymphedema, a common and feared negative effect of breast cancer treatment, is generally described by arm swelling and dysfunction. Risk averse clinical recommendations guided survivors to avoid the use of the affected arm. This may lead to deconditioning and, ironically, the very outcome women seek to avoid. Recently published studies run counter to these guidelines."

The author concludes after a lengthy review of current research, that "the results of completed studies support the safety of upper-body exercise among breast cancer survivors with and at risk for lymphedema.  . . . specifics of all types of upper-body exercise are not yet tested, but several general premises of progressive exercise training seem to hold with this population. Training should start supervised at a low dose and increase according to symptom response and is likely to increase maximal and functional capacity of the affected arm. Future research should include assessment of efficacy and safety of additional modes of exercise popular with breast cancer survivors (e.g., yoga, Pilates) as well as assessment of the timing to start exercise after surgery."  

Muscle activation during four Pilates core stability exercises in quadruped position

There is more and more research on Pilates these days coming from researchers in Brazil. This most recent article by Bergson C. Queiroz, Mariana F. Cagliari, Cesar F. Amorim, and Isabel C. Sacco, compared the activity of stabilizing trunk and hip muscles in 4 variations of Pilates stabilizing exercises in the quadruped position. The intervention: "surface electromyographic signals of iliocostalis, multifidus, gluteus maximus, rectus abdominis, and external and internal oblique muscles were recorded in 4 knee stretch exercises: retroverted pelvis with flexed trunk; anteverted pelvis with extended trunk; neutral pelvis with inclined trunk; and neutral pelvis with trunk parallel to the ground."  

The results produced by the study suggested that "Variations in the pelvic and trunk positions in the knee stretch exercises change the activation pattern of the multifidus, gluteus maximus, rectus abdominis, and oblique muscles." and that "that pelvic stability is maintained in the 4 exercise positions.   Article: "Muscle Activation During Four Pilates Core Stability Exercises in Quadruped Position," Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, vol. 91, issue 1, January 2010; 86-92.  Photo credit: LocalFitness.com.au

Modern medicine and the need for a closer look at complementary and alternative options

 Ajai Singh, a psychiatrist in Mumbai and editor of Mens Sana Monographs, discusses the issues confronting modern medicine and health care delivery in his article "Modern Medicine: Towards Prevention, Cure, Well-being and Longevity." He points out that modern medicine has done much in the fields of infectious diseases and emergencies to aid curing. However, today the emphasis by clinicians and in research "must now turn decisively towards prevention and cure." 

In tandem with this is today's challenge of longevity with well-being. He emphasizes that "advances in vaccines for hypertension, diabetes, cancers etc, deserve attention; as also, the role of meditation, yoga, spirituality etc in preventing disease at various levels. Studies on longevity, life style changes and healthy centenarians deserve special scrutiny to find what aids longevity with well being" and concludes that "a close look at complementary and alternative medicine is needed . . . " 

He stresses prevention suggesting that the primary goal of medicine must be to see that no one needs to go to a hospital or a clinic. Vital to prevention are "health promotion/education activities along with clean water, nutritious food, clean and disaster free habitation, proper sanitation, control of pollution, poverty alleviation, empowerment of the deprived and disadvantaged, life-style modifications. A tall order, which involves multiple agencies, not in control of medicine and its movers." 

The author concludes: "A paradigm shift in mainstream medicine from control and palliation to prevention and cure must prevail. The ultimate goal is longevity with well-being."  

[open-access full text at] Mens Sana Monographs: a Monograph Series Devoted to the Understanding of Medicine, Mental Health, Man and their Matrix [2010; vol. 8, issue 1, pp. 17-29]

Mindfulness Meditation for Persons with Schizophrenia

Study currently recruiting participants. Location: Richard Roudebush VA Medical Center, Indianapolis. The focus of the study is to "develop a treatment manual for mindfulness meditation to be taught in a group format to individuals with schizophrenia who are engaged in vocational rehabilitation. This study will determine whether mindfulness meditation is beneficial in terms of reducing distressing emotional states and thinking patterns and improving work function." 

"A total of 66 individuals with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder will be recruited from the Roudebush VA Medical Center in order to ensure a total study sample of 55. In phase one, manual development, 18 participants will be recruited and following informed consent, screened for eligibility using the SCID and anxiety measures. Once enrolled, three successive groups of 5-6 participants will attend an 8-week mindfulness program consisting of two 60-minute group training and practice sessions each week . . . ."  Details, inclusion criteria: ClinicalTrails.gov.

U.S. state licensing requirements for yoga teacher training programs

The article by Patricia Kearney appearing in the December 2009 (pp. 11-15) issue of Yoga Therapy Today offers an excellent overview of licensing requirements for 21 states for yoga teacher programs and analyzes the ways the licensing regulations are affecting yoga training schools. As she points out, "opinions within the Yoga community vary as to whether licensing is good and appropriate for Yoga teacher training (YTT) schools."  

Most helpful is the chart listing for each of the 21 states the regulatory body overseeing the licensing as well as contact information for those seeking licensing information. The regulatory entity varies greatly from state to state suggesting some states may not be clear about what they are regulating. The chart also lists for each state the application and renewal fees, surety bonds required, other fees, and if allowed to train current students during the application process. Fees and surety bond amounts vary widely from state to state. 

For anyone interested in the current state of licensing of yoga teaching training, this is an invaluable report. For additional information, the author's email and phone number are at the end of the text.  See also, the author's blog on this research: http://yogarequirements.wordpress.com/impact-of-state-laws-on-yoga-teacher-training-programsqualititative-data-collection/     Photo credit:  LocalFitness.com.au

Insomnia: Behavioral Treatments

Clinical Trial currently seeking participants.  Location: Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology, UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute Recruiting Los Angeles, California,  Inclusion criteria: Older than 55 years of age at time of entry, difficulties with sleep for a minimum of 3 nights per week, and sleep-onset delay, maintenance insomnia, or terminal insomnia. 

"Preliminary studies found that Tai Chi Chih (TCC), a slow moving meditation, contributes to improvements in subjective sleep quality, sleep amounts and sleep efficiency, alterations in sympathetic activity, decreases in proinflammatory cytokines, and improvements in health functioning in community-dwelling older adults. Additionally, cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) confers benefits on sleep outcomes.

"In this randomized, controlled trial, 150 older adults will be randomly assigned to CBT, TCC, or sleep hygiene/education control (EC) over 16 weeks and followed for one year. The aims of this project are to: 1) evaluate the effects of CBT vs TCC vs. EC on objective and subjective measures of sleep and on fatigue, mood, and health functioning in older adults with insomnia; 2) determine the effects of CBT vs.TCC vs. EC on measures of proinflammatory cytokine activity and sympathovagal balance, and whether these two biological mechanisms are related to changes of disordered sleep over the course of the treatment trial; and 3) evaluate whether circulating levels of proinflammatory cytokines are associated with measures of sleep continuity in older adults with insomnia over the treatment trial. This study will advance psychobiological models of disordered sleep and the potential benefits of two readily exportable behavioral interventions for promoting improvements in sleep outcomes in the elderly."  Additional details: ClinicalTrials.gov.

Evidence from the Cochrane Collaboration for Traditional Chinese Medicine therapies

This study reviewed "the evidence base according to Cochrane systematic reviews" by extracting "data on the number of trials included and the total number of participants. We provided an indication of the strength of the review findings by assessing the reviewers' abstract conclusions statement. We supplemented our assessment of the abstract conclusions statements with a listing of the comparisons and outcomes showing statistically significant meta-analyses results."

"RESULTS: We identified 70 Cochrane systematic reviews of TCM, primarily acupuncture (n = 26) and Chinese herbal medicine (n = 42), and 1 each of moxibustion and t'ai chi. Nineteen (19) of 26 acupuncture reviews and 22/42 herbal medicine reviews concluded that there was not enough good quality trial evidence to make any conclusion about the efficacy of the evaluated treatment, while the remaining 7 acupuncture and 20 herbal medicine reviews and each of the moxibustion and t'ai chi reviews indicated a suggestion of benefit, which was qualified by a caveat about the poor quality and quantity of studies. . . . 

"CONCLUSIONS: Most Cochrane systematic reviews of TCM are inconclusive, due specifically to the poor methodology and heterogeneity of the studies reviewed. Some systematic reviews provide preliminary evidence of Chinese medicine's benefits to certain patient populations, underscoring the importance and appropriateness of further research. These preliminary findings should be considered tentative and need to be confirmed with rigorous randomized controlled trials."  Abstract: PubMed. Published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine [2009 Sep;15(9):1001-14].

Clinical trial in the Netherlands: Cost Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training in Adolescents

Study currently recruiting participants. Locations: Netherlands, Zuid-Holland Leiden University Medical Centre Leiden, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands; Rivierduinen Mental Health Centre, Leiden, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands; and University Medical Centre St. Radboud, Nijmegen, Gelderland, Netherlands. 

"In recent years, there has been a marked rise in the frequency of young people engaging in Deliberate Self-Harm (DSH). DSH refers to all kinds of self-harming behaviour, with and without suicidal intent. Early identification and treatment of persons who engaged in DSH is important because every episode of DSH increases the risk of future episodes and, eventually, suicide. A number of comprehensive treatment programs have been developed and proven to be effective in reducing DSH in adults. Especially the modification of inadequate emotion regulation strategies seems to be essential in the prevention of future episodes of DSH. The first short-term results of a Dutch time-limited and structured individual cognitive-behavioral treatment (CBT) for DSH in adolescents and young adults also showed positive effects on repetition of DSH and associated problems."

The objective of this research is to study "the effects and costs of the total individual CBT package and one of the components of the total CBT treatment package (i.e. mindfulness training) in a group format compared to Treatment-as-Usual (TAU) on the short and long term."  Details: ClinicalTrials,gov.

Yoga Alliance issues 2010 Yoga Insight Survey

Yoga Alliance's Yoga Day USA is coming soon - Saturday, January 23. Timed for this event, Yoga Alliance is publishing on its site the results of their 2010 Yoga Insight Survey.  The survey, conducted in December 2009, was designed "to identify those factors that may be inhibiting people from beginning yoga practice." The online poll included both those who practice yoga and those who do not.

The findings suggest several misperceptions about yoga by those not familiar with the practice:

•  A majority of Americans who do not currently practice yoga (57%) think that "yoga requires mantras and chanting that are about worship."  And 1 in 3 (37%) believe that "yoga is a religious meditation."

•  More than 2 in 5 Americans who do not practice yoga incorrectly believe the statement "you have to be flexible to do yoga."

•  Three in ten are lead to believe that "yoga isn't a workout."  Men (40%) are more than twice as likely as women (18%) to hold this view.

And "both Americans who practice and those who don't agree that yoga's oversight, including that of instructors, should be governed by standards set by a third party."

For a complete copy of the 2010 Yoga Insight Survey, available for download, as well as details of Yoga Day USA scheduled for January 23, go to www.yogadayusa.org.