In my day to day life, I see and experience the many benefits of yoga – personally as well as in the yoga classes that I conduct. However, there are some who say that the benefits of yoga are unsubstantiated, or at best, exaggerated. Recent studies however are proving what we have always known about yoga: that the benefits go beyond just improving flexibility and relieving stress. A Harvard report demonstrates how yoga helps make the heart healthier.
A holistic discipline that improves heart health
According to yoga researcher and neuroscientist Dr. Sat Bir Singh Khalsa, assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, yoga benefits not only the heart but also helps with other diseases. Since yoga is a holistic practice that includes physical exercises, meditation as well as breathing exercises, this is seen to result in measurable improvements in several parameters governing heart health. These include better sleep patterns, lower blood pressure, and lower artery-damaging inflammation; all of which are risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
How yoga helps keep the heart healthy
- According to Dr. Khalsa, the breathing component of yoga is vital because of how the deep, deliberate and slow breathing helps to regulate blood pressure. In fact, studies have shown that practicing this type of breathing over some months can lower blood pressure by up to five points.
- Moderate intensity yoga such as vinayasa yoga helps improve flexibility, muscle strength and body balance, all of which contribute to overall health and wellbeing, and in turn contribute to a healthier heart.
- Since the practice of yoga also encompasses meditation, this helps build up emotional resilience. The regular practice of meditation gives us effective coping mechanisms in times of stress and helps us remain calmer. Stress typically results in an accelerated heart rate, release of cortisol (the stress hormone) and spike in blood pressure. However, yoga helps build up what experts call a ‘relaxation response’. One study found that a 90-minute session of yoga can reduce cortisol levels significantly.
- Yoga practitioners develop greater mind body awareness, which is also beneficial for the heart. A 2012 study found that 80% of those who practiced yoga had lower stress levels and that they were inspired to eat healthier. About 66% of those surveyed also said that yoga motivated them to exercise regularly. Yoga practitioners make healthy life choice consciously, which has an obviously positive impact on heart health.
- The practice of yoga also brings about a spiritual change in the yogi. Yoga teaches us to be more compassionate and content, less materialistic and avaricious. It helps us understand more about our inner selves. This gives us a greater sense of purpose in life, which again has been found to be linked with lower risk of heart attack.
Experts advise that those looking to start out on yoga, especially later in life or as senior citizens, should opt for a beginner’s class or a ‘gentle’ form of yoga. Ideally, the yoga class should include all four pillars of yoga – the aasans, meditation, breathing exercise and relaxation techniques to derive the full benefit for heart health and overall wellness.