A research paper on the antihypertensive properties of yoga by Yin Wu, postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Kinesiology, was selected for publication in the March issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings.
The study involved a meta-regression analysis of forty-nine yoga studies done between 1983 and 2018 that examined specific characteristics of the participants, individual studies and yoga techniques. Results indicated that yoga practice emphasizing mental relaxation and breathing techniques along with physical movement provides the largest reductions in blood pressure.
“We found that among individuals with hypertension, yoga practice that emphasized both mental relaxation and breathing techniques can result in blood pressure reductions as large as 11/6 mmHg, which is equal to or exceeds those reported for aerobic exercise training,” says Wu. “Where yoga practices did not emphasize breathing techniques and mental relaxation, blood pressure reductions were found to be 6/3 mmHg.”
