Uniqueness of medical benefits of Yoga
Isn´t it a lot of fun to join up with fellow sports enthusiasts for a session of Tennis or Badminton or a group session of soccer? Especially after a hard day´s work? But how bizarre and perhaps even tiring would it be to meet up over a session of Yoga ?
As bizarre as it may sound, there are now studies in the western world that has now proved the hypothesis that the medical benefits of Yoga are higher compared to other sports because of its uniqueness. One of them is while practicing Yoga, our muscle build up and physical strength are accomplished along with a falling respiration rate which allows our muscle tissues to recover faster. The other uniqueness is that a regular practice of Yoga helps in arresting stress by bringing our body and mind in unison – most of the other sports do not help us achieve this.
A study at Harvard Medical School talks of how mindfulness can change our brain and improve our health. Stress-related problems lead to 80 percent of visits to doctors and fall under the third highest healthcare expenditures after only heart disease and cancer. However only 3 percent of doctors talk to their patients on how to deal with the stress. In the research conducted by Dr. Janus E. Stahl and his team of researchers, study volunteers participated in an 8 week mind body relaxation program offered though the Boston –Henry Institute for mind body medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. The program taught mind body skills. Dr. Stahl says that “consistency is the key” as Yoga has been shown to reduce our body´s stress response by strengthening the relaxation response thereby reducing the stress hormones called cortisol. Yoga has shown numerous health benefits, including improving the heart and helping relieve depression and anxiety.
In another study conducted at California State University, Los Angeles, Yoga practice has increased bone density in the vertebrae. The ability of Yoga to keep the stress level hormone cortisol low help retain more calcium in our bones.
The numerous benefits of Yoga cannot be underestimated. Amongst other benefits, Yoga improves our health as follows:
-
Builds muscle strength
-
Improves posture making us look good and positive
-
Prevents cartilage and joint breakdown
-
Protects our spine
-
Betters bone health
-
Increases blood flow
-
Increased flexibility
-
Betters sleep pattern