Impact of short-term practice of yoga on heart rate variability
International Journal of Yoga April 1, 2016 A V Vinay, D Venkatesh, V Ambarish
A month of daily yoga practice shifted autonomic balance toward parasympathetic predominance in healthy middle-aged men. Among 32 participants who completed the study, heart rate variability improved: SDNN rose from a median of 33.60 to 42.11 ms, RMSSD from 22.00 to 25.6 ms, and PNN50 from 2.45% to 7.35%. Frequency-domain measures showed a reduction in low-frequency power (39.30 to 30.40) and in the LF/HF ratio (2.62 to 2.28). The authors conclude that short-term yoga practice enhances parasympathetic activity, suggesting potential cardiovascular benefits.