Physiological effects of yogic practices and transcendental meditation in health and disease
Syed Sadat Ali, Balaji Pa, Smithar Varne
North American Journal of Medical Sciences January 1, 2012 DOI: 10.4103/1947-2714.101980 (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Transcendental meditation Alternative medicine Physical therapy Disease Consciousness |
| Citations | 133 |
| Key findings | Yogic practices and transcendental meditation provide considerable health benefits, including improved cognition, respiration, reduced cardiovascular risk, body mass index, blood pressure, and diabetes, and positively influence immunity and joint disorders. |
Abstract
Yoga is an ancient Indian way of life, which includes changes in mental attitude, diet, and the practice of specific techniques such as yoga asanas (postures), breathing practices (pranayamas), and meditation to attain the highest level of consciousness. Since a decade, there has been a surge in the research on yoga, but we do find very few reviews regarding yogic practices and transcendental meditation (TM) in health and disease. Keeping this in view, a Medline search was done to review relevant articles in English literature on evaluation of physiological effects of yogic practices and TM. Data were constructed; issues were reviewed and found that there were considerable health benefits, including improved cognition, respiration, reduced cardiovascular risk, body mass index, blood pressure, and diabetes. Yoga also influenced immunity and ameliorated joint disorders.