Effects of Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) Breath Meditation on Heart Rate Variability, Sleep and Mental Health in Healthy Individuals : A Pilot and Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial
Vinitha Ganesan, Lauren A. Fowler, Sahil Bajaj, Haiyan Qu, Priyam Singh, Snehaa D Krishnan, Keith McGregor, Timiya S. Nolan, Navneet Kaur Baidwan, Tapan Mehta, Ritu Aneja
medRxiv January 5, 2025 preprint DOI: 10.1101/2025.01.04.25319992 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pilot randomized controlled trial |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 45 |
| Population | Healthy individuals (>21 years old) |
| Intervention | Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) |
| Duration | Three-day intervention, eight-week follow-up |
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation |
| Keywords | Randomized controlled trial Physical therapy Psychological intervention Heart rate variability Mental health Intervention counseling Blood pressure |
| Citations | 1 |
| Registration | NCT05523414 |
| Key findings | SKY participants exhibited significantly higher resting heart rate variability compared to controls at both three days and eight-week follow-up, along with improvements in heart rate, sleep, anxiety, and social connectedness. |
Abstract
Abstract Effective interventions are needed to address increasing mental health challenges that affect wellbeing. Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY), a breath-based meditation, has previously shown to improve mental health. We conducted a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) in healthy individuals, to evaluate the feasibility of SKY intervention with an eight-week followup for studying its immediate and sustained effects on psychophysiological outcomes in real-world settings. 187 healthy individuals (>21 years old) were assessed for eligibility through telephone interviews and 45 consented individuals were randomized (2:1) to either receive three-day SKY intervention with eight-week followup or waitlist control group. The mean age was 40.9 years (SD = 11.3), and 35 (77.8%) were female. Adherence (≥ three-times/week) to 30-minute daily (75.9%) and (≥ six-times/week) 75-minute (89.7%) SKY practice were high. Compared to controls, SKY participants exhibited significantly higher resting heart rate variability (mean difference = 6.47 ([95% CI [0.95, 11.98]) at the end of three-days, and at eight-week followup (mean difference = 5.55 (90% CI [0.46, 10.64]) relative to baseline. At eight-week followup, SKY participants had significant improvements in resting heart rate, overall sleep score, anxiety and social connectedness compared to controls. These results demonstrate feasibility that consistent SKY practice can impact physiology. ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05523414.