Sunday 21 July 2013

Pranayama can keep heart safe : study finds it decreases stress

Udumula Sudhakar Reddy
Pranayama, the traditional controlled breathing excercise can keep your heart also safe apart from lungs. New study published in Indian Journal of Medical Research by ICMR Journal says regular practice of slow breathing has been shown to improve cardiovascular and respiratory functions and to decrease the effects of stress.
The study done by Mumbai based pharmacologists found that first change is reduction of sympathetic tone which would have positive effect on organs like heart and lungs. Mumbai Grant Medical College and Nagpur GMC Department of Pharmacology researchers published the study.  For the 11 normal healthy volunteers were categorized into Pranayama group and non Pranayama control group. Thepranayama volunteers were trained in pranayama, the technique being Anuloma-Viloma pranayama with Kumbhak (Kumbhak is the exquisite point in breathing between the inhale and the exhale - the point of perfect stillness) All the 11 volunteers were made to sit in similar environment for two sessions of 20 min each for seven days, while the pranayama volunteers performed slow breathing under supervision, the control group relaxed without conscious control on breathing. Pulse, Galvanic Skin Resistance, blood pressure (BP) and pulmonary function tests (PFT) were measured before and after the 7-day programme in all the volunteers.
According to the researchers the result was that no significant changes were observed in BP and PFT, an overall reduction in pulse rate was observed in all the eleven volunteers; this reduction might have resulted from the relaxation and the environment.
“Statistically significant changes were observed in the Pranayama group volunteers in the  GSR values during standing phases indicating that regular practice of Pranayama causes a reduction in the sympathetic tone within a period as short as 7 days. Beneficial effects of pranayama started appearing within a week of regular practice, and the first change appeared to be a reduction in sympathetic tone,” said the research team leader Dr A V Turankar.
Dr P L N Kapardhi an intervention cardiologist of Apollo hospitals says,” There are two systems sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system.  Sympathetic nervous system vibrate along the body resulting in sweating, increase heart and respiratory beats. Parasympathetic nervous system works opposite. The balance between two systems regulates heart beat rates and body organs. Pranayama the controlled breathing exercise help I improvement of cardiac function and lung capacity. It regularizes rhythm of the heart. The rhythmic disturbance of the hearth can be prevented by reducing sympathetic tone. It increased longevity of life and reduces sudden cardiac deaths and indirectly improves oxygenation of blood. It will release stress,”

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