Yoga as exercise or alternative medicine

:"See Yoga for the family of spiritual practices that originated in India."

While Yoga (Sanskrit: योग "Yog", IPA2|joːgə) evolved as a spiritual practice in Hinduism, in the Modern world, a part of yoga, known as Asana, has grown popular as a form of purely physical exercise. A yoga practicioner is known as yogi (for male) or yogini (for female). Some Western practice has little or nothing to do with Hinduism or spirituality, but is simply a way of keeping fit and healthy. This is only a part of the broad view of yoga.

Yoga was first introduced to American society in the late nineteenth century by Swami Vivekananda, the founder of the Vedanta Society.Fact|date=August 2007 He believed that India has an abundance of spiritual wealth and that yoga is a method that could help those who were bound by the materialism of capitalist societies to achieve spiritual well-being.

Yoga is a healing system of theory and practice. It is a combination of breathing exercises, physical postures, and meditation, practiced for more than 5,000 years. [The Bhagavad-Gita and Jivana Yoga By Ramnarayan Vyas] [Hatha Yoga: Its Context, Theory and Practice By Mikel Burley (page 16)]

A survey released in May 2004 by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine focused on who used complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), what was used, and why it was used in the United States by adults age 18 years and over during 2002. [ [http://nccam.nih.gov/news/2004/052704.htm National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Survey 2004] ] According to this survey, Yoga was the 5th most commonly used CAM therapy (2.8%) in the United States during 2002. [Barnes P, Powell-Griner E, McFann K, Nahin R. "CDC Advance Data Report #343. Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use Among Adults: United States, 2002". May 27, 2004. [http://nccam.nih.gov/news/report.pdf Online] (PDF) table 1 on page 8.] Yoga is considered a mind-body intervention that is used to reduce the health effects of generalized stress.

History

Yoga, dating back to over 5,000 years ago, is a form of a spiritual practice in India. In the West, it has evolved from its founding philosophy. Globalization over the past decade has been opening new doors for many industries, and within the yoga industry it has resulted in commodification. Today, yoga is now a lucrative and growing business. About 16.5 million Americans now spend nearly $3 billion annually on classes and products, a February 2005 poll by Harris Interactive and "Yoga Journal" magazine revealed. [http://www.yogajournal.com/about_press020705.cfm]

One argument against the globalization of yoga is that it is co-opting an ancient spiritual philosophy.Fact|date=June 2007 Because yoga invokes ideals of harmony, health and balance, it “fits” well in the environment of modernity. On one hand, the acculturation of Yoga in America and Europe can be viewed as a welcome celebration of multiculturalism, promoting more open and tolerant cultural dispositions. On the other hand, the processes of commercialization may be considered to have debased the sacred practice. [Tomlinson, John. "Globalization and Culture". Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999.]

Yoga as exercise has evolved into numerous subdivisions and variations. Naked yoga, Chair Yoga, Acroyoga and Hip-Hop Yoga are some of the few variations emerging. There is much debate whether the term Hatha Yoga properly describes yoga as exercise, since the traditional Hatha Yoga system originated as, and still is, a spiritual path in its own right. [Strauss, Sarah. "Positioning Yoga: Balancing Acts Across Cultures". New York: Berg, 2005]

Overview as alternative medicine

Yoga is believed to calm the nervous system and balance the body, mind, and spirit. It is thought by its practitioners to prevent specific diseases and maladies by keeping the energy meridians open and life energy (Prana) flowing. [Textbook of Yoga - Page 545by Yogeswar ] [Nature Cure at Home - Page 167 by Dr Rajeshwari] Yoga is usually performed in classes, sessions are conducted at least once a week and for approximately 45 minutes. Yoga has been used to lower blood pressure, reduce stress, and improve coordination, flexibility, concentration, sleep, and digestion. It has also been used as supplementary therapy for such diverse conditions as cancer, diabetes, asthma, AIDS [Barnes P, Powell-Griner E, McFann K, Nahin R. "CDC Advance Data Report #343. Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use Among Adults: United States, 2002". May 27, 2004. [http://nccam.nih.gov/news/report.pdf Online] (PDF) see page 19.(On page 20 this report states: "All material appearing in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission; citation as to source, however, is appreciated.") ] and Irritable Bowel Syndrome. [Van Vorous, Heather. "First Year: IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome)", ISBN 1-56924-547-9. Yoga chapter excerpted with author's permission at [http://www.helpforibs.com/ Help For Irritable Bowel Syndrome] (see Yoga for IBS section).]

Restorative Yoga

Restorative yoga is often associated with healing from diseases. Restorative yoga is yoga practiced in a very relaxed state by using supports instead of muscular tension to maintain the pose alignments. Restorative poses help relieve the effects of chronic stress in several ways. First, the use of props provide a completely supportive environment for total relaxation. Second, each restorative sequence is designed to move the spine in all directions. Third, a well-sequenced restorative practice also includes an inverted pose, which reverses the effects of gravity. Because we stand or sit most of the day, blood and lymph fluid accumulate in the lower extremities. By changing the relationship of the legs to gravity, fluids are returned to the upper body and heart function is enhanced. Fourth, restorative yoga alternately stimulates and soothes the organs. With this movement of blood comes the enhanced exchange of oxygen and waste products across the cell membrane. Finally, yoga teaches that the body is permeated with energy. Prana, the masculine energy, resides above the diaphragm, moves upward, and controls respiration and heart rate. Apana, the feminine energy, resides below the diaphragm, moves downward, and controls the function of the abdominal organs. Restorative yoga balances these two aspects of energy so that the practitioner is neither overstimulated nor depleted. [ [http://www.restorativeyogateachers.com/relax/howitworks.html "Relax and Renew", by Judith Lasater, Ph.D., P.T ] ] . [http://www.wikihealth.com/Restorative_Yoga_Poses_in_Pictures Some restorative yoga pose images]

Yoga as exercise for treating diseases

The popularization in the West of the medical aspect of Yoga is largely attributed to Dr.Swami Sivananda Saraswati's Bihar School of Yoga.Fact|date=August 2007 Most yoga classes consist of a combination of physical exercises, breathing exercises, and meditation. These characteristics make yoga a particularly beneficial kind of exercise for people with certain health conditions, including heart disease/hypertension, asthma, and back problems.

For people with heart problems, studies have shown yoga to help people young and old. Specifically, yoga seems to promote heart health in several ways, including regulating high blood pressure and improving resistance to psychological stress. [December 2002. [http://www.umm.edu/altmed/ConsModalities/Yogacm.html Yoga: What is yoga good for?] Univ. of Maryland Medical website. Retrieved 11/30/06.] Yoga also has the potential to buffer against the harmful effects of bodily self-objectification as well as to promote embodiment and well-being. [ [http://caliber.ucpress.net/doi/abs/10.1525/srsp.2006.3.4.39 Minding the Body: Yoga, Embodiment, and Well-Being] Sexuality Research and Social Policy: Journal of NSRC. Retrieved 03/07/07.]

However, in recent years, there have been increasing reports of yoga-related injuries. [July 2008. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25400799/ Bad karma: When yoga harms instead of heals] MSNBC website. Retrieved 17/07/08.] These include carotid artery tears, bulging disks, rotator cuffs, ganglion cysts, compression of spine and hyperextension of the neck. According to Gary Kraftsow, author of “Yoga for Transformation”, many yoga positions aren't relevant to everybody. Orthopedic surgeon Jeffrey Halbrecht, M.D., medical director for the Institute for Arthroscopy and Sports Medicine in San Francisco and a specialist in knee and hip problems warns that both experienced and rookie yoga practitioners are getting hurt. “Yoga is marketed as such an innocuous thing,” says Loren Fishman, M.D., assistant clinical professor of rehabilitation medicine at Columbia University in New York City. “But without care, injuries can absolutely happen.”

Breast cancer studies

In 2006, scientists at the University Of Texas conducted an experiment on 61 breast cancer patients. Thirty of the patients participated in yoga around the time of their radiation treatments. The yoga was customized for the cancer patients; it focused on breathing and relaxation, and excluded difficult exercises, given possible limitations on range of motion. The study found increased physical function, slightly better levels of social functioning, and lower levels of sleep dysfunction and fatigue. There was no difference in rates of anxiety or depression. [cite news | title = Participating in Yoga During Treatment for Breast Cancer Improves Quality of Life | url = http://www.mdanderson.org/departments/newsroom/display.cfm?id=E7F9093F-53B1-424F-B37B3C53CEBAC2C8&method=displayFull&pn=00c8a30f-c468-11d4-80fb00508b603a14 | publisher = University of Texas | date= 2006-06-04 | accessdate = 2007-10-01]

There are many studies available now that confirm success from patients doing Yoga, a minimum of twice weekly, while undergoing treatments for their breast cancer. [You Can Heal Breast Cancer Naturally: Potent Holistic Alternatives By Shyama Ross (page 103)] [Hatha Yoga and breast cancer: Integrating a mind/body intervention during adjuvant chemotherapy (Columbia University)] Clarifyme|date=March 2008

Hatha yoga

In The West, hatha yoga has become popular as a purely physical exercise regimen divorced of its original purpose. [Hatha Yoga: Its Context, Theory and Practice By Mikel Burley] Currently, it is estimated that about 30 million Americans and about 5 million Europeans practice a form of hatha yoga. But it is still followed in a manner consistent with tradition throughout the Indian subcontinent. The traditional guru-student relationship that exists without sanction from organized institutions, and which gave rise to all the great yogis who made way into international consciousness in the 20th century, has been maintained in Indian, Nepalese and some Tibetan circles.

ee also

* Ashtanga Yoga
* Cardiac yoga
* Five Tibetan Rites
* Iyengar Yoga
* Raja Yoga
*Yoga
*Hatha yoga
*Kundalini yoga
*Power yoga (Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga)
*Tsa lung Trul khor
*Chair Yoga
*Yogatherapy
*Qigong
*Taijiquan

References

External links

* [http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT00033865 Yoga as a Treatment for Insomnia]
* [http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/fact/thr_report.cfm?Thread_ID=519&topcategory=Injury+Prevention Tips to Prevent Yoga Injuries]
* [http://www.iayt.org International Association of Yoga Therapists]