Page 39 - Inspire Health January/February 2016
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live in an age of mood medication, therapy Physicians agree that yoga promotes flexibility, balance,
bills and self‑help books. And while all these strength and endurance — and like any kind of exercise, it also
things have their place in modern medicine, elevates your mood. Those with chronic back pain found, after
we often ignore scientifically proven techniques that have just three months of practicing yoga, that their back function
been helping people far longer than Xanax and Dr. Phil. improved more than it did with “traditional” back‑care
We’re talking, of course, about yoga and meditation. treatments, states a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
There’s a wealth of clinical evidence that these holistic
treatments can, at the very least, be just as effective as a “There have been numerous studies that credit yoga with
prescription. When combined with traditional Western healing and/or maintaining good health,” says Porterfield.
medicine, the results are astounding. “While most people seem to think that only ‘flexible’ people
Jacqueline Porterfield, owner and instructor at Lehigh should do yoga, the fact is that everyone would benefit by
Valley Yoga in Allentown, says the benefits of yoga are both practicing it. It’s true that you can measure results such as
instantaneous: “You become stronger, more flexible and strength and flexibility; even see an increase in lung capacity.
more easily able to set aside the stress of your life” and Other benefits, such as reduced stress and anxiety, lower
cumulative: “It’s regular, consistent practice that brings real blood pressure and improvements in cardiovascular health are
lasting results.” being studied with impressive results. There are also studies
While the Western mindset sees yoga as “postures which show that yoga can contribute toward weight loss. So,
and sequences of postures,” she says, it also incorporates average, sedentary people stand to really see improvement in
meditation. “The one I practice and teach, Ashtanga Yoga, their quality of life. Athletes find yoga helpful in keeping the
incorporates a state of meditation into the practice. The body supple and flexible and to increase mental focus.”
student is meant to practice in a silent room (usually with
other students and a teacher) using breath as a tool for If yoga is out of the question, even just meditation is
meditation and methodically going through a set sequence beneficial. Stanford University researcher Emma Seppälä has
of poses,” she says, adding that meditation can also be done said that “meditation has been linked to a number of things
separately from the yoga practice. that lead to increased ability to focus, memory … We’ve
seen this at the level of the brain.” Harvard University
By Patrick O’Donnell researchers have reported that meditation also boosts your
brain size and power: studies there found that meditators
actually have increased the number of their brain cells.
Research at University of California, Los Angeles, indicates
that people who meditate have less age‑related brain
atrophy, and that the practice also helps preserve gray
matter — the brain tissue that contains neurons.
The benefits go beyond the brain. A 2008 study
published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary
Medicine states that 40 out of 60 patients who were taking
medication to treat high blood pressure were able to stop
taking the medication after they started meditating regularly.
Addictions — from cigarettes to drugs and alcohol — can
also be managed through meditation. A team from the
University of New Mexico worked at a Seattle rehabilitation
center with low‑security prisoners who suffered from
addictions. Three randomized medical trials studied the
effects of mindfulness‑based stress reduction meditation
programs and found “significant reductions” in drug and
alcohol abuse —including a decrease in cravings.
As with any kind of treatment, you should talk to your
physician before trying something new. Chances are, though,
that your doctor will be on board — and that you’ll see
improvements sooner than you think.
January § February 2016 INSPIRE HEALTH 39
bills and self‑help books. And while all these strength and endurance — and like any kind of exercise, it also
things have their place in modern medicine, elevates your mood. Those with chronic back pain found, after
we often ignore scientifically proven techniques that have just three months of practicing yoga, that their back function
been helping people far longer than Xanax and Dr. Phil. improved more than it did with “traditional” back‑care
We’re talking, of course, about yoga and meditation. treatments, states a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
There’s a wealth of clinical evidence that these holistic
treatments can, at the very least, be just as effective as a “There have been numerous studies that credit yoga with
prescription. When combined with traditional Western healing and/or maintaining good health,” says Porterfield.
medicine, the results are astounding. “While most people seem to think that only ‘flexible’ people
Jacqueline Porterfield, owner and instructor at Lehigh should do yoga, the fact is that everyone would benefit by
Valley Yoga in Allentown, says the benefits of yoga are both practicing it. It’s true that you can measure results such as
instantaneous: “You become stronger, more flexible and strength and flexibility; even see an increase in lung capacity.
more easily able to set aside the stress of your life” and Other benefits, such as reduced stress and anxiety, lower
cumulative: “It’s regular, consistent practice that brings real blood pressure and improvements in cardiovascular health are
lasting results.” being studied with impressive results. There are also studies
While the Western mindset sees yoga as “postures which show that yoga can contribute toward weight loss. So,
and sequences of postures,” she says, it also incorporates average, sedentary people stand to really see improvement in
meditation. “The one I practice and teach, Ashtanga Yoga, their quality of life. Athletes find yoga helpful in keeping the
incorporates a state of meditation into the practice. The body supple and flexible and to increase mental focus.”
student is meant to practice in a silent room (usually with
other students and a teacher) using breath as a tool for If yoga is out of the question, even just meditation is
meditation and methodically going through a set sequence beneficial. Stanford University researcher Emma Seppälä has
of poses,” she says, adding that meditation can also be done said that “meditation has been linked to a number of things
separately from the yoga practice. that lead to increased ability to focus, memory … We’ve
seen this at the level of the brain.” Harvard University
By Patrick O’Donnell researchers have reported that meditation also boosts your
brain size and power: studies there found that meditators
actually have increased the number of their brain cells.
Research at University of California, Los Angeles, indicates
that people who meditate have less age‑related brain
atrophy, and that the practice also helps preserve gray
matter — the brain tissue that contains neurons.
The benefits go beyond the brain. A 2008 study
published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary
Medicine states that 40 out of 60 patients who were taking
medication to treat high blood pressure were able to stop
taking the medication after they started meditating regularly.
Addictions — from cigarettes to drugs and alcohol — can
also be managed through meditation. A team from the
University of New Mexico worked at a Seattle rehabilitation
center with low‑security prisoners who suffered from
addictions. Three randomized medical trials studied the
effects of mindfulness‑based stress reduction meditation
programs and found “significant reductions” in drug and
alcohol abuse —including a decrease in cravings.
As with any kind of treatment, you should talk to your
physician before trying something new. Chances are, though,
that your doctor will be on board — and that you’ll see
improvements sooner than you think.
January § February 2016 INSPIRE HEALTH 39
