• Perspectives in Nursing Science
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.132-143
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• 2014

Purpose: This study was designed to explore adolescents' experience with yoga class in South Korea. Methods: Qualitative data were collected by focus group interviews from February to March 2014. Eleven adolescents who experienced yoga class were recruited from two different schools. The interview questions investigated adolescents' experience with yoga regarding expectations before yoga class, positive changes after yoga, and advice for future yoga classes. Results: Three primary themes from the qualitative content analysis include 1) motivation to join a yoga class, 2) perceived benefits after class and 3) suggestions for school-based yoga. We found that high school students had intrinsic and extrinsic motivations to join yoga classes, and the perceived benefits included physical, psychological, cognitive and social aspects. The students also indicated the need for support by person, yoga with fun and information, yoga tailored by individual goal, simple and easy class. Conclusion: These results suggest that yoga could be an appropriate intervention for holistic health care, and school-based yoga should be applied by focusing on the various situational needs of adolescents'. Furthermore, when yoga leads to healthy habits compared to just simple exercise, a balanced development of adolescents can be achieved.

• CELLMED
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.4.1-4.4
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• 2011

Excessive stress is harmful to academic performance in children and may lead to dropping out of school. To meet the demands of a modern life-style which is full of speed, stress and tension, an all-round child health program is crucial. The use of yoga for children has diverse applications in maintaining and developing their physical, mental, intellectual, emotional and spiritual levels. Yoga, through its physical postures (asana), breathing practices (pranayama), cleansing techniques (kriya), meditation therapies (dhyana) and relaxation training (yoga nidra) yields a positive effect in the management of stress in children. Yoga practice benefited children by improving their eye-hand coordination, attention span, levels of concentration, competitive performance and relaxation. Visually impaired children showed a significant decrease in their abnormal anxiety levels when they practiced yoga for three weeks, while a program of physical activity had no such effect. Socially disadvantaged children in a remand home showed significant improvements in sleep, appetite and general well being, as well as a decrease in physiological arousal after yoga. In one study, it is found that a 4-week program of asana and meditation lowers the aggressive behavior of children. Meditation helped to reduce problems related to maladaptive behavior, increase emotional and physical health and psychological well-being in children. Finally, the possible role of yoga in improving the mental state and general well-being of children with cancer is being explored.

• CELLMED
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.25.1-25.7
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• 2020

Allergic Rhinitis (AR) is an IgE (immunoglobin-E) mediated inflammatory condition of upper respiratory tract; main clinical features involve runny nose, sneezing, nasal obstruction, itching and watery eyes. AR is a global problem and has large variations in incidences, currently affects up to 20% - 40% of the population worldwide. It may not be a life-threatening disease per se but indisposition from the condition can be severe and has the potential to adversely affect the daily functioning of life. Classical yoga literature indicates that, components of yoga have been used to treat numerous inflammatory conditions including upper respiratory tract. A few yoga intervention studies reported improvement in lung capacity, Nasal air flow and symptoms of allergic rhinitis. This review examined various anti-inflammatory pathways mediated through Yoga that include downregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines and upregulation of anti-inflammatory cytokines. The hypothalaminic-pitutary-adrenal (HPA) axis and vagal efferent stimulation has been reported to mediate anti-inflammatory effect. A significant reduction is also reported in other inflammatory biomarkers like- TNF-alpha, nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), plasma CRP and Cortisol level. Neti, a yogic nasal cleansing technique, reported beneficial effect on AR by direct physical cleansing of thick mucus, allergens, and inflammatory mediator from nasal mucosa resulting in improved ciliary beat frequency. We do not find any study showing effect of yoga on neurogenic inflammation. In summary, Integrated Yoga Therapy may have beneficial effect in reducing symptoms and improving quality of life for patients with allergic rhinitis. Yoga may reduce inflammation through mediating neuro-endocrino-immunological network. Future studies are needed to explore the mechanism how yoga might modulate immune inflammation cascade and neurogenic inflammation at the cellular level in relevance to allergic rhinitis; the effects of kriyas (yogic cleansing techniques) also need to be evaluated in early and late phase of AR. So the proposed model could guide future research.

• Journal of Korean Medical Ki-Gong Academy
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.116-138
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• 2019

Objective: The purpose of this study was to analyze the study on yoga for senior in Korea. Methods: As for the data collection through RISS, analysis data were collected by searching for keywords such "yoga", "senior" "elder". The analysis was classified by 1) types of thesis 2) types of study 3) number of study participants and study period 4) types of yoga 5) list of academic journals and publishers. Results: 1. A total of studies were 133, the first study on yoga for senior published 2001. Average 7 studies were published each year. The number of studies has increased since 2006 and decreased since 2010. 2. About half of the researchers related to art and physical education and sports (51.8%). And researchers related to social science published remarkable number of studies (23.3%). 3. Most of researches were experimental study. Conclusions: 1. Hatha yoga could be recommended as a suitable yoga for senior. 2. There is a growing need to develop yoga for senior in preparation for aging society. Grafting yoga on traditional Gigong practice could be a proper exercise for senior.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.91-103
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• 2021

Purpose : This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a cognitive enhancement brain yoga program on short-term memory and serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels according to the cognitive state in men aged 20-29 years. Methods : Thirty healthy volunteers aged 20-29 years were divided into four groups: brain yoga group, yoga group, combined exercise group, and control group. Seven people were assigned randomly per group. A single-session intervention was conducted over 50 min and consisted of three parts: warm-up, main exercise (brain yoga, yoga, combined exercise, or non-exercise), and cool-down. Serum BDNF levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and short-term memory was evaluated using the forward number span test before and after the intervention. Results : BDNF levels significantly increased within the brain yoga group after the intervention (from 28874.37±5185.57 to 34074.80±7321.12, p=.003), whereas there were no significant differences pre-and post-intervention in the other groups. The inter-group comparison showed a significant interaction between the brain yoga group and the combined exercise group (p=.036) but no significant interaction between any of the other groups. Forward number span scores were significantly increased in the brain yoga group (from 9.43±9.83 to 23±7.92, p=.012) and theyoga group after the intervention (from 13.43±9.41 to 24.14±8.45, p=.011), whereas there were no significant changes after the intervention in any other groups. Conclusion : Our findings showed that a single-session, 50-minute brain yoga exercise improved short-term memory and increased serum BDNF levels in healthy men aged 20-29 years and that yoga improved only short-term memory in healthy men of this age group.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.39-49
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• 2011

Objectives : This study is to explain the effects of Yoga therapy for relieving dysmenorrhea on the aspect of Oriental Medicine and to identify the therapeutic Yoga asanas applicable to clinic medicine. Methods : We searched papers using Pubmed, CNKI and 7 Korean medical databases. We used "Yoga" and "Dysmenorrhea" as keyword. Limitations were as follows ; the last 20 years of publications and search range only including RCTs. Papers without inclusion criteria were excluded. We classified all the searched RCTs studies into Yoga exercise prescriptions. Results : A total of 47 studies were found. And 38 were excluded during extract screening. Finally 3 RCTs were selected and analyzed out of 9 papers. Blood sampling and survey questionnaires were used in the outcome measure. They reported that Yoga exercise could be used for dysmenorrhea patients, which has a curative effect. Conclusions : Yoga therapy can be explained as Meridian muscle theory in the concept of Oriental Medicine. Also, it may be a favorable choice for dysmenorrhea patients. Further studies to describe the effects of Yoga therapy will be needed more.

• Journal of muscle and joint health
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.166-174
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• 2008

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a 8-week dynamic yoga program on body composition and blood lipids in middle-aged post-menopausal women. Method: Twenty participants were allocated to the yoga group (YG, n=10) or the control group (CG, n=10). They were assessed for lean body mass, percent body fat, waist to hip ratio, total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglyceride both before and after intervention. The yoga group participated in the program lasting $50{\sim}60$ minutes, five times a week for 8 weeks. Results: Unlike the control group, the yoga group showed a significant decrease in total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, percent body fat, and waist hip ratio after the yoga training. However, changes in lean body mass, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglyceride level during the intervention period were not different between the yoga group and the control group. Conclusion: The 8-week dynamic yoga program could be adopted to prevent cardiovascular diseases in middle-aged post-menopausal women by promoting body composition & blood lipids.

• Science of Emotion and Sensibility
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.75-84
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• 2013

The underlying changes in biological processes that are associated with reported changes in mental and physical health in response to yoga breathing ($pr{\bar{a}}n{\bar{a}}y{\bar{a}}ma$) have not been systematically explored yet. In this study, the effects of a yoga breathing program on prefrontal EEG were tested with middle-aged women. Participants were collected as volunteers and controlled into two groups. Two channel EEG was recorded in the prefrontal region (Fp1, Fp2) from the yoga breathing group (n=17) and control group (n=17). QEEG quotients were transformed from the EEGs and analyzed by the ANOVAs on gain scores. As a result, ${\alpha}/{\delta}$ (left, right) and CQ (correlation quotient) for yoga breathing participants were significantly decreased compared to control group (p<.05). ${\alpha}/{\beta}_H+{\alpha}/{\delta}$ (left, right) were increased significantly (p<.05). For those significantly changed QEEG quotients, the interaction effects of Group x prefrontal alpha (${\alpha}$) and beta (${\beta}$) asymmetry were tested. Only the ${\alpha}$ asymmetry showed main effect on the gain score of ${\alpha}/{\beta}_H+{\alpha}/{\delta}$ (right) with F (1, 34)＝5.694 (p<.05). Pearson's correlation coefficient between ${\alpha}$ asymmetry and gain score of ${\alpha}/{\beta}_H+{\alpha}/{\delta}$ (right) was .374 (p<.05). The gain score of ${\alpha}/{\beta}_H+{\alpha}/{\delta}$ (right) was increased for the right ${\alpha}$ dominance of yoga breathing group. On the contrary it was decreased for the left ${\alpha}$ dominance of yoga breathing group as well as the control regardless of the dominance. The result of this study implies that yoga breathing increases stress resistance and is effective in the management of physical stress. Emotionally relaxed people may have greater instantaneous stress reduction after yoga breathing. Moreover, yoga breathing could be also beneficial for depressed who may be more vulnerable to stress.

• Journal of Haehwa Medicine
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.279-285
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• 2004

The results were obtained as follow: 1. Matsyasana and Dhanurasana in Yoga are effective for the whole body obesity. 2. Dhanurasana, Bhadrasana, Uddyanasana and Pahpuma Navasana in Yoga are effective for the abdomen and waist obesity. 3. Shalabhasana in Yoga are effective for the buttocks and thigh obesity. 4. Padangusthasana in Yoga are effective for the lower limb obesity. 5. Gomukasana and Adhomukhasana in Yoga are effective for the breast and shoulder obesity.

• Journal of Oriental Neuropsychiatry
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.13-23
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• 2020

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to review the research trends in the treatment of hatha-style yoga on Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Methods: We searched articles in Pubmed and the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) January 2010-December 2019, for studies to treat PTSD using hatha-style yoga. Selected studies were evaluated by the CLEAR-NPT (A Checklist to Evaluate a Report of a Non-pharmacological Trial). Results: Seven randomized controlled clinical trials were selected. PSS-I (PTSD Symptom Scale-Interview) was the most frequently used as diagnostic criteria. The PCL (PTSD Checklist) was also the most commonly used outcome measurement. Of the seven articles, most studies reported that hatha-style yoga was effective to reduce symptoms of PTSD. Conclusions: Hatha-style yoga practice intervention can be used to relieve symptoms of PTSD. More studies should be conducted to make hatha-style yoga as protocol (complementary therapy) for PTSD patients.