Effects of yoga practice on stress reduction - literature review

Uvod: Ker je v sodobni zahodni družbi pojavnost stresa visoka in ker lahko dolgoročna izpostavljenost stresu vodi v nekatere kronične zaplete, je potreba po metodah za zmanjševanje stresa visoka. Joga je starodavna praksa z mnogimi komponentami, kot so jogijske poze, dihalne tehnike in meditacija. Ima mnogo pozitivnih učinkov tako na telo kot na duha. Namesto ločenega izvajanja sprostitvenih tehnik, dihalnih vaj, mobilizacije, uravnavanja krvnega tlaka itd., joga ponuja združitev teh modalitet in ima hkrati veliko podobnosti s celostno fizioterapevtsko obravnavo. Namen: Namen diplomskega dela je bil na podlagi pregleda literature ugotoviti, ali izvajanje joge pripomore k zmanjšanju stresa pri zdravih odraslih, ki so izpostavljeni stresnim okoliščinam. Metode dela: Iskanje literature je potekalo na spletu dostopni podatkovni bazi PubMed. Vključili smo randomizirane kontrolne raziskave v angleškem jeziku, v časovnem okvirju od 2010 do 2019. Besedila so bila analizirana glede na zasnovo raziskav, značilnosti preiskovancev, programa in vrste intervencij, preučevane spremenljivke in njihove meritve ter rezultate. Rezultati: V pregled literature je bilo vključenih sedem raziskav. V treh raziskavah so avtorji primerjali jogo s kontrolno skupino brez intervencije, v dveh raziskavah so primerjali jogo, jogo z dodatkom meditacije s čuječnostjo in kontrolno skupino brez intervencije, v eni raziskavi so primerjali jogo s telesno vadbo, v eni so beležili spremembe znotraj skupin z dvema oblikama jogijskega dihanja (počasna in hitra pranajama) in kontrolne skupine. Najpogosteje uporabljeno merilno orodje je bila Lestvica zaznanega stresa. Učinke joge so vrednotili tudi s količino kortizola v slini, kitajskima vprašalnikoma o stresu, spremenljivostjo frekvence srčnega utripa in drugimi fiziološkimi parametri. Rezultati so pokazali statistično pomembno zmanjšanje stresa v petih raziskavah, v dveh pa zmanjšanje stresa ni bilo statistično pomembno. Razprava in zaključek: Joga je lahko učinkovita metoda zmanjševanja stresa pri zdravih odraslih, tudi kot intervencija za zmanjševanje stresa na delovnem mestu. Zagotavlja celostno obravnavo posameznika glede na biopsihosocialni model zdravja. Potrebnih bi bilo več kakovostnih raziskav, ki bi preučevale tudi dolgoročne učinke joge, primerjale med sabo njene različne komponente in primerjale jogo z drugimi oblikami telesne vadbe in sprostitve.Introduction: Stress is highly prevalent in western society and chronic exposure to stress can lead to many chronic complications. This is why methods for stress reduction are highly needed. Yoga is an ancient practice comprising of many components like yoga poses, breathing techniques and meditation. It has positive effects on the body as well as the mind. Instead of separately performing different relaxation techniques, breathing exercises, mobilization, blood pressure control etc., yoga offers a unification of these modalities and has some similarities with a holistic physiotherapeutic treatment. Purpose: The purpose of this undergraduate thesis was to find out, if yoga practice helps to reduce stress of healthy adults experiencing stress, based on a review of literature. Methods: Literature search was carried out in the PubMed online database. Included studies were randomized controlled trials in English language and published in the time frame between 2010 and 2019. Studies were analysed based on the study design, characteristics of the participants, program design and type of interventions, research measures and results. Results: There were seven studies included in this literature review. There were three studies in which authors compared yoga to a control group without any intervention, two where they compared yoga, yoga and mindful meditation and a control group without intervention, one where they compared yoga with a form of exercise and one where they compared differences inside the two pranayama groups (slow and fast pranayama) and the control group. The most commonly used measuring tool was the Perceived Stress Scale, the others were salivary cortisol, Chinese stress questionnaires, heart rate variability and other physiological parameters. The results showed a significant reduction of stress in five of the included studies. In two studies, the reduction of stress was not significant. Discussion and conclusion: Yoga can be an effective method for reducing stress in healthy people as well as an intervention for stress reduction in the workplace. It provides a holistic treatment of the individual according to the biopsychosocial health model. More studies of higher quality are needed, that would also analyse the long-term benefits of yoga, compare different components of yoga to one another and compare yoga to different types of exercise and relaxation techniques