Should I "do yoga" when I'm in a bad mood? Research confirms that hot yoga classes twice a week can reduce depression by 50%
Many studies have confirmed that exercise is helpful in improving mental health and even assisting in psychotherapy. However, compared with static exercise patterns, is it still more effective in promoting mental health? “The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry” published research indicating that doing “heat yoga” once a week may be helpful in alleviating symptoms of depression.
Research on doing “hot yoga” courses twice a week: depression can be reduced by 50%
Hot yoga refers to practicing yoga movements in a room with a humidity of about 41 degrees and a humidity of 40% to simulate the climate in India. The study was initiated by a team from Massachusetts General Hospital in the United States. A total of 80 patients with depression were recruited and divided into two groups: one group participated in a 90-minute hot yoga class at least twice a week, and the other group did not. Intervene with a hot yoga class. The average age of the subjects was 32.7 years old, and most were women.
The research team measured the degree of depressive symptoms of the subjects based on the “Depressive Symptom Scale” rated by clinicians. During the eight-week intervention period, nearly 60% (59.3%) of those assigned to participate in hot yoga classes experienced a 50% reduction in symptoms; compared with only 6.3% of the control group. In addition, nearly half (44%) of the subjects in the yoga group had significantly reduced scores on the Depression Symptom Scale, and were considered to have alleviated their depression.
Maren Nyer, the study’s lead author, said that although the subjects were assigned to participate in hot yoga classes at least twice a week, they actually only participated in an average of 10.3 times over the eight weeks. However, they still experienced a reduction in depressive symptoms, suggesting that weekly hot yoga may be beneficial for people with depression and help improve their quality of life. “The subjects experienced no serious adverse effects and reported positive comments about hot yoga afterwards.”
The benefits go beyond just improving a bad mood! Expert: Yoga can help lower blood pressure and prevent arteriosclerosis
Nyer pointed out that hot yoga exercise may change the treatment process for patients with depression, is expected to provide non-drug therapeutic benefits, and has the potential to be used as an intervention for mental illness in the future. In fact, as early as 2015, literature showed that hot yoga can improve lower-body strength, increase full-body range of motion, and enhance balance in healthy adults.
In addition, in non-randomized clinical trials, hot yoga has been shown to increase glucose tolerance, bone mineral density, lower blood lipids and blood pressure, and reduce the risk of arteriosclerosis, among other benefits. However, the above-mentioned research only focuses on adults. Whether hot yoga can also have obvious benefits for the elderly requires more trials to verify.
Is exercise an important means to combat mental illness? Hiking and surfing can help relieve severe depression
Compared with hot yoga, dynamic sports such as surfing and mountain climbing have also been proven to have the potential to improve depression. The Naval Medical Center in San Diego (NMCSD) conducted a study on 96 active-duty military personnel. All subjects suffered from major depressive disorder (MDD). The results showed that both the clinician’s diagnosis and the subjects’ self-reported symptoms of major depression were significantly reduced in both groups.
After 3 months of evaluation, it was found that the severe depression in the surfing group and the mountaineering group had improved. The two groups had 74% and 47% remission rates of severe depression respectively, which means that the subjects were able to return to normal social functions. Research shows that surf therapy participants were more likely to experience remission from a diagnosis of major depression, but both groups did experience a decrease in depressive symptoms.
Research suggests that physical activity in a natural environment has a greater positive impact on depression than indoor activities. In addition, hiking or mountain climbing in nature is more conducive to the recovery of people with mental illness than walking in urban areas. Research has also found that being in a “blue space” when engaging in water activities can make individuals feel calmer and significantly improve their emotional symptoms compared to the “green space” of mountain climbing.
If people want to relieve the fatigue of the week, they should focus on enjoying their own immersive experiences, such as mountain climbing, surfing, water play, camping, and traveling with friends. As long as you can “live completely in the present” activities, it will help restore your attention that is exhausted by the bombardment of messages on weekdays. Therefore, for the sake of brain health, people who are under excessive work pressure should put down their mobile phones and laptops at the right time and go outdoors for more walks.
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