Yogic breathing can help alleviate severe depression in those who don’t respond to antidepressant treatments, a new study by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania has found.
The study, in November in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, looked at the effectiveness of sudarshan kriya, an intense, rhythmic breathing practice, in treating the symptoms of depression and anxiety in medicated patients with major depressive disorder. It found that those who practised the yogic breathing showed improvement in their symptoms, compared with those who did not partake in the practice.
“With such a large portion of patients who do not fully respond to antidepressants, it’s important we find new avenues that work best for each person to beat their depression,” said lead researcher Anup Sharma, a neuropsychiatry research fellow in the department of psychiatry at Penn. “Here, we have a promising, lower-cost therapy that could potentially serve as an effective, non-drug approach for patients battling this disease.”
atomlinson@thenational.ae
