Comparison of effects of Sahaj Yoga Meditation on Cognitive Functions in practising and non-practising Healthy Subjects

Effectiveness of yoga for major depressive disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…One study ( 29 ) included only male participants, nine studies ( 31 , 33 – 36 , 38 , 55 , 57 , 59 ) included only female participants, three studies ( 31 , 33 , 34 ) had only women with prenatal depression, and one study ( 59 ) included postpartum depression. Eleven RCTs ( 19 , 27 , 28 , 37 , 40 , 42 , 49 , 50 , 53 , 55 ) included patients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of MDD, six RCTs ( 41 , 48 , 52 ) included patients with a score greater than or equal to 24 on the Hamilton Depression Inventory for patients with MDD, two RCTs ( 33 , 44 ) included patients with DSM-V diagnosis of MDD, and two RCTs ( 35 , 36 ) included patients with the MINI diagnosis of MDD. Of the four studies from China, two ( 56 , 57 ) met the CCMD-3 diagnostic criteria for depression, one ( 58 ) used the CCMD-10 diagnostic criteria, and the others ( 59 ) included the EPDS diagnostic criteria for depression.…”

“…Among all randomized controlled trials included, four ( 19 , 41 , 46 , 55 ) used Iyengar yoga, seven ( 35 – 37 , 39 , 42 , 43 , 50 ) used Hatha yoga, eight ( 30 , 38 , 44 , 51 , 56 – 59 ) used self-designed yoga based on breathing, meditation, and mindfulness, four ( 27 , 29 , 40 , 52 ) used Sudarshan Kriya yoga, three ( 31 , 33 , 34 ) used yoga specially designed for the middle and late pregnancy, one ( 28 ) used SAHAJ yoga, one ( 48 ) used Ashtanga yoga, one ( 45 ) used Laugher yoga, one ( 32 ) used Yoga Nidra, and four ( 47 , 49 , 53 , 54 ) studies did not mention yoga methods. Seven studies ( 28 , 32 , 37 , 44 , 52 , 56 , 58 ) added yoga as an adjunct to regular treatment, nine studies ( 28 , 35 , 36 , 39 , 40 , 52 , 56 – 58 ) had a duration of 8 weeks, 14 studies ( 19 , 31 , 33 , 34 , 38 , 41 , 43 , 44 , 46 – 49 , 53 , 55 ) had a more extended study duration of 12 weeks, and one study ( 41 ) had a maximum period of 28 months. The mean study d...…”

“…The mean study duration of the studies included here was 10 weeks. Combined pharmacological/psychotherapeutic interventions were allowed in 11 studies ( 28 , 32 , 37 , 48 , 51 – 53 , 56 , 58 ) and no combined intervention in four RCTs ( 27 , 43 – 45 ). The specific characteristics of the included studies are detailed in Table 2 .…”

The Effect of Yoga Meditation Practice on Young Adults’ Inhibitory Control: An fNIRS Study

“…The results are consistent with previous studies. An 8-week randomized controlled trial conducted by Sharma et al (2014) showed that Sahaja yoga improved attention span, increased concentration, and faster visual-motor speed in healthy subjects. Saoji et al (2017) conducted a randomized, bidirectional cross-over study to investigate the effects of a YoMed technique called Psychic Sound Resonance (MSRT) on the cognitive functioning that requires sustained attention and activation and inhibition of the speed of information processing of university medical students.…”

“…It takes blood volume and blood oxygen in brain tissue as the information carrier, and monitor brain activity by measuring changes in oxygen-containing hemoglobin in the cognitive process of the brain, so as to study the neural mechanism of cognitive activities ( Hoshi, 2003 ). It is worth noting that most of the studies about the effects of YoMed on the behavioral performance of individual executive function exist ( Sharma et al, 2014 ; Luu and Hall, 2017 ), while the cerebral neural mechanism of how YoMed intervention improves individual cognitive function still need to be investigated. As a non-invasive technique, fNIRS is suitable to measure the cerebral blood oxygen mechanism, however, few studies have used it to measure the PFC of young adults to find the cognitive benefits of YoMed practice.…”