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Yoga, bioenergetics and eating behaviors: A conceptual review
International journal of yoga
Short Title: Int.J.Yoga
Format: Journal Article
Publication Date: Nov 30, 2014
Pages: 89 - 95
Sources ID: 30066
Notes: LR: 20170220; JID: 101313247; OTO: NOTNLM; 2015/07/15 06:00 [entrez]; 2015/07/15 06:00 [pubmed]; 2015/07/15 06:01 [medline]; ppublish
Visibility: Public (group default)
Abstract: (Show)
Yoga is an ancient oriental discipline that emerged from mystical and philosophical concepts. Today it is practiced in the west, partly due to the promotion of its benefits to improve the lifestyle and overall health. As compared to non-Hatha Yoga (HY) practitioners, healthier and better-eating patterns have been observed in those who practice it. Agreement with the brought benefits, HY can be used as a therapeutic method to correct abnormal eating behaviors (AEB), obesity, and some metabolic diseases. However, the energy expenditure during traditional protocols of HY is not high; hence, it is not very effective for reducing or maintaining body weight or to improve cardiovascular conditioning. Even so, several observational studies suggest significant changes in eating behaviors, like a reduction in dietary fat intake and increments in that of fresh vegetables, whole grains and soy-based products, which in turn may reduce the risk for cardiovascular diseases. Given the inconsistency of the results derived from cross-sectional studies, more case-control studies are needed to demonstrate the efficacy of HY as an alternative method in the clinical treatment of disordered eating and metabolic diseases.