How Yoga Affects Your Brain

by: Linh Pham

If you are struggling with fatigue, stress, and sleep difficulties, try natural therapies such as massage, acupuncture, and especially yoga. If you are wondering whether or not to participate in a yoga class, read this article. We will help you to answer the question of why yoga is good for your health, especially your brain.

What is yoga?

Yoga, which is originated from ancient India, is a group of physical, mental and spiritual practices. It has been exercised for thousands of years to relieve pain, shape body, lift mood, boost concentration, and improve brain health. There were more than 300 million people practicing yoga all over the world in 2015, in which 73% of yogis considered yoga a stress management tool.

Studies show that people who practice yoga regularly lower the risk of cancer and heart diseases by 55% and 97% in comparison with their peers. Healthcare experts also suggest yoga for those who are suffering from mental disorders, injuries, and other conditions.

Everyone can reap the benefits of yoga, from instant gratification to lasting results. Therefore, if you are wondering whether or not to taking part in a yoga course, do it immediately. You may feel more relaxed and have greater energy for your daily activities after several sessions only.

Gradually, your overall health will be improved.

How yoga affects your brain

Recent studies indicate that yoga may help to prevent psychosomatic diseases such as anxiety and depression and stress-related conditions such as IBS, heart disease, and high blood pressure. In detail:

1. It helps to reduce anxiety and depression

When you practice yoga, it increases the GABA levels in your brain, contributing to superseding neural activities; thereby, calming your mind. It was pointed out that doing yoga for one hour a day can increase the GABA level by 27%, which is essential for reducing chronic stress.

Scientists believe that people have daily meditation habits have thicker frontal cortex than those who do not. The prefrontal cortex is implicated in a variety of complex behaviors, including making important decisions and planning. A powerful prefrontal cortex will help to curb negative feelings and reduce stress, which may, in the long run, lead to depression.

2. It helps to improve memory

The white matter in the brain helps to regulate interaction and communication speed. Practicing yoga helps to prevent it from decreasing with age; thereby, maintaining your sagacity. Moreover, yoga supports the gray matter’s health, helping to improve your memory and increase the feeling of happiness. In the long run, it enhances self-control and decision-making skills. Practice deep breathing, muscle relaxation, and meditation daily if you want to reap all of the above benefits.

A weekly yoga routine also helps to prevent cognitive impairment and slow down the dementia progression in the old. It is demonstrated that yoga may help to optimize the cognitive functions and keep the mind assertive until the old age. Doing yoga 20 minutes per day may increase the yogi’s concentration and positive attitude at work.

3. It helps to treat mental disorders

Mental disorders such as chronic pain, IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), migraines, hypertension, infertility, traumatic stress disorder, and so on may also be treated with a regular yoga routine. Although this fact is not fully researched, healthcare professionals still believe that yoga can positively change brain structure.

It also helps to increase the levels of dopamine and serotonin, which play an important role in regulating mood and brain’s pleasure and reward systems.

4. It helps to build healthy tissues in your brain

If you have an annoying ache in your neck or a nagging pain in your back, it is about time for you to practice yoga. It is the decreased level of gray matter in your brain that causes you chronic pain and depression. Fortunately, yoga can help to build this healthy tissue. This practice acts as a natural painkiller to ease the painful feelings. Gradually, you will feel better and happier.

5. It helps to boost your self-esteem

In 2009, Deakin University in Australia conducted a program to monitor the effects of yoga on the behaviors of women who are struggling with binge-eating within 12 weeks. The result showed that they demonstrated better body image and higher levels of self-esteem. They also showed decreases in their BMI, hip, and waist measurements.

Researchers concluded that mindful yoga gave people skills to stay with what they were thinking instead of eating to escape it. Yoga also helped them to calm their mind and gave them a chance to find out solutions to a problem instead of eluding it.

These benefits seem to be unbelievable if you do not start practicing from now on. It doesn’t lie, you will receive the amazing results after a yoga course only. On a physical level, yoga will help to improve your strengths, balance, flexibility and even aid in weight loss. You will also get better sleep and sexual performance.

Most importantly, it requires no gear to practice this discipline; therefore, you can do it at home, at the office, or during your holiday. Combine with practicing deep breathing and meditation to get the best relaxing effect.

Author bio: Linh Pham – is a blogger with many years of experience in searching for useful information related to self-development, work motivation, job-searching tips and advice, productivity improvement, life issues, and so on. I try to develop myself by keeping reading articles on different career blogs and listening to experts’ talks. My purpose is to create a good working culture among employees and equip them with essential working skills.

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