Aside from the Yoga Expose: An NIH View, History and Guidelines

People use yoga for a variety of health conditions including anxiety disorders or stress, asthma, high blood pressure, and depression. People also use yoga as part of a general health regimen — to achieve physical fitness and to relax.

The Status of Yoga Research

Research suggests that yoga might:

Improve mood and sense of well-being
Counteract stress
Reduce heart rate and blood pressure
Increase lung capacity
Improve muscle relaxation and body composition
Help with conditions such as anxiety, depression, and insomnia
Improve overall physical fitness, strength, and flexibility
Positively affect levels of certain brain or blood chemicals.

More well-designed studies are needed before definitive conclusions can be drawn about yoga’s use for specific health conditions.

Side Effects and Risks

Yoga is generally considered to be safe in healthy people when practiced appropriately. Studies have found it to be well tolerated, with few side effects.
People with certain medical conditions should not use some yoga practices. For example, people with disc disease of the spine, extremely high or low blood pressure, glaucoma, retinal detachment, fragile or atherosclerotic arteries, a risk of blood clots, ear problems, severe osteoporosis, or cervical spondylitis should avoid some inverted poses.
Although yoga during pregnancy is safe if practiced under expert guidance, pregnant women should avoid certain poses that may be problematic.

Training, Licensing, and Certification

There are many training programs for yoga teachers throughout the country. These programs range from a few days to more than 2 years. Standards for teacher training and certification differ depending on the style of yoga.

There are organizations that register yoga teachers and training programs that have complied with minimum educational standards. For example, one nonprofit group requires at least 200 hours of training, with a specified number of hours in areas including techniques, teaching methodology, anatomy, physiology, and philosophy. However, there are currently no official or well-accepted licensing requirements for yoga teachers in the United States.

If You Are Thinking About Yoga

Do not use yoga as a replacement for conventional care or to postpone seeing a doctor about a medical problem.
If you have a medical condition, consult with your health care provider before starting yoga.
Ask about the physical demands of the type of yoga in which you are interested, as well as the training and experience of the yoga teacher you are considering.
Look for published research studies on yoga for the health condition you are interested in.
Tell your health care providers about any complementary and alternative practices you use. Give them a full picture of what you do to manage your health. This will help ensure coordinated and safe care. For tips about talking with your health care providers about CAM, see NCCAM’s Time to Talk campaign.

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