IMPROVEMENTS ON DISEASES
Introduction
Yoga is a multi-sensory activity that is well known throughout the world. Yoga combines range of motion, mobility, flexibility, strength, balance, and much more through stationary positions that uses different parts of the body to contract and relax body alignment. Not only does yoga improve the physical health, it has been shown through many studies that the practice of yoga benefited patients with Alzheimer's disease and those with Rheumatoid Arthritis. One form of yoga in particular, chair yoga. Chair yoga meet the needs of those who are physically
limited in certain movements.
Benefits
In a recent study by Chin et al, found that elderly people that are occupying in an assisted-living center who engaged in 6 months of yoga reported an increase in physical fitness in physical function, body composition, body movements, ability to sleep, improved ADL, and decreased depression on patients with mild to severe Alzheimer's Disease compared to the control group (Chin et al, 2008).
In another study that measured the effects on a weekly Raj yoga regime on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease activity. There was an overall of 47 patients that were recruited, 26 of them being ones with the problem with 21 controls. During this study they were able to conduct that those who practiced yoga had remarkable improvements in RA disease parameters. Patients who engaged in the yoga routine had statistically significant
improvements in DAS28 and HAQ (Badsha et al, 2009).