Geeky wellbeing favourites: November 2023
Highlights from the world of mind–body science
The world has felt like a shit place to be in October. Without wanting to get into politics, let’s just say that it has not just less friendly, but actually a lot more hostile than I had previously thought. Add to this a family health concern, and you’ve got a stressed body.
And then, I got Covid-19. The 2023 edition.
Now, I obviously have no way of knowing whether the two are connected (the weather changing dramatically might be more relevant), but I certainly think that it’s all part of the mix. After all, I did go to a high school reunion in September, hugged and kissed over 100 people and came home perfectly healthy.
If you’ve been following yoga social media lately, maybe you’ll tell me that I should go back to hot yoga to improve my mood – this study has definitely had A LOT of attention, likely because it was published in a reputable journal. Participants (33 of them) were asked to take part in two hot yoga sessions a week for 8 weeks; on average, they took part in one session a week, and had a higher reduction in depression scores than those who did nothing (32 people). Which just means that doing yoga is better than doing nothing if you feel depressed, so at this point let’s calm down on the benefits of hot yoga. Let’s wait for a study that compares hot and room temperature yoga first – the research so far suggests that there is no difference between the two. Just pick whichever one you like best (I’m not picking hot yoga, that’s for sure, but that’s my preference, yours might be different).
In other news
A lot of research on cancer and mind–body practices this month, although they are a little underwhelming if I’m honest:
Mind–body practices could lead to improved outcomes in lung cancer. This meta-analysis of 11 studies investigating the effects of practices like yoga, tai chi and qi gong found improvements in fitness (6-min walk test), anxiety and quality of life. However, note that the certainty of these conclusion was rated as low, which means that the evidence was not strong.
Qi gong and mindfulness both led to improvements in wellness among cancer survivors. Qi gong led to more physical wellbeing improvements, mindfulness to ‘spiritual’ and ‘connectedness’ improvements. Sharing here as it’s interesting BUT I have no idea what they mean by ‘spiritual’ and ‘connectedness’ (or how they define this), and this was a small and qualitative study.
Online yoga or qi gong offered improvements in patients with cancer. Participants, who had access to video content for 3 months, showed improvements in depression, fatigue and fear of progression, but not anxiety. Note that the video content also included things like acceptance and commitment therapy, so the effect driver is unclear, and the study design is quite confusing.
Also…
Tai chi was found to have long-term benefits for those living with Parkinson’s disease. Link to the study here, and accessible research explanation here. Note that the interesting thing here is that the potential explanation for this is a reduction in inflammation through a mind–body practice like tai chi – so, back to stress and inflammation!
You may have missed
I used to write regularly, and I hope to find my writing mojo again, but there might be something in the archives you’ll find interesting.
Can handstands make me happy(ier)? Forget about hot yoga, maybe this is what I should have been doing in October to feel better (although possibly not a good idea while I had Covid-19).
Yoga nidra makes me happy (or just less sad) – plain language summary. Stick to the yoga nidra my friends, because the research suggests it can help you feel better. And, if you’re a teacher (and anything like me), remember to actually practice and not just stare at your students longingly and wish their relaxed state for yourself.
How stress messes up your immune system (and where yoga fits in). A reminder of the link between stress, immunity and yoga.
Until next month!