There are several medical conditions that can be improved by practicing yoga. Yoga has been successfully used to lessen the negative effects of infertility, obesity, lung disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, insomnia, cancer, high blood pressure, and joint pain, to name a few. The beneficial effects of oracticing yoga are well recognized not only by the yoga community but also by medical doctors.
One of the main elements that lead to an illness is stress. In fact, stress is responsible for a huge number of sicknesses. Stress is something which we develop in our minds, and it can be reduced through a good usage of yoga techniques. Just a few of the problems that are related to an over active stress response are: depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, some types of diabetes mellitus, cardio-vascular disease, several autoimmune diseases, irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, reproductive problems, and an aggravated suppression of the immune system.
The response of the sympathetic nervous system can also trigger stress in our metabolism. The reaction to various outside stimuli is known as the “fight or flight” response – the mind and body, faced with an endangering or disturbing element, prepare for one of the two options. Physically, this is manifested through an instantaneous heart rate increase, together with a high ascent of blood pressure. Breathing gets shallow and the muscles tense in anticipation to the following action. Internally, this response reduces the blood flow to internal organs and processes that are not essential in that particular moment (such as digestion and elimination) are shut down. This state of increased awareness and readiness is beneficial on a short term, preparing our body to react to the outside interventions and stimuli. Both in a “fight” and in a “flight” situation, the body is physically and mentally prepared to act. The problem arises when long-term exposure to similar stress takes place. This “fight or flight” response is only meant to help on short periods of time – the longer it is activated the less resources will the body have to function normally.
There is a natural countermeasure for the “fight or flight” response. It is called the parasympathetic nervous system or the “relaxation response.” It is automatically activated when the elements that caused the stress are gone but it is also possible to increase its effects by breathing deeply and relaxing your muscles. By increasing the length of this process we allow our body to recover faster, enabling it
to eliminate the harmful effects of stress in a prompt and efficient manner.
