Can Yoga Be the New 'Insulin' to Control Diabetes?

-- Photo courtesy of Dr H. R. Nagendra

By V. Sankara Subramaniam

(This article is released in conjunction with World Diabetes Day which falls on Nov 14)

KUALA LUMPUR (Bernama) -- A fitness regime is something doctors would recommend for diabetes patients. Dr H. R. Nagendra, who is Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's yoga consultant, strongly believes that the ancient Indian practice is an effective treatment for the prevention and management of the disease.  

The 77-year-old yoga exponent, who is from Bengaluru in the South Indian state of Karnataka, said people in countries like India, China and Malaysia were genetically prone to type 2 diabetes mellitus and hence, the necessity for them to adopt a healthy lifestyle.

He said leading experts from notable yoga associations in India have studied how yoga can control the symptoms and complications associated with type 2 diabetes.

"Their research showed that one hour of yoga every day can bring added dimensions of better control of diabetes and reduction in medication compared to one hour of walking," he told Bernama on the sidelines of the two-day Fourth Asian Yoga Therapy Conference in Bali, Indonesia on Sept 7 and 8. 

Dr H. R. Nagendra

There are various types of yoga with one of the more familiar ones being hatha yoga, a system of physical and breathing exercises and meditation aimed at enabling practitioners to attain sound physical and mental health. 

Yoga exercises or asanas (postures) are designed to open the many subtle energy pathways inside the body – especially the spine which is the main channel – so that the energy can flow freely.

COMMON YOGA PROTOCOL

Nagendra, who is the chancellor of a yoga university called Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana in Bengaluru and has been Modi's yoga consultant since the 1980s, said yoga experts have developed a 60-minute yoga protocol to fight the disease.

According to the yoga guru, the benefits of the protocol have been studied extensively in 60 districts in India and that the research efforts have been recognised by the American Diabetes Association in San Francisco in the United States.

The common yoga protocol for type 2 diabetes starts with an opening prayer, followed by some warm-up exercises to prepare the body for more intense yoga poses.

After the warm-up session, surya namaskaram (sun salutation), which is a combination of yoga poses, and pranayama (regulated breathing) are performed.

"The 12-step surya namaskaram brings about general flexibility of the body in preparation for the next asanas.

"This (sun salutation) is usually done facing the sun and each step is accompanied by regulation of breath," explained Nagendra.

The next part of the yoga protocol involves supine, prone and sitting postures. For the supine pose, the practitioner lies on his back; the prone posture, where the person lies on his stomach, is restorative and typically used for resting.

"At the end of these asanas, relaxation with abdominal breathing in supine position should be performed," he said.  

The last part would be breathing exercise and meditation, which are good for stress management, deep relaxation and keeping the mind "silent", he added.

CYCLIC MEDITATION           

Nagendra, who was a mechanical engineer before he became a yoga therapist, himself has been instrumental in developing "cyclic meditation", a combination of yoga postures and guided meditation.

He claimed that by practising cyclic meditation, one can unravel the secrets enshrined in the Mandukya Upanishad, the shortest of the ancient Hindu texts known as the Upanishads.

According to Nagendra, cyclic meditation has the potential to alleviate occupational stress and treat diseases such as asthma and cancer and even psychiatric disorders, if practised regularly.

"Deep relaxation is attained through cyclic meditation. Findings of our research revealed that six hours of sleep bring only nine percent rest, which is measured by the reduction in metabolic rate. But 30 minutes of cyclic meditation can bring 32 percent rest," he said, adding that the Indian prime minister practises cyclic meditation as part of his daily yoga routine.

He added that public awareness of the benefits of yoga has been on the rise ever since June 21 was declared International Yoga Day by the United Nations General Assembly on Dec 11, 2014.

Edited by Rema Nambiar

-- BERNAMA