Effects of two yoga breathing techniques on autonomic and cognitive functions

Abstract

ABSTRACT newlineBackground newlineIt is estimated that approximately one in four adults suffers from an anxiety disorder at some newlinepoint in their lives (Murrough, Yaqubi, Sayed and Charney, 2015). Studies suggest that stress and newlineanxiety can (i) shift the autonomic balance towards sympathetic dominance (Dimitriev, newlineSaperova, Dimitriev and Karpenko, 2014) and (ii) affect the cognitive ability of a person newline(Derakshan and Eysenck, 2009), as anxiety can decline the ability to maintain attention and newlinefocus (Najmi, Kuckertz and Amir, 2012). Hence poor attention and increased sympathetic activity newlinecould lead to physiological arousal and inability to complete tasks requiring focused attention. newlineThere are few published reports on the effects of different pranayamas on attention as well as on newlinethe regulation of the autonomic balance (Telles, Yadav, Gupta and Balakrishna, 2013; Joshi and newlineTelles, 2009; Telles, Raghuraj, Arankalle and Naveen, 2008; Stancák, et al. 1991a; Stancák, et al. newline1991b). However these studies have methodological limitations such as (i) assessments for newlineattention tasks, autonomic variables and anxiety were not done in the same session, (ii) in most newlinestudies attention was not assessed using an objective measurement such as the P300 task, (iii) newlinelack of an interventional-control group, and (iv) a small sample size. newlineThe present study was designed to examine the accute effects of two specific yoga breathing newlinetechniques i.e., (i) high frequency yoga breathing or kapalabhati pranayama and (ii) bellows newlineyoga breathing or bhastrika pranayama on measures of attention and arousal assessing (i) the newlineP300 Event related Potential (using the auditory odd-ball paradigm) which is used to assess the newlinestimulus processing speed and efficiency of the brain and neural resources available during the newlineperformance of attention task, (ii) a six letter cancellation task (SLCT) which assesses sustained newlineattention, motor speed and visual scanning, (iii) heart rate variability and respiration which are newlineii newlineindicators of cardiac autonomic control and physiological arousal and