The Effect of Yoga on Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors: A Meta-Analysis

Authors

Ameesh Isath, Department of Cardiology, Westchester Medical Centre, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY.
Arjun Kanwal, Department of Cardiology, Westchester Medical Centre, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY.
Hafeez Ul Virk, Harrington Heart & Vascular Institute, Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Cleveland, OH.
Dhrubajyoti Bandyopadhyay, Department of Cardiology, Westchester Medical Centre, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY.
Zhen Wang, Robert D. and Patricia E. Kern Center for the Science of Health Care Delivery, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN; Division of Health Care Policy and Research, Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN.
Ashish Kumar, Department of Internal Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Akron General, Akron, OH.
Ankur Kalra, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Krannert Cardiovascular Research Center Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN.
Srihari S. Naidu, Department of Cardiology, Westchester Medical Centre, New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY.
Carl J. Lavie, John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute, Ochsner Clinical School, The University of Queensland School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA.
Salim S. Virani, Section of Cardiology, Baylor College of Medicine, Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center Houston, TX.
Chayakrit Krittanawong, Cardiology Division, NYU Langone Health and NYU School of Medicine, New York, NY. Electronic address: Chayakrit.Krittanawong@va.gov.

Author Type(s)

Resident/Fellow, Faculty

Journal Title

Current Problems in Cardiology

First Page

101593

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

5-1-2023

Department

Medicine

Abstract

Yoga has been increasingly popular yet has shown inconsistent benefits on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors. We aimed to systematically analyze the effect of yoga on modifiable CVD risk factors. We systematically searched Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid Embase, Ovid Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Scopus, and Web of Science from database inception in 1966 through June 2022 for studies evaluating the association between yoga and blood pressure, lipid profile, HbA1c and body mass index (BMI). Two investigators independently reviewed data. Conflicts were resolved through consensus. Random-effects meta-analyses were used. 64 RCTs including a total of 16,797 participants were eligible for inclusion in the meta-analysis. Yoga therapy improved both systolic as well as diastolic blood pressure (weight mean difference [WMD] (95% Confidence interval [CI]) of -4.56 [-6.37, -2.75] mm Hg, WMD [95% CI] - 3.39 [-5.01, -1.76] mm Hg respectively). There was also an improvement in BMI as well as hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) (WMD [95% CI] of -0.57 [-1.05, -0.10] kg/m, WMD [95% CI] of -0.14 [-0.24, -0.030] mmol/L respectively) . In addition, all parameters of the lipid profile, including low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) showed a significant improvement with yoga therapy (WMD [95% CI] -7.59 [-12.23, -2.95] mg/dL for LDL-C). Yoga has a modest yet positive effect on blood pressure, BMI, lipid profile and HbA1c and, therefore, may play an ancillary role in primary prevention of CVD.

Recommended Citation

Isath, A., Kanwal, A., Virk, H. U., Bandyopadhyay, D., Wang, Z., Kumar, A., Kalra, A., Naidu, S. S., Lavie, C. J., Virani, S. S., & Krittanawong, C. (2023). The Effect of Yoga on Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors: A Meta-Analysis. Current Problems in Cardiology, 48 (5), 101593. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpcardiol.2023.101593