4 ways that yoga could improve your quality of life

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum.

Author: Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, Gender equality and mental health advocate, yoga instructor, & P. Murali Doraiswamy, Professor of Psychiatry and Medicine, Duke University Medical Center

• Every year on 21 June, the world marks the International Day of Yoga.
• In the past decade, science has begun to explain exactly how the regular practice of yoga and meditation can transform people’s minds and bodies.
• Studies show that yoga can lower symptoms of anxiety and stress, improve sleep quality, boost immune health, and improve memory.

Across the globe, millions have lost their lives to COVID-19. The pandemic has also led to severe mental distress as populations around the world grapple with lockdowns, curfews, social distancing measures, and a variety of other pandemic protocols. In addition to that, the pandemic has also revealed deep societal inequalities, which became more pronounced with the inequitable distribution of vaccines to poorer countries. Against this backdrop, the principles of yoga are more relevant than ever.

Yoga is the physical practice of “asanas” or postures that prepare the body for meditation. Those who practice it learn to align with the purest parts of their common humanity. The practice has veryancient roots but it’s only over the past decade that science has begun to truly explain – from a neurological, psychological and cellular viewpoint – exactly how it can transform people’s minds, bodies, and even their societies. Studies show that a consistent yoga practice can improve quality of life in four key ways.
Vaccines, Health and healthcare, Gavi

What is the World Economic Forum doing about access to vaccines?

In 2000, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance was launched at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos, with an initial pledge of $750 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The aim of Gavi is to make vaccines more accessible and affordable for all – wherever people live in the world.

Along with saving an estimated 10 million lives worldwide in less than 20 years,through the vaccination of nearly 700 million children, – Gavi has most recently ensured a life-saving vaccine for Ebola.

At Davos 2016, we announced Gavi’s partnership with Merck to make the life-saving Ebola vaccine a reality.

The Ebola vaccine is the result of years of energy and commitment from Merck; the generosity of Canada’s federal government; leadership by WHO; strong support to test the vaccine from both NGOs such as MSF and the countries affected by the West Africa outbreak; and the rapid response and dedication of the DRC Minister of Health. Without these efforts, it is unlikely this vaccine would be available for several years, if at all.

Read more about the Vaccine Alliance, and how you can contribute to the improvement of access to vaccines globally – in our Impact Story.

Anxiety and stress

Recent clinical trials have found that yoga and meditation can lower symptoms of anxiety in both children and adults. This is pertinent at a time when the incidence of mental disorders has risen sharply. A survey carried out last year showed that people who practice yoga had less depression, stress and anxiety due to the pandemic.

Sleep

Clinical trials have shown that yoga can improve sleep quality. Specific yoga breathing and sleep techniques are now being studied as treatments for sleep disorders and people with nightmares due to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Generally, practicing yoga to calm the mind before bed can result in a good night’s sleep, which is essential for good mental health and memory.

Immune health

Scientists researching how yoga and meditation affects people’s bodies are finding that yoga and meditation can reduce inflammation and boost immunity against some diseases. This because yoga causes the body to produce infection-fighting cells and reduces the effects of inflammation.

Mental agility and social cognition

Yoga can also help to boost your brainpower and has been linked to sharper attention and better memory. In addition, it may also improve ‘social cognition’, which is a person’s ability to read and recognise others people’s emotions and needs. And researchers are actively studying how yoga and meditation might help prevent the memory loss and brain-shrinkage that occurs as people age. https://www.youtube.com/embed/8oGvjln7_ZA?enablejsapi=1&wmode=transparent

Yoga isn’t a cure-all for every disease, nor should it act as a replacement for medical care. But by lessening anxiety and stress, and improving sleep and cognition, yoga can make people happier and more self-aware. This will slowly improve how people interact with each other. Indeed, researchers have found that people who practice yoga for many years are kinder and more compassionate.

These effects are exemplified by the way yoga has changed our own lives. Sophie was raised in a happy home in the Canadian countryside. But, as a young woman, she later dealt with anxiety, self-esteem problems, and even an eating disorder. She was pregnant and in her thirties when she attended her first yoga class and immediately felt like she had found a new home.

To this day, yoga gives her the strength to manage her mental health and lead a very public life as an advocate, mother of three, and wife of the Prime Minister of Canada.

As mental health advocates, we both strive to find ways to help the most vulnerable. Yoga practice doesn’t need to be long or complicated. Whether you are sedentary or super active, whether you are diagnosed with a mental illness or suffer daily anxiety (like most of us), whether you are a seasoned yoga teacher or just a beginner, yoga can adapt to you.