Yoga has become more and more popular among Americans because of the many benefits that you can receive from it.
The different positions used in yoga exercises helps improve breathing, flexibility and allows you to relax and clear your mind.
Today, medical professionals have proven through a number of different studies that yoga exercises help stimulate different parts of your brain, which would help you overcome feelings of depression and anxiety.
What is depression?
Depression is more than just “feeling the blues.” It is actually a medical condition that is caused by an imbalance of hormones in the brain.
Some of the common symptoms of depression is not being able to sleep properly at night, unable to eat or eating way too much.
People who undergo depression find that they have difficulty concentrating at work. Depression has caused many relationships to break down.
Causes of depression
So what causes depression? There are a number of different things that can cause depression. One of this is your family history. If you have a relative who had undergone depression, there is a very good chance that you would be able to experience episodes of depression as well.
In some cases, even if you do not have any family relatives who have experienced episodes of depression but have developed a low self-esteem because of your upbringing, you are also a good candidate to become prone to depression.
Another major cause of depression is stress. Constant episodes of stress would often cause you to feel out of control and unable to cope with them.
This feeling of just simply losing control is a perfect “breeding ground” for you to develop symptoms of depression.
How does Yoga help?
Medical professionals determined that those who experience depression have low levels of gamma-aminobutyric chemicals in the brain. While there are a number of drugs that help reduce feelings of depression, recent medical research has proven that doing yoga exercises for one hour a day on a regular basis helps increase the levels of gamma-aminobutyric chemicals in the brain.
In fact, in one study that was published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, researchers have noted a 27% increase in gamma-aminobutyric chemicals in the brain among those who regularly did yoga exercises compared to those who do not.
Although the participants of the study were, in fact, mentally healthy people who are not struggling with depression, this findings with regards to yoga exercises have is very promising because it means that you do not have to rely on drugs to overcome depression.
A Final Note…
If you are struggling with depression or stress and would like to try out the benefits of yoga exercise, it is a good idea to sign up for a yoga exercise class at your local gym.
Not only would you be surrounded by the good vibes of other people, which could be rather infectious, signing up in yoga exercise classes would give you the opportunity to be guided by a trained yoga instructor that would be able to get the maximum effects of yoga exercise.
