Hot Yoga May Help Alleviate Moderate-to-Severe Depression Symptoms

Individuals taking weekly community yoga classes for eight weeks had greater reduction in depression symptoms versus controls

By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Oct. 26, 2023 (HealthDay News) — A weekly heated yoga session is associated with significantly greater reduction in depression symptoms than a wait-list control, according to a study published online Oct. 23 in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. 

Maren B. Nyer, Ph.D., from Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and colleagues evaluated the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of heated yoga to treat moderate-to-severe depression. The analysis included 33 individuals randomly assigned to eight weeks of yoga and 32 individuals randomly assigned to a control wait list. 

The researchers found that participants attended an average of 10.3 total classes during the eight-week period. A significantly greater reduction in the Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Clinician Rated (IDS-CR) score occurred among yoga participants from baseline to postintervention. Furthermore, greater treatment responses (IDS-CR ≥50 percent­ decrease in symptoms) were seen among yoga participants (59.3 versus 6.3 percent). Exit interviews showed participants rated the heated yoga and its aftereffects positively. 

“Heated yoga was associated with reductions in depression symptoms, even though on average, participants attended fewer than the prescribed at least twice weekly classes,” the authors write. 

Several authors disclosed ties to industry.

Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)

Copyright © 2023 HealthDay. All rights reserved.