RECENT RESEARCH
Mind-Body Intervention ( MBI ), which includes meditation , yoga , and qigong , has emerged as a tool for mental health management due to its effects on stress reduction and the promotion of mental and physical well-being . Here , we review the latest randomized controlled trials to determine the effects of MBI on glycemic control and the immune system and discuss the underlying mechanisms by which MBI facilitates the virtuous cycle of stress management , glycemic control , and immune modulation . Furthermore , we examine the actual utilization of MBI during the COVID-19 pandemic era through recent studies . With proper online education , non-pharmacological MBI may be more widely used as an important tool for self-health care that complements the usual treatment of COVID-19 patients and survivors .
Sharma K , Anand A , Kumar R . The role of Yoga in working from home during the COVID-19 global lockdown . Work . 2020 ; 66 ( 4 ): 731-737 . doi : 10.3233 / WOR-203219
Background : The COVID-19 pandemic has become a major cause of stress and anxiety worldwide . Due to the global lockdown , work , employment , businesses and the economic climate have been severely affected . It has generated stress among people from all sections of society , especially to workers who have been assigned to cater to healthcare service or those constrained to secure daily essential items . It is widely perceived that elderly or those affected by diabetes , hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases are prone to COVID-19 . As per an ongoing survey , the initial data shows that the above-mentioned anxiety and stress cause insomnia , and has the considerable potential to weaken the immune system , the sole protection against the virus .
Objective : This study focuses on the need of Yoga practice at work places and at home during the global lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic .
Methods : Literature was searched using PubMed and Google Scholar for COVID-19-related stress and anxiety at work and society due to the worldwide lockdown . The predisposing comorbidities , viral mechanism of action and treatment regimen were also searched . Yoga-based intervention studies and online programs were also searched .
Results : As the lockdown cannot last forever and workplaces will have to be functional soon , there is an increased possibility of recurrent infection . Therefore , Yoga can provide the necessary tool for risk reduction , amelioration of stress and anxiety and strengthening of the immune function . The online platforms provide a good media for Yoga training at work places and homes .
Conclusion : Due to social distancing norms , the availability of Yoga trainers has become restricted . Yoga practice is actively sought to achieve reduced anxiety and stress so that improved sleep may positively impact immunity . As a consequence , there is a spurt in social media , catering to daily online Yoga sessions which apparently prove useful in providing accessible means to achieve mental as well as physical well-being .
Umesh C , Ramakrishna KK , Jasti N , Bhargav H , Varambally S . Role of Ayurveda and Yoga-Based lifestyle in the COVID-19 pandemic - A narrative review . J Ayurveda Integr Med . 2022 ; 13 ( 1 ): 100493 . doi : 10.1016 / j . jaim . 2021.07.009
The COVID-19 pandemic has posed an immense challenge to health care systems around the globe in terms of limited health care facilities and proven medical therapeutics to address the symptoms of the infection . The current health care strategies are primarily focused on either the pathogen or the environmental factors . However , efforts towards strengthening the host immunity are important from public health perspective to prevent the spread of infection and downregulate the potency of the infectious agent . While a vaccine can induce specific immunity in the host , non-specific ways of improving overall host immunity are needed as well . This scenario has paved the way for the use of traditional Indian therapies such as Ayurveda and Yoga . This review aims at collating available evidence on Ayurveda , Yoga , and COVID-19 . Further , it draws inferences from recent studies on Yoga and Ayurveda on immunity , respiratory health , and mental health respectively to approximate its probable role in prophylaxis and as an add-on management option for the current pandemic .
Other COVID-19 studies
Crumpler D . The COVID-19 long-hauler conundrum : A new perspective . Townsend Lett . 2021 ; ( 460 ): 34-6 . Respiratory Tract Infections , RNA Virus Infections , Pneumonia , Fatigue Syndrome Chronic , Symptoms , COVID 19 .
A subgroup of COVID-19 survivors fail to return to normal after the viral infection has been vanquished . Like sufferers of chronic fatigue syndrome ( CFS ), they develop chronic multi-organ symptoms , including debilitating fatigue . With long-haulers , as was also the case for CFS for decades , the consensus appears to be that lingering viral fragments are stimulating an ongoing immune response However , a new model for CFS , based on oxidative stress , may provide a better understanding of the pathogenesis of the COVID-19 long-hauler syndrome .
Tokumasu K , Ueda K , Honda H , Sunada N , Sakurada Y , Matsuda Y , Nakano Y , Hasegawa T , Otsuka Y , Obika M , Hagiya H , Kataoka H , Otsuka F . Application of Kampo Medicines for Treatment of General Fatigue Due to Long COVID . Medicina ( Kaunas ). 2022 ; 58 ( 6 ): 730 . doi : 10.3390 / medicina58060730
Evidence regarding treatment for the acute phase of COVID-19 has been accumulating , but specific treatment for long COVID / post-COVID-19 condition has not yet been established . Treatment with herbal medicine might be one treatment option for long COVID , but there has been little research on the effectiveness of herbal medicine for long COVID . The aim of this study was to clarify the prescription patterns of Kampo medicines , which are herbal medicines that originated in China and were developed in Japan , for the treatment of general fatigue
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