Researchers confirm what yogis have known for a while

When I first started my yoga teacher training, we learned about the use of neti pots. Neti pots are an old ayurvedic tool for cleaning the nose and sinuses. You fill the pot with warm salt water and run the water into one nostril and let it drain out the other. This practice has been used for a long time to clear clogged sinuses due to colds, allergies, and asthma.

Apparently, researchers at the University of Michigan thought the practice had some merit. They tested the use of saline sprays against the use of what they called "saline irrigation." The only difference between saline irrigation and the neti pot is the tool itself. Rather than a neti pot, saline irrigation is done with the use of a bulb syringe.

Specifically, the researchers randomly assigned 127 people with chronic sinus and nasal problems to either the saline spray or the saline irrigation. They found that the people who used the saline irrigation had less nasal discharge (i.e., snot) and reported fewer symptoms of stuffiness and congestion after 8 weeks than those who used only the saline spray. Their recommendation: nasal irrigation is a useful therapy for nasal and sinus symptoms.

So if you suffer from chronic sinus problems, you may want to add sinus irrigation to your regimen. And if you're into pretty things - there are a lot of lovely neti pots to try. It's not a dainty practice, but it sure saves on Kleenex.

Om Sweet Om

As a long-time yoga practitioner and instructor, I am always interested in new research on the benefits of yoga practice. Two recent studies suggest that yoga can both boost your mood and improve your migraines.

In one recent study, researchers compared the effects of one hour of reading to one hour of practicing yoga on brain functioning. They found the yoga practitioners had a 27% increase in GABA levels, while the readers experienced no change. GABA is the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system, and low levels of GABA are associated with mood disorders, including depression, anxiety, and manic-depression (bipolar).

In a randomized controlled trial of yoga versus self-care for migraine sufferers, the patients who were randomly assigned to yoga showed significant improvements over those assigned to self-care in headache intensity, frequency, and pain levels. The yoga practitioners also had significant reductions in symptoms of anxiety and depression and use of migraine medications compared to those in the self-care group.

Other research suggests that yoga can improve quality of life in breast cancer patients, decrease seizure activity in individuals with drug-resistant epilepsy, improve gastrointestinal symptoms in adolescents with irritable bowel syndrome, and improve chronic lower back pain. Sound too good to be true? Learn more and judge for yourself. Meanwhile I'll keep doing my sun salutations. Namaste.