Inactive elderly people’s gait speed and lower extremity strength were found to be improved by yoga in a systematic analysis of 33 randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Yoga did not appear to be superior to exercise or tai chi for frailty markers, though. Published in Annals of Internal Medicine is the review.
The burden of chronic illness, disability, and frailty is greater among older persons. Up to 50% of persons 80 years of age and older experience frailty, hence its prevention and management are top priorities in both public health and clinical practice. Yoga has been shown to increase balance and mobility in older persons and may be utilized as a management and preventative method.
To assess the available trial evidence on the impact of yoga-based therapies on frailty in older persons, researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School analyzed 33 RCTs with 2,384 participants aged 65 or older. The effects on frailty markers, such as gait speed, handgrip strength, balance, lower limb strength and endurance, and other physical performance tests, were examined by the authors. The researchers discovered that there was marginal evidence that yoga enhanced lower body strength and endurance when compared to control groups receiving simply education or who were not physically active. Less was known about the advantages for handgrip strength and balance. Despite the lack of a proven benefit for a specific yoga style, the authors advise doctors to recommend Iyengar-based methods with a home practice.