When you think about a solution for back pain, yoga probably is the last thing that comes to mind but a study was conducted using Iyengar yoga twice a week for 6 months and results show participants had less pain after the 6 months.
"I was having a lot of trouble with my back and the pain was going into my left leg where it was really bad," says Lynnmarie Kuntz, 62.
Kuntz was one of 90 people who participated in the Iyengar yoga study.
West Virginia University conducted the study.
Story by Macall Allen
Half of the people attended 24 weeks of yoga therapy and the other half, the control group, continued their standard medical care.
"Back pain is a thing that is different to treat and it's only been partially successful using the medical approach," says researcher Dr. Kimberly Williams.
Williams became interested in the Iyengar therapy approach after she experienced back pain of her own.
She says once she recovered she turned to helping people who had never done yoga.
The method of yoga uses principles of alignment and the use of props to get the most out of the poses.
"We're trained to learn to observe to know when people need adjustments and modification in the poses," says Iyengar yoga instructor Siegfried Bleher.
The study was published in Spine medical journal and shows that people like Kuntz can benefit and relieve their pain.
"I would like to knock on wood right now," says Kuntz "But no I don't have any more back problems at all the program really helped."
Several participants in the study have transitioned into the regular yoga classes.
Williams plans to do a larger study in the future adding a control group with group support using a larger sample size.
source: statejournal
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