Practicing yoga can aid stroke survivors’ recovery after rehabilitative care by helping to improve balance, according to new research in the American Heart Association journal Stroke.
The small pilot study found people who had suffered a stroke who learned to practice yoga significantly improved their balance, as well as scores measuring independence and quality of life.
For many stroke survivors, balance problems can lead to greater disability and a higher risk of debilitating falls, researchers said.
"For people with chronic stroke, something like yoga in a group environment is cost effective and appears to improve motor function and balance," said lead researcher Arlene Schmid, a rehabilitation research scientist at Roudebush Veterans Administration-Medical Center and Indiana University.
The study involved 47 people, most of them male veterans. One third of them practiced yoga twice-weekly for eight weeks; one third met twice weekly for a form of relaxation training; and the others had conventional medical care.
Yoga may be more therapeutic than traditional exercise because the combination of postures, breathing and meditation may produce different benefits, researchers said.