Last Updated on June 28, 2021 by Dr Sharon Baisil MD
Pranayama is the best form of Yoga for diabetics. It is the perfect combination of stimulation and relaxation of the body that brings in proper activity and rest.
Exercise is a necessity for diabetics, and so is proper rest. The breathing exercises of pranayama help in fulfilling these needs of the diabetic body.
Breath control is good for the body and mind training that gives mental and physical development, treatment, and cure.
What are the types of Pranayama that are good for Diabetes?
Among the variety of pranayama exercises, these are some that can be very beneficial for the body:
- Anulom-Vilom – this is a deep breathing exercise that clears the mind. This nasal breathing exercise calms the mind as well as relieves stress.
It is done by alternate deep breathing from each nostril, holding the inhalation, and extending the exhalation period consecutively.
- Kapalbhati is a very significant exercise in keeping the body’s digestive system, metabolism, and weight under control. It helps reduce blood sugar levels and control all types of Diabetes.
Moreover, Kapalbhati is good for weight loss as well. This is also a primary need of the diabetic body.
- Bhastrika – this Pranayama is an efficient one in keeping the body’s hormonal levels under proper margins. This helps in keeping postprandial sugar levels at normal ranges. This is an excessive breath-focusing exercise.
- Bhramari – This pranayama yoga practice is focused on calming the mind. It involves encouraging breathing techniques that relieve stress as well as increase mental well-being. It is good for increasing oxygen levels and reducing carbon dioxide in the body. This, in turn, reduces impurities and stress from the body, which is essential in maintaining a healthy diabetic lifestyle.
What are the benefits of these pranayamas for the diabetic body?
Listed below are the many good effects of the Pranayama mentioned above on the body of a diabetic individual:
- As the root word is derived from – ‘prana,’ meaning breath empowering life, Pranayama is a vital energy source for the body. Energy is a crucial need for all and especially for diabetics as they need to balance out the amount of energy they derive from food with proper exercise.
- Diabetes is often accompanied by nerve damage and adverse effects on the nervous system that affect the functioning of many organs in the body. This can cause severe impairments. Effecting Nostril breathing techniques assist in keeping the nervous system calm and free from stress. This allows less buildup of tension in the nerves that otherwise eventually cause issues.
- These breathing exercises also promote weight management. Diabetic patients need to keep their body weight stable and within healthy limits.
- Pranayama brings and restores the balance of the body and mind in an individual. This is the base for the overall health encouragement and treatment of any ailment.
Is Bhujangasana good for Diabetes?
This is a common yoga posture that improves the body’s flexibility and helps with the correction of many other health issues. Diabetes is one of them.
It has been studied to have positive impacts on the diabetic levels of the body.
This posture is popularly known as the serpents pose or cobras pose. Apart from Yoga, it is also practiced as a stretching exercise.
How to do the Bhujangasana?
This posture is achieved by lying down on the floor on your belly. The legs are to be kept together and stretched backward. With this posture, keep your palms on the floor close to your chest and slowly stretch your spine back, taking your head up.
It is important to hold yourself upwards in this position and carry out deep inhalation and exhalation.
This brings a stretch in the spine and back, relaxing the joints and muscles.
What are the benefits of Bhujangasana for diabetics?
This posture, taken from Yoga, has several benefits for the body holistically. Given below are some helpful additions that Bhujangasana can bring to your diabetic health:
- It is good for preventing constipation and improper bowel movement issues. Keeping the digestive system healthy is very crucial for diabetic patients.
- It is a good exercise to prevent arthritis. This is a common chronic ailment that diabetics are more vulnerable to.
- It releases stress and fatigue.
- Also good for improved cardiovascular and respiratory functioning.
Why is Yoga Good for Diabetes?
Diabetes is a very common ailment in the modern world. It is increasingly observed in all age groups and places.
With the changing food habits as a diabetic patient, one also needs to include activities that enhance the overall immunity and maintain an active lifestyle.
Yoga is a primary way to fulfill this need of balancing all bodily requirements. It is useful in keeping the body fit and protecting it from many health risks.
Yoga is an ancient traditional way of medicine and treatment. It focuses on the balancing of all internal elements of the body. This helps in eliminating all problems from their roots. Moreover, it also increases the body’s safety and makes it less vulnerable to catch other diseases.
Yoga consists of several asanas and postures that help develop several organs and promote healthy blood flow. This is also very beneficial to the diabetic body.
Heightened blood sugar is often the cause of many other complications in the body. Yoga asanas can replenish the body with many resources to restore nourishment and assist in controlling Diabetes and its many accompanying problems.
How is Yoga Good for Diabetes?
The following are some effects including Yoga in your diabetic lifestyles:
- It helps regulate and reduce body weight. This is crucial in keeping diabetic health situations under control.
- The various postures assist in improving the body’s insulin sensitivity. This helps in better diabetic maintenance and also keeps high blood sugar levels under check.
- Yoga is also known to bring back balance and restore proper hormonal functions. This helps in keeping the pancreas right and healthy. It enhances the ability of the pancreas to produce insulin properly. It also improves overall circulation from the pancreas promoting better insulin production and release.
- The postures in yoga help to bring in better stimulation and movement in the body. This is ideal for diabetics as it will promote blood circulation to work better and increase all other organs’ functioning.
- It is also responsible for increasing muscular development and strength. The diabetic body needs this because blood sugar issues can hamper with joints and muscles of the body.
- It is also said to benefit the body by improving metabolism. This is crucial, especially for diabetics, as they need to properly absorb and release nutrients in the body to keep the blood sugars stable.
Along with these several benefits, there are many other advantages that Yoga can bring to the body internally, externally, and mentally.
It is also a good habit to keep the body sufficiently active in Diabetes.
There are numerous types and practices in Yoga. One such is Pranayama. It is one very commonly known and practiced form of Yoga.
What is the best time to do Yoga for diabetics?
It is said that the most recommended time to do Yoga is during the morning, on an empty stomach.
20 – 30mins of Pranayama can help the body in many ways. This should be made a regular habit for best results and constant health benefits.
References
- https://jaims.in/index.php/jaims/article/view/333
- https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40200-021-00751-0
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0091743517303043
- https://www.aiirjournal.com/uploads/Articles/2020/12/4814_28.Dr.%20Rajendra%20Y.%20Deshmukh.pdf
- http://www.ijcep.phcog.interactivedns.com/index.php/ijcep/article/view/217
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- https://www.yogapoint.com/therapy/yoga_diabetes.htm#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20basic%20preparations,levels%2C%20helping%20in%20diabetes%20treatment.
- https://www.artofliving.org/in-en/yoga/breathing-techniques/yoga-and-pranayama
