Effects of Yoga Respiratory Practice (Bhastrika pranayama) on Anxiety, Affect, and Brain Functional Connectivity and Activity: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Frontiers in Psychiatry May 21, 2020 Morgana M. Novaes, Fernanda Palhano-Fontes, Heloisa Onias et al. 110 citations
Four weeks of Bhastrika pranayama, a yoga breathing exercise, significantly reduced anxiety and negative affect in thirty healthy young adults. Brain scans showed that the practice modulated activity in emotion-processing regions including the amygdala, anterior cingulate, anterior insula, and prefrontal cortex, and decreased functional connectivity between the anterior insula and lateral prefrontal cortex. Changes in connectivity between the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and right anterior insula correlated with changes in anxiety. The authors note these analyses were preliminary and exploratory.