TY - JOUR
T1 - Regular mindful yoga practice as a method to improve androgen levels in women with polycystic ovary syndrome
T2 - A randomized, controlled trial
AU - Patel, Vishesha
AU - Menezes, Heather
AU - Menezes, Christian
AU - Bouwer, Stephanie
AU - Bostick-Smith, Chevelta A.
AU - Speelman, Diana L.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 American Osteopathic Association.
PY - 2020/5
Y1 - 2020/5
N2 - Background: Holistic approaches are needed to complement existing therapies for polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a common disorder affecting the health of reproductive-aged females. Objective: To determine whether thrice-weekly mindful yoga practice improves endocrine, cardiometabolic, or psychological parameters in women with PCOS. Methods: Thirty-one women with PCOS between the ages of 23 and 42 years and living in Erie County, Pennsylvania, were recruited for this randomized, controlled study arm, which was part of a larger 3-part investigation. Women were randomly assigned to either a mindful yoga intervention group or no intervention (control) group. Group classes were 1 hour, thrice weekly. Initial endocrine, car-diometabolic, and psychological measurements were compared with measurements taken after the 3-month intervention period. Measurements included free testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone, androstenedione, body mass index, waist-to-hip ratio, fasting blood glucose and insulin levels, and anxiety and depression scores. Results: Twenty-two women completed the 3-month intervention period, 13 in the mindful yoga group and 9 in the control group. Paired comparisons of pre-and post-intervention parameters indicated that women who completed the mindful yoga intervention had significantly lower free testosterone levels (5.96 vs 4.24 pg/mL; P<.05) and dehydroepiandrosterone levels that trended lower. Improved testosterone may persist for several months after completion of a 3-month, thrice-weekly mindful yoga intervention. Additionally, improvements were seen in measures of anxiety and depression. Conclusion: The improvements observed suggest that regular mindful yoga practice can be a useful complementary therapeutic option for women with PCOS, particu-larly for improving serum androgen levels, a hallmark feature of PCOS. This improvement occurred in the absence of weight loss and may persist even if there is a lapse in practice. (ClinicalTrials.gov No. NCT03383484).
AB - Background: Holistic approaches are needed to complement existing therapies for polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a common disorder affecting the health of reproductive-aged females. Objective: To determine whether thrice-weekly mindful yoga practice improves endocrine, cardiometabolic, or psychological parameters in women with PCOS. Methods: Thirty-one women with PCOS between the ages of 23 and 42 years and living in Erie County, Pennsylvania, were recruited for this randomized, controlled study arm, which was part of a larger 3-part investigation. Women were randomly assigned to either a mindful yoga intervention group or no intervention (control) group. Group classes were 1 hour, thrice weekly. Initial endocrine, car-diometabolic, and psychological measurements were compared with measurements taken after the 3-month intervention period. Measurements included free testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone, androstenedione, body mass index, waist-to-hip ratio, fasting blood glucose and insulin levels, and anxiety and depression scores. Results: Twenty-two women completed the 3-month intervention period, 13 in the mindful yoga group and 9 in the control group. Paired comparisons of pre-and post-intervention parameters indicated that women who completed the mindful yoga intervention had significantly lower free testosterone levels (5.96 vs 4.24 pg/mL; P<.05) and dehydroepiandrosterone levels that trended lower. Improved testosterone may persist for several months after completion of a 3-month, thrice-weekly mindful yoga intervention. Additionally, improvements were seen in measures of anxiety and depression. Conclusion: The improvements observed suggest that regular mindful yoga practice can be a useful complementary therapeutic option for women with PCOS, particu-larly for improving serum androgen levels, a hallmark feature of PCOS. This improvement occurred in the absence of weight loss and may persist even if there is a lapse in practice. (ClinicalTrials.gov No. NCT03383484).
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U2 - 10.7556/jaoa.2020.050
DO - 10.7556/jaoa.2020.050
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85083981234
SN - 0098-6151
VL - 120
SP - 323
EP - 335
JO - Journal of the American Osteopathic Association
JF - Journal of the American Osteopathic Association
IS - 5
ER -