Yoga Helps Lower Blood Sugars
New research shows that adding in this one simple practice – yoga – can help lower blood glucose by a significant amount.
In fact, several mind-body practices, such as yoga, meditation, qigong, and mindfulness-based stress reduction all showed significant blood sugar reductions. (The majority of the studies included in this meta-analysis focused on yoga)
The results showed that “mind-body practices led to an average reduction of 0.84% in participants’ hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c)…Yoga had the biggest impact on blood glucose levels, leading to an HbA1c reduction of 1%. The other mind-body practices studied also had a positive impact on blood glucose.” This was comparable to the effect of Metformin alone on HbA1c.
Including mind-body practices as a part of your self-care is about adding in, not restricting. It is a non-diet practice that is rooted in providing, not avoiding.
It also changes the conversation around movement — it is simply not true that “go hard or go home” is the only way to help blood sugars.
If trying yoga (or tai chi or meditation) is an idea you’ve been toying with but have been unsure if it will be useful in your self-care toolbox, now might be the time to experiment! As always, go at your own pace and give yourself time and patience to make changes that feel good.
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