Skip to main content

Neurobiological Effects of Yoga on Stress Reactivity

  • 275 Accesses

Abstract

Underlines the science behind the pathophysiological effects of stress including the neural changes. This chapter outlines the pathophysiological effects of stress, including neral changes. It covers the stress response, the impact of persistent stress, yoga asana and stress regulation, yoga asana and autonomic measures, cytokines and cortisol.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Buying options

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • DOI: 10.1007/978-981-16-6913-2_10
  • Chapter length: 6 pages
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
eBook
USD   139.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • ISBN: 978-981-16-6913-2
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
Hardcover Book
USD   179.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)

References

  1. Iyengar BKS. Light on yoga. New York, NY: Schocken Books; 1994.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Penman S, et al. Yoga in Australia: results of a national survey. Int J Yoga. 2012;5(2):92–101.

    CrossRef  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  3. Clarke TC, et al. Trends in the use of complementary health approaches among adults: United States, 2002-2012. Natl Health Stat Report. 2015;(79):1–16.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Nerurkar A, et al. When conventional medical providers recommend unconventional medicine: results of a national study. Arch Intern Med. 2011;171(9):862–4.

    CrossRef  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. Wardle J, Adams J, Sibbritt D. Referral to yoga therapists in rural primary health care: a survey of general practitioners in rural and regional New South Wales, Australia. Int J Yoga. 2014;7(1):9–16.

    CrossRef  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. Charmandari E, Tsigos C, Chrousos G. Endocrinology of the stress response. Annu Rev Physiol. 2005;67:259–84.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Nesse RM, Bhatnagar S, Ellis B. Evolutionary origins and functions of the stress response system. In: Stress: concepts, cognition, emotion, and behavior handbook of stress series. Academic Press; 2016. p. 95–101.

    Google Scholar 

  8. Herman JP, et al. Regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical stress response. Compr Physiol. 2016;6(2):603–21.

    CrossRef  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Olshansky B, et al. Parasympathetic nervous system and heart failure: pathophysiology and potential implications for therapy. Circulation. 2008;118(8):863–71.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Mendes WB. Autonomic nervous system. In: Harmon-Jones E, Beer J, editors. Methods in the neurobiology of social and personality psychology. Guilford Press; 2009.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Buijs RM. The autonomic nervous system: a balancing act. Handb Clin Neurol. 2013;117:1–11.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Ortiga-Carvalho TM, et al. Hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid axis. Compr Physiol. 2016;6(3):1387–428.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Myers B, McKlveen JM, Herman JP. Neural regulation of the stress response: the many faces of feedback. Cell Mol Neurobiol. 2012; https://doi.org/10.1007/s10571-012-9801-y.

  14. Hiller-Sturmhofel S, Bartke A. The endocrine system: an overview. Alcohol Health Res World. 1998;22(3):153–64.

    CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  15. De Kloet ER, et al. Brain corticosteroid receptor balance in health and disease. Endocr Rev. 1998;19(3):269–301.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Stephens MA, Wand G. Stress and the HPA axis: role of glucocorticoids in alcohol dependence. Alcohol Res. 2012;34(4):468–83.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  17. Iwata M, Ota KT, Duman RS. The inflammasome: pathways linking psychological stress, depression, and systemic illnesses. Brain Behav Immun. 2013;31:105–14.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Varghese FP, Brown ES. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in major depressive disorder: a brief primer for primary care physicians. Prim Care Companion J Clin Psychiatry. 2001;3(4):151–5.

    CrossRef  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  19. Ulrich-Lai YM, et al. Chronic stress induces adrenal hyperplasia and hypertrophy in a subregion-specific manner. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2006;291(5):E965–73.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Silverman MN, Sternberg EM. Glucocorticoid regulation of inflammation and its functional correlates: from HPA axis to glucocorticoid receptor dysfunction. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2012;1261:55–63.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  21. Kunz-Ebrecht SR, et al. Differences in cortisol awakening response on work days and weekends in women and men from the Whitehall II cohort. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2004;29(4):516–28.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Mackin P. The role of cortisol and depression: exploring new opportunities for treatments. Psychiatr Times. 2004;21(6):92.

    Google Scholar 

  23. Cohen S, et al. Chronic stress, glucocorticoid receptor resistance, inflammation, and disease risk. Proc Natl Acad Sci. 2012;109(16):5995–9.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  24. Gądek-Michalska A, et al. Influence of chronic stress on brain corticosteroid receptors and HPA axis activity. Pharmacol Rep. 2013;65(5):1163–75.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Herman JP, Watson SJ, Spencer RL. Defense of adrenocorticosteroid receptor expression in rat hippocampus: effects of stress and strain. Endocrinology. 1999;140(9):3981–91.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  26. Gómez F, et al. Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal response to chronic stress in five inbred rat strains: differential responses are mainly located at the adrenocortical level. Neuroendocrinology. 1996;63(4):327–37.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  27. Herman JP, Adams D, Prewitt C. Regulatory changes in neuroendocrine stress-integrative circuitry produced by a variable stress paradigm. Neuroendocrinology. 1995;61(2):180–90.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Gray M, Bingham B, Viau V. A comparison of two repeated restraint stress paradigms on hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis habituation, gonadal status and central neuropeptide expression in adult male rats. J Neuroendocrinol. 2010;22(2):92–101.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. McEwen BS, Nasca C, Gray JD. Stress effects on neuronal structure: hippocampus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2016;41(1):3.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. McEwen BS, Morrison JH. The brain on stress: vulnerability and plasticity of the prefrontal cortex over the life course. Neuron. 2013;79(1):16–29.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  31. LeDoux J. The amygdala. Curr Biol. 2007;17(20):R868–74.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Ventriglio A, et al. Early-life stress and psychiatric disorders: epidemiology, neurobiology and innovative pharmacological targets. Curr Pharm Des. 2015;21(11):1379–87.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  33. Herbert J. Cortisol and depression: three questions for psychiatry. Psychol Med. 2013;43(3):449–69.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  34. Raison CL, Capuron L, Miller AH. Cytokines sing the blues: inflammation and the pathogenesis of depression. Trends Immunol. 2006;27(1):24–31.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Berk M, et al. So depression is an inflammatory disease, but where does the inflammation come from? BMC Med. 2013;11:200.

    CrossRef  PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  36. Dantzer R. Depression and inflammation: an intricate relationship. Biol Psychiatry. 2012;71(1):4–5.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  37. Riley KE, Park CL. How does yoga reduce stress? A systematic review of mechanisms of change and guide to future inquiry. Health Psychol Rev. 2015;9(3):379–96.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Farmer J. Yoga body: the origins of modern posture practice. Rev Am Hist. 2012;40(1):145–58.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  39. Pflueger LW. Yoga body: the origins of modern posture practice. Relig Stud Rev. 2011;37(3):235.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  40. Travis F, Pearson C. Pure consciousness: distinct phenomenological and physiological correlates of “consciousness itself”. Int J Neurosci. 2000;100(1-4):77–89.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  41. Pascoe MC, Thompson DR, Ski CF. Yoga, mindfulness-based stress reduction and stress-related physiological measures: a meta-analysis. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2017;86:152–68.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  42. Wong GW, Wright JM. Blood pressure lowering efficacy of nonselective beta-blockers for primary hypertension. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2014;2:CD007452.

    Google Scholar 

  43. Turnbull F, Blood Pressure C, Lowering Treatment Trialists. Effects of different blood-pressure-lowering regimens on major cardiovascular events: results of prospectively-designed overviews of randomised trials. Lancet. 2003;362(9395):1527–35.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  44. Kelley GA, Kelley KA, Tran ZV. Aerobic exercise and resting blood pressure: a meta-analytic review of randomized, controlled trials. Prev Cardiol. 2001;4(2):73–80.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  45. Tyagi A, Cohen M. Yoga and heart rate variability: a comprehensive review of the literature. Int J Yoga. 2016;9(2):97.

    CrossRef  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  46. Breit S, et al. Vagus nerve as modulator of the brain–gut axis in psychiatric and inflammatory disorders. Front Psych. 2018;9:44.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  47. Posadzki P, et al. Yoga for heart rate variability: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. Appl Psychophysiol Biofeedback. 2015;40(3):239–49.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  48. Shaffer F, Ginsberg J. An overview of heart rate variability metrics and norms. Front Public Health. 2017;5:258.

    CrossRef  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  49. Ruzek MC, et al. Characterization of early cytokine responses and an interleukin (IL)-6–dependent pathway of endogenous glucocorticoid induction during murine cytomegalovirus infection. J Exp Med. 1997;185(7):1185–92.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  50. Lemay LG, Vander AJ, Kluger MJ. The effects of psychological stress on plasma interleukin-6 activity in rats. Physiol Behav. 1990;47(5):957–61.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  51. Dhabhar FS, et al. Stress-induced changes in blood leukocyte distribution. Role of adrenal steroid hormones. J Immunol. 1996;157(4):1638–44.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  52. Turnbull AV, Rivier CL. Regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis by cytokines: actions and mechanisms of action. Physiol Rev. 1999;79(1):1–71.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. Salim S, Chugh G, Asghar M. Inflammation in anxiety. Adv Protein Chem Struct Biol. 2012;88:1–25.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  54. Petrovsky N. Towards a unified model of neuroendocrine–immune interaction. Immunol Cell Biol. 2001;79(4):350–7.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  55. Steensberg A, et al. IL-6 enhances plasma IL-1ra, IL-10, and cortisol in humans. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2003;285(2):E433–7.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  56. Elenkov IJ, Chrousos GP. Stress hormones, Th1/Th2 patterns, pro/anti-inflammatory cytokines and susceptibility to disease. Trends Endocrinol Metab. 1999;10(9):359–68.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  57. Chrousos GP. The hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis and immune-mediated inflammation. N Engl J Med. 1995;332(20):1351–63.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  58. Reichlin S. Neuroendocrine-immune interactions. N Engl J Med. 1993;329(17):1246–53.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  59. Miller GE, Cohen S, Ritchey AK. Chronic psychological stress and the regulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines: a glucocorticoid-resistance model. Health Psychol. 2002;21(6):531.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  60. Nijm J, Jonasson L. Inflammation and cortisol response in coronary artery disease. Ann Med. 2009;41(3):224–33.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  61. Djalilova DM, et al. Impact of yoga on inflammatory biomarkers: a systematic review. Biol Res Nurs. 2019;21(2):198–209.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  62. Barker ET, et al. Daily stress and cortisol patterns in parents of adult children with a serious mental illness. Health Psychol. 2012;31(1):130–4.

    CrossRef  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  63. Staufenbiel SM, et al. Hair cortisol, stress exposure, and mental health in humans: a systematic review. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2013;38(8):1220–35.

    CrossRef  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  64. Smith JA, et al. Is there more to yoga than exercise? Altern Ther Health Med. 2011;17(3):22–9.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michaela C. Pascoe .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this chapter

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Pascoe, M.C., Thompson, D.R., Ski, C.F. (2022). Neurobiological Effects of Yoga on Stress Reactivity. In: Basu-Ray, I., Mehta, D. (eds) The Principles and Practice of Yoga in Cardiovascular Medicine. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-6913-2_10

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-6913-2_10

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-16-6912-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-16-6913-2

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)