Neck Pain? Try Yoga
Thursday, February 14, 2013 at 6:36AM
Iyengar yoga has been proven to help ease back pain, and researchers in Germany and Austria recently investigated whether it could also help patients with neck pain. A study team at Berlin’s Charité-University Medical Center, as well as study centers elsewhere in Germany and Austria, assigned 38 neck pain patients to learn yoga, and 39 participants to an exercise group. Because of dropouts, only 25 patients remained in the yoga group and 28 in the exercise group. They all completed questionnaires about pain and discomfort when the study began, again at four weeks and after 10 weeks of participation. Results showed significant pain reduction in the yoga group, which the investigators suggested might be due muscle toning and the release of muscle tension stemming from the yoga sessions. The researchers concluded that Iyengar yoga could be as safe and effective a treatment for chronic neck pain as it is for low back pain. They noted that some 20 percent of the population suffers from chronic neck pain and conventional treatment, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication, doesn’t always work and can cause side effects including nausea and dizziness. The study was published in the November, 2012, issue of the Journal of Pain.
Reader Comments (5)
I do yoga daily, since my doctor put me on lipitor, I have pain in my arms and some joints etc., I told him, but he wants me to stay in the drug, because the benefits are greater. Any idess?
Gerda,
You may want to try a daily CoenzymeQ10 (CoQ10); it’s available over the counter. A Cardiac Nurse Care Manager, where I work, usually puts her patients on a daily dose between 80-120 mg.
Here is the info taken right from Dr. Weil’s website about CoQ10:
“Those who are taking statins to lower cholesterol are at particular risk for deficiency, because not only do statins reduce cholesterol levels, but they also block CoQ10 synthesis in the body. Low CoQ10 levels in patients on statins can contribute to the common side effects of statin therapy such as fatigue and aching joints and muscles.”
The above information is available on his link: http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/ART03367/Coenzyme-Q10-CoQ10.html.
Also, check out the Gaples Institute website, a wealth of Integrative Cardiology health information for better heart health (also promoted by Dr. Weil).
-Nancy
Ask him how he knows the benefits are greater.
CoQ 10. It takes a few months but works well to decrease the muscle pains associated with statins. No real downside to it.
Yoga has also significantly helped my lower back pain!