Framed through the long COVID experience of a United Kingdom physician, this narrative delineates the neurobiological consequences of chronic stress and highlights the role of neuroplastic interventions in facilitating physiological and cognitive recovery.
Background: Sunlight offers significant health benefits; however, its therapeutic use among yoga and naturopathy physicians varies across India owing to differences in state regulations and training patterns. This study aimed to establish consensus-based guidelines for therapeutic sunbathing using the Delphi method.
Methods: This three-round Delphi study enrolled 25 yoga and naturopathy physicians, after obtaining ethical approval and informed consent. In Round 1, qualitative data were gathered through open-ended questions. In Round 2, key components were rated and ranked using a Likert scale. In Round 3, the focus was on building consensus on items that had 50%-70% agreement from Round 2.
Results: A total of 17 physicians completed all rounds. Consensus was reached on the definition, alternative names, types, indications, contraindications, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and adverse events associated with therapeutic sunbathing. Key findings included agreement on sunbathing duration of 20 minutes and preferred times of day (early morning and late afternoon). Comprehensive SOPs were developed for preoperative, operative, and postoperative procedures. High consensus was also achieved on the indications and contraindications of therapeutic sunbathing for various body systems.
Conclusion: In this study, standardized guidelines for therapeutic sunbathing were successfully developed, addressing the variability in practice owing to regional training differences. These guidelines emphasize safe and effective sun exposure practices tailored to patient needs and conditions, aligning with existing literature. To the authors' knowledge, this Delphi study is the first to provide comprehensive guidelines for therapeutic sunbathing in yoga and naturopathy, promoting standardized, evidence-based practices that enhance safety and efficacy. These guidelines should be personalized and adapted to evolving scientific evidence for optimal therapeutic outcomes.
Background: This study aimed to explore the lifestyle characteristics and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of patients with cardiovascular disease and examine the relationship between various lifestyle dimensions and HRQoL within this population.
Methods: The cross-sectional study analyzed patients with cardiovascular disease and healthy individuals. Data were collected through face-to-face interactions between April and June. The relationships among sociodemographic factors, health behaviors, and cardiovascular disease risk were analyzed using logistic regression, yielding odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals. An independent t-test was employed to compare the lifestyle and HRQoL of the cardiovascular and healthy groups. Furthermore, zero-order correlation coefficients and linear regression analyses were conducted to evaluate the association between health-promoting lifestyles and HRQoL.
Results: The cardiovascular group exhibited poorer outcomes in most health-related lifestyle components. However, regarding overall lifestyle, they led healthier lives than the healthy group. Moreover, a positive association was found between health-promoting lifestyles and HRQoL in the cardiovascular group.
Conclusion: This study revealed that patients with cardiovascular diseases adopted healthier lifestyles following their diagnosis compared with the control group. These improved lifestyles were linked to better HRQoL, underscoring the importance of lifestyle changes in managing cardiovascular diseases.
Background: Modern lifestyle trends, characterized by sedentary behaviours and poor dietary choices, have a negative impact on the physical and mental health of university students at graduation and post-graduation levels. This study aims to investigate the influence of outdoor activities, dietary habits, psychological wellbeing, physical activities, sleep patterns, and bad habits on the lifestyle of university students in India, with a focus on identifying significant differences in these habits among students and exploring the potential benefits of yoga and naturopathy in improving their overall health.
Methods: An online, survey study was conducted among 710 university students using a self-administered Google Form questionnaire. Responses were received from 600 students across 18 Indian universities. After excluding 94 participants, 506 responses were evaluated for the study.
Results: Limited participation in outdoor activities was observed, and students showed a lack of interest in physical activities such as yoga and exercise. Dietary habits showed moderate improvement due to growing awareness of healthy diets, although stress led some to overeat. High stress levels negatively impacted psychological health. Sleep patterns were disturbed, likely due to high screen time. Low involvement in alcohol consumption and smoking was reported.
Conclusion: Students are aware of the harmful impact of poor dietary habits, alcohol consumption, and smoking on physical health. However, many are excessively worried about maintaining their physical fitness, leading some to overeat under stress. Additionally, students show less interest in practicing yoga and exercise, and high screen time and unbalanced sleep patterns are prevalent. Therefore, incorporating yoga and naturopathy into one's lifestyle can improve physical and mental health by mitigating stress and promoting overall well-being.
Background: A standardized walking instructor training program and a peer-delivered practice intervention were provided to the residents of a local community to investigate changes in their awareness of appropriate walking activities and community walking environments.
Methods: A quasi-experimental design with a pretest-posttest design was used. Among the residents of the Hanbando-myeon, Yeongwol-gun, State of Gangwon, 303 men (64.5±13.2 years) and 329 women (64.7±13.7 years) participated in the evaluation before and after the peer-delivered intervention. A 96-hour training course for over 15 weeks was provided for first-level walking instructors of the Korea Walking Federation, in which 13 community members completed the training and obtained their qualifications. Additionally, a peer-delivered walking activity intervention led by a walking leader was performed three times a week for 72 weeks. To survey walking preferences and awareness of the walking environment, a questionnaire was administered before and 1 year after the training course. McNemar's test and paired t-test were employed to evaluate the effects of fostering walking leaders in the community.
Results: Significant improvements were found in the average number of steps per day (t = 7.54, p < 0.001) and awareness of the community walking environment (t = 2.26, p = 0.025).
Conclusion: Health promotion activities centered on community members can be an effective strategy for maintaining positive sustainability.
Background: Hamstring flexibility is essential for preventing and treating musculoskeletal injuries, particularly low back pain. Self-myofascial release (SMR) of the plantar fascia, a technique involving a tennis ball, is often employed to enhance flexibility along the posterior "anatomy train." However, its specific effect on hamstring and lumbar spine flexibility remains uncertain. This study aimed to investigate and compare the effects of single-session and multiple-session SMR of the plantar fascia with those of traditional hamstring stretching on hamstring and lumbar spine flexibility.
Methods: A quasi-experimental study was conducted involving 24 participants, who were divided into three groups: Group A (single-session SMR), Group B (multiple-session SMR), and Group C (multiple-session hamstring stretching). Flexibility was assessed through the seated reach test (SRT) and active knee extension.
Results: The study population was predominantly female (58.33%), and no significant baseline differences were observed between the groups. Immediately after the intervention, all groups demonstrated slight improvements in flexibility, with Group B exhibiting the most significant gain (mean increase of 0.82 inches in the SRT). At the 6-day follow-up, Group B maintained the highest flexibility level (mean SRT of 13.05 inches). Groups B and C demonstrated significant long-term improvements in flexibility compared with baseline (Group B, p < 0.001; Group C, p = 0.01).
Conclusion: Multiple-session SMR of the plantar fascia is an effective intervention for improving hamstring flexibility and range of motion of the lumbar spine. It can complement traditional stretching to enhance lower body flexibility and prevent injuries.
Background: Physical activity significantly increases the production of reactive oxygen species in the body. Molecular hydrogen has been shown to have safe and effective antioxidant properties on athletes. However, research on elite athletes is scarce.
Methods: A randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial was conducted with 22 female elite athletes participating in handball and skeleton sports. The first group received hydrogen-rich water (HRW)-generating tablets, whereas the second group consumed a visually and organoleptically similar placebo. Various assessments were performed during HRW intake, such as anthropometric and biochemical measurements, stress, and recovery parameters, as well as biomechanical testing.
Results: HRW consumption resulted inan increase in muscle mass and a reduction in fat mass (p < 0.05). However, HRW did not significantly affect stress or recovery rates, as determined by the Recovery-Stress Questionnaire-Sport questionnaire. However, the HRW group exhibited a significant increase in torque, particularly after an intensive exercise test (p < 0.05). Moreover, HRW intake led to a reduction in total creatine kinase, vitamin C, and beta-carotene contents (p < 0.05), whereas the vitamin E and interleukin-10 levels increased compared with baseline levels (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: The HRW-generating tablets were found to be safe and well-tolerated by the participants. These tablets also exerted ergogenic effects by reducing body fat percentage, increasing muscle mass percentage, improving maximal torque, decreasing muscle damage, and positively modulating the exercise-induced inflammatory and antioxidant responses to exercise. Although the mechanism of action of HRW remains unclear, these effects observed indicate its potential for diverse applications in high-performance sports.
Background: Respiratory muscle training (RMT) plays a vital role in improving respiratory muscle strength, mitigating inspiratory muscle fatigue, and influencing the metaboreflex mechanism, thereby enhancing cardiorespiratory endurance during sports. Performing endurance activities and using devices that improve lung function can delay inspiratory muscle fatigue and improve total sports performance. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of use of newly developed RMT devices under the golden ratio principle with conventional training on lung function enhancement in novice athletes, as well as compare a new RMT with conventional (CON) treatment.
Methods: This study included 12 participants who were allocated randomly to either the RMT or CON group (n = 6 each). Both groups were trained for 15 minutes daily for four weeks. Both groups were initially tested for respiratory pressures and capacities maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP), maximal expiratory pressure (MEP), forced expiratory volume in first second (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), and FEV1/FVC at baseline and post-intervention. Within-group and between-group comparisons were performed using paired t-tests and independent t-tests, respectively.
Results: The respiratory pressures of the RMT group after training (pre-RMT 425.00 ± 277.04 mmWC vs. post-RMT 541.67 ± 274.62 mmWC) were significantly improved (t = 11.07, p < 0.001) compared with those of the CON treatment group (pre-RMT 508.33 ± 217.75 mmWC vs. post-RMT 575.00 ± 229.67 mmWC). The new RMT device improved MIP, MEP, and lung function, with greater gains in FEV1 (pre-RMT 2.66 ± 0.74 L vs. post-RMT 2.86 ± 0.70 L) (pre-CON 3.04 ± 0.80 L vs. post-CON 3.06 ± 0.74 L), FVC (pre-RMT 3.03 ± 0.99 L vs. post-RMT 3.22 ± 0.94 L) (pre-CON 3.33 ± 1.06 L vs. post-CON 3.29 ± 0.99 L), and the FEV1/FVC ratio compared with both the RMT and CON treatment groups. Although the between-group differences in MIP and MEP were not statistically significant, improvements in FEV1 and FVC were significantly higher in the new RMT group than in the CON treatment group (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: The findings revealed that the RMT devices helped to improve respiratory pressures and capacities to enhance endurance among novice athletes. Furthermore, this golden ratio-designed device was found to help improve lung performance.
Background: Diet, physical activity, and general lifestyle modifications are implicated in metabolic pathway prevention and may improve some chronic diseases such as metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study is to measure the effectiveness of a short-time nutrition restriction regime combined with a daily practice of physical and creative activities on metabolic syndrome parameters, inflammasome status, and the compliance of the patients to the proposed scheme.
Methods: This pilot study analyzed 95 volunteers who took part in a residential one-week lasting experimental lifestyle period. The program proposed was structured in a four-day detox nutrition based only on vegetable products derived from organic, biologic, synergic, and integrated farming, without animal proteins, fats, and simple sugars. These four days were followed by a three-day fasting or fasting-mimicking diet, consisting of one or two hypocaloric meals based on complex sugars, vegetables, oleaginous seeds, and only in some cases vegetable proteins. Finally, a three-day "weaning" period was administered. During the whole period, 95 participants were offered a daily postural physical activity and a creative activity program. The basal data of the participants were collected (T0). A medical evaluation was conducted to collect the personal and anthropometric data. During this basal evaluation (T0), height, waist circumference, waist-to-height ratio (WtHR), glycemic value, and blood pressure were collected and reevaluated at the end of the 10-day experience (T1).
Results: The data were evaluated according to the three metabolic syndrome parameters (i.e., WtHR, glycemic value, and blood pressure). A significant improvement in the variables analyzed at the end of the program was observed.
Conclusion: This study revealed that a short integrated lifestyle program can influence some well-defined metabolic parameters and might decrease damage from metabolic syndrome.
Dentists are susceptible to work related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) due to the extensive hand dexterity and endurance required for performing various dental procedures. This systematic review will evaluate the randomized controlled trials that have implemented physical and cognitive ergonomic interventions in a population of dentists to prevent WMSDs. The research question was formulated by using the population-intervention-comparison-outcome format. Relevant articles were identified from various databases, such as PubMed, PubMed Central, and ScienceDirect. Two reviewers analyzed the study characteristics and conducted the final analysis of the five selected studies. The quality of the included studies was assessed independently by both authors using the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool. The risk of bias was assessed using RevMan software 5.4.1. In this review, five randomized controlled trials were included. The two reviewers demonstrated good agreement (κ = 0.63, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.45-0.821, p < 0.005) during the screening stage and very good agreement (κ = 0.8, 95% CI: 0.65-1.000, p < 0.005) during the eligibility stage. Studies incorporating physical and cognitive ergonomic interventions demonstrated a significant reduction in symptoms associated with musculoskeletal disorders. Cognitive interventions, when introduced early in a dentist's career, can raise awareness and guide them on the dos and don'ts of comfortable ergonomics while achieving patient-friendly treatment.
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