SPOKANE, Wash., April 30 (UPI) -- Breast-cancer survivors practicing a type of yoga may help boost immunity, according to a study by Washington State University.
Iyengar yoga is a form of yoga that incorporates all of the components of physical fitness and focuses on structural alignment of the body as well as mental relaxation, according to study leader Pamela E. Schultz.
Beginner classes were conducted two times per week for eight weeks, and the women with breast cancer were told to practice once a week at home for a total of three yoga sessions per week. The researchers found that those doing the yoga had changes in the way their immune cells respond, which may be important for understanding how physical activity and meditative practices benefit the immune system.
The findings are being presented at the 120th annual meeting of the American Physiological Society in Washington.
