Laughter yoga versus group exercise program in elderly depressed women: a randomized controlled trial.
Summary of "Laughter yoga versus group exercise program in elderly depressed women: a randomized controlled trial."
BACKGROUND:
Laughter Yoga founded by M. Kataria is a combination of unconditioned laughter and yogic breathing. Its effect on mental and physical aspects of healthy individuals was shown to be beneficial.
OBJECTIVE:
The objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of Kataria's Laughter Yoga and group exercise therapy in decreasing depression and increasing life satisfaction in older adult women of a cultural community of Tehran, Iran.
METHODS:
Seventy depressed old women who were members of a cultural community of Tehran were chosen by Geriatric depression scale (score > 10). After completion of Life Satisfaction Scale pre-test and demographic questionnaire, subjects were randomized into three groups of laughter therapy, exercise therapy, and control. Subsequently, depression post-test and life satisfaction post-test were done for all three groups. The data were analyzed using analysis of covariance and Bonferroni's correction.
RESULTS:
Sixty subjects completed the study. The analysis revealed a significant difference in decrease in depression scores of both Laughter Yoga and exercise therapy group in comparison to control group (p < 0.001 and p < 0.01, respectively). There was no significant difference between Laughter Yoga and exercise therapy groups. The increase in life satisfaction of Laughter Yoga group showed a significant difference in comparison with control group (p < 0.001). No significant difference was found between exercise therapy and either control or Laughter Yoga group.
CONCLUSION:
Our findings showed that Laughter Yoga is at least as effective as group exercise program in improvement of depression and life satisfaction of elderly depressed women. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Affiliation
Department of Counseling, School of Psychology & Training Sciences, Allameh Tabatabai University, Tehran, Iran.
Journal Details
This article was published in the following journal.
Name: International journal of geriatric psychiatry
ISSN: 1099-1166
Pages:
Links
- PubMed Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20848578
- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/gps.2545
Medical and Biotech [MESH] Definitions
Laughter Therapy
Therapeutic use of humor and laughter to improve emotional well being in order to facilitate improvement in health.
Yoga
A major orthodox system of Hindu philosophy based on Sankhya (metaphysical dualism) but differing from it in being theistic and characterized by the teaching of raja-yoga as a practical method of liberating the self. It includes a system of exercises for attaining bodily or mental control and well-being with liberation of the self and union with the universal spirit. (From Webster, 3d ed)
Resistance Training
A type of strength-building exercise program that requires the body muscle to exert a force against some form of resistance, such as weight, stretch bands, water, or immovable objects. Resistance exercise is a combination of static and dynamic contractions involving shortening and lengthening of skeletal muscles.
Exercise Tolerance
The exercise capacity of an individual as measured by endurance (maximal exercise duration and/or maximal attained work load) during an EXERCISE TEST.
Housing For The Elderly
Housing arrangements for the elderly or aged, intended to foster independent living. The housing may take the form of group homes or small apartments. It is available to the economically self-supporting but the concept includes housing for the elderly with some physical limitations. The concept should be differentiated from HOMES FOR THE AGED which is restricted to long-term geriatric facilities providing supervised medical and nursing services.
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