Immediate Effet of Nadishuddhi Pranayama on Brain Wave Coherence

Abstract

Background: Coherence is the condition of synchrony between the waves generated in different hemispheres of the brain. Brain Wave Coherence (BWC) is the recording of electrical activity of different brain waves from the surface of the skull. The BWC is associated with different cognitive processes and plays both critical and useful roles in Prāṇāyāma practice with wide range of functional significance. Objective: The study was designed to assess the immediate effect of Nādishuddhi Prāṇāyāma (NSP) on academic performance in university students through BWC analysis. Materials and methods: In this two groups (NSP and control) pre-post study, 30 subjects (15 NSP group) with 27.94±4.30 (NSP) and 22.88±4.05 (control) years of mean age participated. The BWC data were collected immediately before and after the intervention of NSP for yoga group and sitting quietly with the eyes closed for control group using Brain Master 2 Channel EEG version 2.0 for clinical from Bio Medical Instruments, Inc., Warren, Michigan, USA. Statistical analysis: Means, Standard Deviations, Shapiro-Walk Test and Paired Samples Test were used for analyzing the data with the help of SPSS-19. Results: The Paired Samples Test showed significant increase in gamma BWC (P=0.001) in NSP group compared to control group (P=0.105). There were no significant changes observed in other BWC rhythms. Conclusion: Significant increase in gamma BWC suggests that NSP is associated with enhanced learning ability, emotional stability, and reduced anxiety which may promote academic performance in university students. Although this preliminary research is promising, well-designed studies are needed before a strong recommendation can be made.