Background: Prehypertension is a state of high normal blood pressure. Obesity is a state of excessive accumulation of fat in body. Yogic exercises may be beneficial in prehypertensive obese people. Kapalabhati is kriya of hath yoga, which involves very fast respiration at 120 respiratory strokes/minute.
Objective: To find out the effect of 6 weeks Kapalabhati pranayama training on pulmonary and cardiovascular parameters of young, prehypertensive obese medical students.
Materials and Methods: Subjects were divided into two groups of 30 each. Group A (control group) comprised nonobese normotensive subjects, and group B comprised prehypertensive obese subjects. Pulmonary and cardiovascular parameters were recorded using computerized spirometer and impedance cardiovasograph, respectively. After training of Kapalabhati pranayama, subjects of group B practiced it for 1 min daily for 6 weeks. All parameters were recorded in group B before and after 6 weeks Kapalabhati practice and in group A as control group. Statistical analysis was done by One-way ANOVA and Tukey post hoc tests.
Result: Results showed significantly lower forced vital capacity (FVC), forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1), peak expiratory flow rate (PEFR), expiratory reserve volume (ERV), and maximum voluntary ventilation (MVV) (p < 0.05) and significantly higher inspiratory reserve volume (IRV) (p < 0.05) in group B before Kapalabhati in comparison to group A. After 6 weeks training of Kapalabhati, group B presented significantly higher PEFR and MVV (p < 0.05) in comparison to group A. FVC, FEV1, FEVI/FVC, ERV, and IRV were insignificantly lower in group B after 6 weeks Kapalabhati training in comparison to group A. In comparison to group A, all cardiovascular parameters were significantly higher (p < 0.05) in group B before training but did not show significant difference (p > 0.05) after 6 weeks training.
Conclusion: Results indicate significant improvement in cardiovascular and pulmonary parameters in prehypertensive obese subjects after 6 weeks practice of Kapalabhati.
Key words: Kapalabhati, obesity, prehypertension computerized spirometer, impedance cardiovasograph
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