Changes in vigilance, self rated sleep and state anxiety in military personnel in India following yoga

Shirley Telles,Sadhna Verma,Niranjan Kala,Ram Kumar Gupta,Acharya Balkrishna

doi:10.1186/s13104-018-3624-y

Shirley Telles, Sadhna Verma + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s13104-018-3624-y

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Journal: BMC research notes	Publication Date: Jul 28, 2018
Citations: 8	License type: open-access

Affiliation: Patanjali Research Foundation

Abstract

ObjectivesTo study the effects of 9 days of yoga on self-rated sleep, state anxiety and performance in a vigilance test among border security force (BSF) personnel. Seven hundred and twenty-two BSF personnel took part in the trial. They were all males, with an average age of 30.9 ± 7.4 years. All of them were involved in guarding the country’s border. They were deputed for 9 days residential training in yoga. Before and after training they were assessed for self-rated sleep, state anxiety and vigilance.ResultsThe results suggest the benefits of yoga in BSF personnel. The BSF personnel showed a significant increase in scores in the vigilance test, a decrease in state anxiety, and improved self-rated sleep.

Highlights

Military personnel face different levels of stress based on the nature of the role assigned to them [1]
The results suggest the benefits of yoga in border security force (BSF) personnel
The BSF personnel showed a significant increase in scores in the vigilance test, a decrease in state anxiety, and improved self-rated sleep

Summary

Introduction

Military personnel face different levels of stress based on the nature of the role assigned to them [1]. The factors which could influence stress levels are the work load, the exposure to direct combat and the place to which the personnel are deployed [2]. The BSF are most often stationed at high altitudes (i.e., 9000 ft above sea level), where they face social isolation while needing to be hyper vigilant [4]. Being hyper vigilant for long periods can negatively impact physical and mental health with impaired cognition (i.e., attention, concentration and memory) and sleep disorders [5]. The most common sleep disorder is insomnia. Apart from this, vigilance or heightened awareness [6] is associated with increased sympathetic nervous system activity [7], which over a period of time could lead to hypertension and other disorders [8]

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Results

Discussion

Conclusion