Signal Processing in Yoga-Related Neural Circuits and Implications of Stretching and Sitting Asana on Brain Function

Abstract

Lifestyle disorders and mental issues like stress, anxiety and depression have shown to have an adverse effect on cognitive skills. Most recent advances on brain–computer interfaces (BCI) research have focused on non-invasive neuroimaging techniques such as electroencephalogram (EEG) for understanding spatiotemporal and spectral characteristics of the brain associated with various cognitive tasks such as motor coordination, attention, memory, visual and auditory perception. To understand the neural correlates associated with static and dynamic yoga postures, a study using surface-based EEG technique was conducted among 70 healthy subjects randomized into three groups as control, experimental group 1 and group 2. As a reference for analyzing the effects of yoga, three cognitive tasks, namely digit letter substitution task, visual perception task and word memory task, were also accustomed to the participant’s post-EEG recording. Preliminary results on spectral analysis related alpha rhythms changes suggesting an increase in attention and beta rhythms increased as attributed in rhythmic learning. A t-test correlate also indicated that there may not be critical gender-based variations to these functions after yoga-meditation-based practices expanding possibilities in using techniques for stress reduction and wellness.