College students benefit from a little extracurricular yoga

Going to college means taking classes that enhance one's perception of the world and initiate a long process of professional and personal development. It also means undergoing some serious stresses, including deadlines, piles of homework, part-time jobs and internships. Dahn Yoga classes – or for that matter, any regular relaxation regimen – may help college students flourish.

A new study has determined as much. Research published in the journal Advanced Materials Research found that female college students who practiced yoga for six months experienced a number of mental and physical benefits from the routine.

Scientists at Handan College, China, monitored the health of several dozen collegian women over half a year. After regularly performing yoga during that time, the participants tended to have a better body weight, heart rate, waist circumference and ability to do simple exercises, compared to those who did not practice yoga.

The group's personal development did not stop at the physical level. A questionnaire found that volunteers rated themselves as less anxious or depressed after the yoga training.

Taking Dahn Yoga classes can have a similarly positive effect, in that the discipline's members often experience a surge in energy and vitality after an afternoon of breathing, stretching and meditation. 

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