Translational Psychiatry
Title: Cognitive And Immunological Effects Of Yoga Compared To Memory Training In Older Women At Risk For Alzheimer’s Disease
Published 14 February 2024. Journal: Translational Psychiatry, vol. 14, Article number: 96, 2024.
Grzenda, Adrienne.; Siddarth, Prabha.; Milillo, Michaela M.; Aguilar-Faustino, Yesenia.; Khalsa, Dharma S.; Lavretsky, Helen
Conclusion: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of Kundalini yoga training (KY) compared to memory enhancement training (MET) in older women with cerebrovascular risk factors (CVRFs) and subjective cognitive decline (SCD) in terms of mood and cognitive functioning.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Use of Complementary and Integrative Medicine for Alzheimer’s Disease and Cognitive Decline
Published 07 December 2023. Journal: Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, vol. Pre-press, no. Pre-press, pp. 1-18, 2023.
Nguyen, Sarah A.; Oughli, Hanadi Ajam; Lavretsky, Helen
DOI: 10.3233/JAD-230710
Conclusion: This review summarizes the existing evidence using complementary and integrative medicine therapies in cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease. This includes the use of mind-body therapies, lifestyle interventions (nutritional, physical exercise, stress reduction), and other integrative modalities.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Impact of Yoga Versus Memory Enhancement Training on Hippocampal Connectivity in Older Women at Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease
Published: 29 August 2023. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, vol. 95, no. 1, pp. 149-159, 2023.
Kilpatrick, Lisa; Siddarth, Prabhaa; Krause-Sorio, Beatrixa; Milillo, Michaela; Aguilar-Faustino, Yeseniaa; Ercoli; Narr, Katherine; Khalsa, Dharma S.; Lavretsky, Helena.
DOI: 10.3233/JAD-221159
Open access article: https://content.iospress.com/articles/journal-of-alzheimers-disease/jad221159
Conclusion: KY training may better target stress-related hippocampal connectivity, whereas MET may better target hippocampal sensory-integration supporting better memory reliability, in women with subjective memory decline and cardiovascular risk factors.
Journal: Current Psychiatric Reports
Title: Complementary and Integrative Medicine for Neurocognitive Disorders and Caregiver Health.
Published August 13, 2022
Nguyen, S.A., Oughli, H.A. & Lavretsky, H. Complementary and Integrative Medicine for Neurocognitive Disorders and Caregiver Health. Curr Psychiatry Rep 24, 469–480 (2022).
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-022-01355-y
Open Access https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11920-022-01355-y
Conclusion: Overall, Complementary and Integrative Medicine therapies for older adults is a promising area of research, particularly as these interventions can be seen as a more preventative and oriented toward well-being and healthy aging.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Yoga Prevents Gray Matter Atrophy in Women at Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
Published 2022 Mar 11. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35275541. J Alzheimers Dis.
Krause-Sorio B, Siddarth P, Kilpatrick L, Milillo MM, Aguilar-Faustino Y, Ercoli L, Narr KL, Khalsa DS, Lavretsky H.
doi: 10.3233/JAD-215563.
Open access article: https://content.iospress.com/articles/journal-of-alzheimers-disease/jad215563
Conclusion: We were able to demonstrate that three months of KY training, combined with a daily practice of KK, had protective effects on brain regions known to undergo age-related cortical decline and may lead to improvements in anxiety and depression in older women with subjective cognitive decline and CVRFs.
Open access article: https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/DOI/epdf/10.1002/alz.12492
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Spiritual Fitness: A New Dimension in Alzheimer’s Disease Prevention
Published 11 May 2021, Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease 80 (2021) 505–519
Dharma Singh Khalsa, Andrew B. Newberg
DOI 10.3233/JAD-201433
Open access article: https://bit.ly/3bLWKEg
Conclusion: A growing body of evidence finds that targeting lifestyle and vascular risk factors have a beneficial effect on overall cognitive performance. A new review in a concept in medicine that centers on psychological and spiritual wellbeing, and Kirtan Kriya, a simple 12-minute meditative practice, may reduce multiple risk factors for AD.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease Reports
Title: Incorporating a Usual Care Comparator into a Study of Meditation and Music Listening for Older Adults with Subjective Cognitive Decline: A Randomized Feasibility Trial
Published 11 March 2021, Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease Reports, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 187-206, 2021
Kim E. Innes, Caitlin Montgomery, Terry Kit Selfe, Sijinc Wen, Dharma Singh Khalsa, Madison Flick
DOI 10.3233/ADR-200249
Open access article: https://bit.ly/33zb6U4
Conclusion: Findings of this pilot feasibility trial suggest incorporation of an EUC program is feasible, and that participation in a simple 12-week relaxation program may be helpful for adults with SCD versus engagement in an EUC program.
Proceedings of International Congress on Integrative Medicine and Health
Title: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of Meditation and Music Listening vs. Enhanced Usual Care for Subjective Cognitive Decline (SCD): Feasibility and Preliminary Efficacy.
Published April 28-May 1, Cleveland, OH (moved to online) Global Advances in Health and Medicine (epub 6/10/20).
KE Innes, C Montgomery, S Wen, DS Khalsa, M Flick (2020)
MindRxiv Papers: Open archive for research on mind and contemplative practices
Title: Emotional and Cognitive Improvement with Kirtan Kriya Meditation: A Pilot Study for Mild Cognitive Impairment Patients in a Catalan Community.
Published December 27, 2019
Cañete, Toni, Gloria B. Boneu, Silvia Ramos, and Dharma S. Khalsa.
Open access article: https://mindrxiv.org/y6fku/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22268968
Conclusion: The KKM group improved their psycho-emotional and cognitive health compared to CTP group. The yoga class elevated the perception of wellbeing. Further randomized studies are needed with a larger sample of MCI-diagnosed adults.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Effects of Meditation and Music-Listening on Blood Biomarkers of Cellular Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease in Adults with Subjective Cognitive Decline: An Exploratory Randomized Clinical Trial.
Published November 2018
Innes, Kim E.; Selfe, Terry Kit; Brundage, Kathleen; Montgomery, Caitlin; Wen, Sijin; Kandati, Sahiti; Bowles, Hannah; Khalsa, Dharma Singh; Huysmans, Zenzi
DOI: 10.3233/JAD-180164
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30320574
Conclusion: Practice of simple mind-body therapies may alter plasma Aß levels, TL, and TA. Biomarker increases were associated with improvements in cognitive function, sleep, mood, and Quality Of Life, suggesting potential functional relationships.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Meditation and Music Improve Memory and Cognitive Function in Adults with Subjective Cognitive Decline: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.
Published 3 February 2017
Innes, Kim E., Selfe, Terry Kita, Khalsa, Dharma Singh, Kandati, Sahitia.
DOI: 10.3233/JAD-160867
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28106552
Conclusion: Findings of this preliminary randomized controlled trial suggest practice of meditation or ML can significantly enhance both subjective memory function and objective cognitive performance in adults with SCD, and may offer promise for improving outcomes in this population.
International Psychogeriatrics
Title: A Randomized Controlled Trial of Kundalini Yoga in Mild Cognitive Impairment
Published January 2017
Harris A. Eyre, Prabha Siddarth, Bianca Acevedo, Kathleen Van Dyk, Pattharee Paholpak, Linda Ercoli, Natalie St. Cyr, Hongyu Yang, Dharma S. Khalsa and Helen Lavretsky. International Psychogeriatrics
DOI: 10.1017/S1041610216002155
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312383052_A_randomized_controlled_trial_of_Kundalini_yoga_in_mild_cognitive_impairment
Conclusion: The Kundalini Yoga group showed short- and long-term improvements in executive functioning as compared to Memory Enhancement Training (MET), and broader effects on depressed mood and resilience. This observation should be conirmed in future clinical trials of yoga intervention for treatment and prevention of cognitive decline.
Current Behavioral Neuroscience Reports
Title: The Neural Mechanisms of Meditative Practices: Novel Approaches for Healthy Aging.
Epub 18 October 2016
Acevedo, BP, Pospos, S, Lavretsky, H. Current Behavioral Neuroscience Reports. 2016;3(4):328-339. DOI: 10.1007/s40473-016-0098-x
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27909646
Conclusion: This review suggests that mind-body practices can target different brain systems that are involved in the regulation of attention, emotional control, mood, and executive cognition that can be used to treat or prevent mood and cognitive disorders of aging, such as depression and caregiver stress, or serve as “brain fitness” exercise. Benefits may include improving brain functional connectivity in brain systems that generally degenerate with Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and other aging-related diseases.
Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience
Title: Neurochemical and Neuroanatomical Plasticity Following Memory Training and Yoga Interventions in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment
Published 21 November 2016
Hongyu Yang, Amber M. Leaver, Prabha Siddarth Pattharee Paholpak, Linda Ercoli, Natalie M. St. Cyr, Harris A. Eyre, Katherine L. Narr, Dharma S. Khalsa and Helen Lavretsky. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience.
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2016.00277
Conclusion: Memory training over 3 months is associated with decreased choline levels in bilateral hippocampus and increased gray-matter volume in dACC, suggesting that behavioral interventions like MET may ameliorate markers of brain aging. These effects are somewhat modest, and would benefit from independent validation in larger samples and perhaps over longer-duration interventions. However, these findings suggest that engaging in cognitive activities and mind-body practices may affect the brain in positive ways, and may be combined as part of a multi-faceted approach to encourage healthy aging.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Changes in Neural Connectivity and Memory Following a Yoga Intervention for Older Adults: A Pilot Study
Published in May 2016
Eyre, Harris A., Acevedo, Bianca. Yang, Hongyu, Siddarth, Prabha, Van Dyk, Kathleen, Ercoli, Linda, Leaver, Amber M., Cyr, Natalie St., Narr, Katherine, Baune, Bernhard T., Khalsa, Dharma S., Lavretsky, Helen. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, vol. 52, no. 2, pp. 673-684, 2016
DOI: 10.3233/JAD-150653
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27060939
Conclusion: Yoga may be as effective as MET in improving functional connectivity in relation to verbal memory performance. These findings should be confirmed in larger prospective studies.
Complementary Therapies in Medicine
Title: A randomized controlled trial of two simple mind-body programs,
Kirtan Kriya meditation and music listening, for adults with subjective
cognitive decline: Feasibility and acceptability
Available online 5 March 2016
Kim E. Innes, Terry Kit Selfe, Dharma Singh Khalsa, Sahiti Kandati. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 26 (2016) 98–107
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ctim.2016.03.002
Conclusion: Findings of this RCT of a beginner meditation practice and a simple ML program suggest that both programs were well accepted and the practices are feasible in adults with early memory loss.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Effects of Meditation versus Music Listening on Perceived Stress, Mood, Sleep, and Quality of Life in Adults with Early Memory Loss: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.
Published online 8 April 2016
Kim Innes, Terry Kit Selfe, Dharma Singh Khalsa, Sahitia Kandati, Journal: Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, vol. Preprint, no. Preprint, pp. 1-22, 2016
DOI: 10.3233/JAD-151106
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27079708
Conclusion: Findings suggest that practice of a simple meditation or ML program may improve stress, mood, well-being, sleep, and QOL in adults with SCD, with benefits sustained at 6 months and gains that were particularly pronounced in the KK group.
Alternative and Complementary Therapies
Title: Integrative Therapies Essential for Addressing the Alzheimer’s Crisis: Foundation Awards $200,000 Grant to the University of New Mexico’s Section of Integrative Medicine
Moderator:, Hart Jane. Contributors:, Khalsa Dharma Singh, Prasad Arti, and Knoefel Janice.
Published Online Ahead of Print: January 20, 2016
February 2016, 22(1): 33-36. doi:10.1089/act.2015.29040.kpk.
http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/act.2015.29040.kpk
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Stress, Meditation, and Alzheimer’s Disease Prevention: Where the Evidence Stands
Dharma Singh Khalsa. Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease 48 (2015) 1-12 doi: 10.3233/JAD-142766
Published in July 2015
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26445019
To read the entire article http://content.iospress.com/articles/journal-of-alzheimers-disease/jad142766
Conclusion: Research suggests that KK enhances memory and reduces AD risk by improving sleep, decreasing depression, increasing well-being, down regulating inflammatory genes, upregulating immune system genes, improving insulin and glucose metabolism, and increasing telomerase by 43%; the largest ever recorded.
The Lancet
Title: A 2 year multidomain intervention of diet, exercise, cognitive training, and vascular risk monitoring versus control to prevent cognitive decline in at-risk elderly people (FINGER): a randomised controlled trial
Tiia Ngandu, Jenni Lehtisalo, Alina Solomon, Miia Kivipelto, et al.
Published online at thelancet.com on March 12, 2015
http://tinyurl.com/qztjdsh
Conclusion: Findings from this large, long-term, randomised controlled trial suggest that a multidomain intervention could improve or maintain cognitive functioning in at-risk elderly people from the general population.
Advances in Mind Body Medicine
Title: The Pillars of Alzheimer’s Prevention
Khalsa, DS, Gustafson, C.
2014 Summer;28(3):26-32.
Published Summer 2014
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25141356
Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience
Title: Effect of Meditation on Cognitive Functions in Context of Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases
Rafal Marciniak, Katerina Sheardova, Pavla Cermáková, Daniel Hudecek, Rastislav Šumec and Jakub Hort
Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience. 2014
Published 27 January 2014
https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00017
Conclusion: The results imply a positive effect especially on attention, memory, verbal fluency, and cognitive flexibility. Meditation can represent an appropriate non-pharmacological intervention aiming at the prevention of cognitive decline in the elderly.
Arizona Geriatrics Society Journal
Title: Kirtan Kriya Yoga Meditation: A New Dimension in Alzheimer’s Prevention
Khalsa, DS.
Arizona Geriatrics Society Journal. 2013; 18(2):12-16
Published October 2013
https://www.arizonageriatrics.org/assets/2013/
NIH Public Access, Author Manuscript
Title: Stress, Inflammation and Aging
Helen Lavretsky and Paul A. Newhouse.
Published September 1, 2013.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3428505
Aging Health
Title: A Pilot Study On The Effects Of Meditation On Regional Brain Metabolism In Distressed Dementia Caregivers
Kelsey L Pomykala, Daniel HS Silverman, Cheri L Geist, Patricia Voege, Prabha Siddarth, Nora Nazarian,Natalie M St Cyr, Dharma S Khalsa & Helen Lavretsky Aging Health Aging Health, October 2012, Vol. 8, No. 5, Pages 509-516 , DOI 10.2217/ahe.12.46 (doi:10.2217/ahe.12.46)
Published in October 2012
http://www.futuremedicine.com/doi/abs/10.2217/ahe.12.46
Conclusion: Meditation practice in distressed caregivers resulted in different patterns of regional cerebral metabolism from relaxation. These pilot results should be replicated in a larger study.
Psychoneuroendocrinology
Title: Yogic Meditation Reverses NF-Kb And IRF-Related Transcriptome Dynamics In Leukocytes Of Family Dementia Caregivers In A Randomized Controlled Trial
Black DS, Cole SW, Irwin MR, Breen E, St Cyr NM, Nazarian N, Khalsa DS, Lavretsky H. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2012 Jul 13. [Epub ahead of print]
Published in July 2012
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22795617
Conclusion: A brief daily yogic meditation intervention may reverse the pattern of increased NF-Kb-related transcription of pro-inflammatory cytokines and decreased IRF1-related transcription of innate antiviral response genes previously observed in healthy individuals confronting a significant life stressor.
International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry
Title: A Pilot Study of Yogic Meditation for Family Dementia Caregivers with Depressive Symptoms: Effects on Mental Health, Cognition, and Telomerase Activity
Lavretsky H, Epel ES, Siddarth P, Nazarian N, Cyr NS, Khalsa DS, Lin J, Blackburn E, Irwin MR. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2013 Jan;28(1):57-65. doi: 10.1002/gps.3790. Epub 2012 Mar 11.
Published in March 2012
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22407663
Conclusion: This pilot study found that brief daily meditation practices by family dementia caregivers can lead to improved mental and cognitive functioning and lower levels of depressive symptoms. This improvement is accompanied by an increase in telomerase activity suggesting improvement in stress-induced cellular aging. These results need to be confirmed in a larger sample.
Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine
Title: Effects of An 8-Week Meditation Program on Mood and Anxiety in Patients With Memory Loss
Moss AS, Wintering N, Roggenkamp H, Khalsa DS, Waldman MR, Monti D, Newberg AB. J Altern Complement Med. 2012 Jan;18(1):48-53. doi: 10.1089/acm.2011.0051.
Published in January 2012
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22268968
Conclusion: An 8-week, 12 minute a day meditation program in patients with memory loss was associated with positive changes in mood, anxiety, and other neuropsychologic parameters, and these changes correlated with changes in CBF. A larger-scale study is needed to confirm these findings and better elucidate mechanisms of change.
Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
Title: Cerebral Blood Flow Changes Associated with Different Meditation Practices and Perceived Depth Of Meditation
Wang DJ, Rao H, Korczykowski M, Wintering N, Pluta J, Khalsa DS, Newberg AB. Psychiatry Res. 2011 Jan 30;191(1):60-7. doi: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2010.09.011. Epub 2010 Dec 8.
Published in December 2010
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21145215
Conclusion: This study revealed changes in the brain during two different meditation practices in the same individuals and that these changes correlated with the subjective experiences of the practitioners.
Consciousness and Cognition
Title: Cerebral Blood Flow Differences Between Long-Term Meditators and Non-Meditators
Newberg AB, Wintering N, Waldman MR, Amen D, Khalsa DS, Alavi A. Conscious Cogn. 2010 Dec;19(4):899-905. doi: 10.1016/j.concog.2010.05.003. Epub 2010 Jun 8.
Published in May 2010
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20570534
Conclusion: The study was set to determine if there are differences in baseline brain function of experienced meditators compared to non-meditators. The observed changes associated with long-term meditation appear in structures that underlie the attention network and also those that relate to emotion and autonomic function.
Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease
Title: Meditation Effects on Cognitive Function and Cerebral Blood Flow in Subjects with Memory Loss: A Preliminary Study
Newberg AB, Wintering N, Khalsa DS, Roggenkamp H, Waldman MR. J Alzheimers Dis. 2010;20(2):517-26. doi: 10.3233/JAD-2010-1391.
Published in April 2010
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20164557
Conclusion: This preliminary study determined if subjects with memory loss problems demonstrate changes in memory and cerebral blood flow (CBF) after a simple 8-week meditation program. The meditation program resulted in significant increases in baseline CBF ratios in the prefrontal, superior frontal, and superior parietal cortices. Scores on neuropsychological tests of verbal fluency, Trails B, and logical memory showed improvements after training.
Nuclear Medicine Communications
Title: Cerebral Blood Flow Changes During Chanting Meditation
Khalsa DS, Amen D, Hanks C, Money N, Newberg A. Nucl Med Commun. 2009 Dec;30(12):956-61. doi: 10.1097/MNM.0b013e32832fa26c.
Published in June 2009
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19773673
Conclusion: The results offer evidence that this form of meditation practice is associated with changes in brain function in a way that is consistent with earlier studies of related types of meditation as well as with the positive clinical outcomes anecdotally reported by its users.
Journal of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine
Title: Integrated medicine and the prevention and reversal of memory loss.
Khalsa DS. Journal of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine
1998 Nov;4(6):38-43.
Published in November 1998
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9810066
Conclusion: Findings suggest that memory loss is not an inevitable consequence of aging and that Alzheimer’s disease can be prevented and reversed using an integrated medical approach.
Journal of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine
Title: An Alternative Medical Program Is Effective in Patients with Cognitive Decline
Khalsa, DS. Journal of Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine
1997 Vol 3, No. 4, Page 94
