A collaborative project between the Spaulding Rehabilitation Network and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) will examine the effect of yogic breathing (pranayama) on cardiovascular health. The study will be led by Dr. Suzie Bertisch, a clinician-investigator who specializes in sleep issues at BIDMC. Bertisch and her team of researchers are currently seeking and enrolling healthy yoga practitioners in the project.

“Many claims are made about the ways in which yoga and similar meditative practices improve cardiovascular health, yet few high-quality scientific studies support these claims,” says Bertisch. “Improving our understanding of the mechanisms of yoga will help to promote its practice and, more importantly, to integrate the practice into mainstream medicine.” Bertisch adds that doctors have only recently begun trying to understand and document the physiological benefits of a regular yoga practice.

Location: Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, 1575 Cambridge St., Cambridge. For more information, call 617-754-1439 or email [email protected].