Top 5 yoga asanas to beat diabetes

Top 5 Yoga asanas for Diabetes. Yoga for diabetes 

Yoga diabetes

Diabetes is a condition where a person has higher amounts of sugar in one’s blood leading to its passing through his/her urine. This is known to be caused due to a malfunctioning of the pancreas. Yoga, a practice widely known to help one stay healthy, can help with diabetes as well. Yoga practitioners say that treating diabetes with yoga involves two main factions. The first one being controlling one’s food while the other is the regular practice of yoga asanas. Here are a few details about the treatment of diabetes with yoga.

Diet:

In his book, ‘Yogic cure for common diseases’, Dr Phulgenda Sinha says that a proper diet is absolutely essential for a person with diabetics. He says that they should avoid fried, fatty, spicy, starchy and sugar-containing foods while they are practicing the yoga asanas. Eating on time and the right kinds of food is essential to the successful cure eating right.

Yoga asanas:

Since diabetes is a condition that is caused due to the malfunctioning of the pancreas, yoga asanas to help diabetics are aimed at helping the organ function optimally. The asanas also aim at increasing blood circulation (considering the fact that diabetes is a vascular diseases) and improve the functioning of the entire endocrine system.

Surya namaskar:

Made popular by none-other-than Kareena Kapoor, this set of 12 yoga asanas has a number of benefits for the body. It not only gently activates the entire endocrine system but it also helps the pancreas work properly. Surya Namaskar also helps strengthen the spine, hips, lungs and chest while increasing circulation of blood throughout the body. It invigorates the facial tissues, and stimulates the nervous system to work properly.

Ardhavakra asana:

This asana is aimed at making the organs of the abdomen and stomach function properly. It activates the adrenal glands, ovaries, pancreas and testicles. Ardhavakrasana also helps relieve constipation, backaches, stiffness around the neck and other spinal disorders.

Matsyendra asana:

Also known as the fish pose, this asana is great for your pancreas, thyroid gland, andrenal glands and testicles. The fish pose also tones the muscles of the abdomen and relieves disorders of the kidneys, intestines, bladder and pelvic region. A great asana for people with diabetes this asana does take a little practice but gets better with practice. Read more on how to do this asana.

Suptavajra asana:

This asana is an extension of vajrasana or the diamond pose. The sputa vajrasana as the name suggests is when you lie down while doing vajrasana. A little complex to do, this pose is great for diabetics. Suptavajrasana helps stimulate the cells of the pancreas and increases blood supply to the organ. This asana also helps resolve illnesses of the stomach, intestines, kidneys and spleen. It also relieves constipation and gas within the stomach. Read more about how to do this asana.

Dhanur asana

Also known as the bow pose, this asana is well known for its ability to increase sexual virility, stimulates the functioning of abdominal organs and strengthens the spine, hips and buttocks.

Yoga burn for weight loss

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Diabetes? Yoga to the Rescue

Know more about the important role of yoga practice in fighting a common condition called diabetes.

Diabetes – a name that is no longer foreign. These days, this condition can happen to anybody, irrespective of age, place, or genetic history. Yet, there’s nothing to fret about because the condition can be controlled with a little awareness and care. Good food, regular exercise, and a few minutes of yoga practice everyday – the three golden rules to remember if you are a diabetic.
But how to first find out whether you do have diabetes or not? Simple. Just look out for these common symptoms:

Are you unusually losing weight?

Do you need to pay frequent visits to the bathroom to urinate?

Do you feel hungry or thirsty too often?

If the answer to these is ‘yes’, it is quite likely that you have high blood sugar, either due to low production of insulin in the body, or lack of response from the blood cells to the insulin produced. In either case, it’s always good to consult a doctor at the earliest.
Diabetes can be classified as Type 1 or type 2 or it can even be gestational - occurring with pregnancy. Whatever the case, the earlier the condition is treated, the better it is for the individual. And for this, yoga and meditation, along with good lifestyle practices, can be your escorts.

How yoga can help fight diabetes

- Regular yoga practice can help reduce the level of sugar in the blood, along with lowering blood pressure, keeping a weight check, reducing the symptoms and slowing the rate of progression of diabetes, as well as lessening the severity of further complications. Let’s see how.

- Like for most lifestyle diseases, stress is one of the major reasons for diabetes.It increases the secretion of glucagon hormones in the body, responsible for increasing blood glucose levels. Consistent practice of yoga asanas (body postures), pranayamas (breathing exercises) and a few minutes of daily meditation can help reduce stress in the mind and body. This, in turn, reduces glucagons and can also help improve insulin action.

- The practice of yoga is also proven to reduce weight as well as control increasing weight, which is particularly important to keep diabetes in check.Sun Salutation and Kapal Bhati pranayama are one of the best ways to weight loss.

- Diabetes can also be worsened with the occurrence of high blood pressure, or hypertension. Yoga asanas, such as the Corpse Pose, Bridge Pose, Child Pose, and Yoga Nidra are all helpful in controlling hypertension.

- Other yoga postures that are helpful in diabetes include Vajrasana (kneeling pose), Shoulder Stand, Plow Pose, Lying-Down Body Twist, Bow Posture, Two-Legged Forward Bend, and Sitting Half-Spinal Twist.

- Nadi Shodhan Pranayama is also good for diabetics. It helps release stress and flush out toxins from the body. Another excellent technique to combat diabetes is a unique breathing technique, Sudarshan Kriya, designed by Sri SriRavi Shankar. It has helped several diabetics across the world reduce blood glucose levels and control their condition from getting worse. You can learn the technique at an Art of Living Part-1 program.

- A few minutes of regular meditation practice also acts as an excellent stress-buster for the mind and body. Interestingly, while stress is the major cause of diabetes, the condition in turn results in patients getting highly stressed about it, which further aggravates the problem. It has also been observed that most diabetics lose self-confidence and end up brooding over their condition. This is where meditation can help – restoring their confidence levels so that they gain the strength to fight the condition and live well.

- Craving for sweets is a common occurrence in diabetes. Regular practice of meditation can help drop such cravings to a large extent.

Regular exercise helps

Diabetes happens because the blood cells do not respond to insulin produced. When you follow a regular exercise regimen, your body starts responding to insulin, helping in reducing blood glucose, and also sometimes the dosage of medication required.

- Exercise helps improve blood circulation in the system, particularly in the arms and legs, where diabetic patients mostly complain of problems.

- It is an excellent way to fight stress, both at the body and mind level, which in turn helps keep glucose levels down.

- Regular exercise patterns can be extremely beneficial to older patients with diabetes. In their case, the condition is partly due to lack of physical activity. A few minutes of brisk walking and joint movements, coupled with some gentle yoga postures – Triangle Pose, Standing Spinal Twist, and Butterfly Pose – followed by relaxation in yoga nidra can help.

Eating right matters

The type of food you eat and how much can be greatly responsible for diabetes and other lifestyle diseases. It is therefore important to:

- Eat at least three meals a day, along with one or two snacks evenly spaced out throughout the day.

- As far as possible, have each meal/snack at about the same time every day.

- Avoid skipping your meals.

- Keep about the same amount of carbohydrate intake in each meal every day.
You may consult a Sri Sri Ayurveda doctor to know the ideal amount of food intake as also the types of food recommended for you.

Bhara Bhindi (Stuffed Okra) for Diabetics Bhindi (Okra) - 250 gms, slit Coconut- 1 1/2 tbsp Pumpkin - 2 tbsp Fresh coriander - 1 tbsp Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp Black pepper powder - 1/4tsp Turmeric - 1/2 tsp Rock salt - as per taste Anaradana (dry pomegranate seeds) or fresh grated Amla(Indian gooseberry) - 1/2 tsp Garam masala - 1/4 tsp Slit the Bhindi horizontally Mix coconut and all spices to make the stuffing Stuff the Bhindi and steam it for eight minutes Serve hot                                                                                              source: artofliving Learn More about Yoga :