Certain Meditation, Yoga asanas (postures), and pranayama (breathing) practices may be
effective as supplemental treatment to novel Coronavirus, a new study has suggested.

The researchers from the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, Harvard University, University of California-San
Diego, and Chopra Library for Integrative Studies found that the anti-inflammatory effects of Yoga
and Meditation could make them adjunctive, or supplemental, to the treatment of
the novel coronavirus. They believe such practices can reduce severity of the
coronavirus infection significantly.

The paper was recently published
in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (JACM).

Earlier studies found that 90
minutes of Yogic stretching can boost two key anti-microbial peptides — β-defensin
and HBD-2 expression, which in-turn can contribute to a robust immune system.

The authors explained that they found evidence of stress and
inflammation modulation, and also preliminary evidence for “possible forms
of immune system enhancement, accompanying the practice of certain forms of Meditation,
Yoga, and Pranayama, along with potential implications for counteracting some
forms of infectious challenges.”

The researchers noted that
Yoga and Meditation may enhance the activity of Melatonin, which could be useful
to treat SARS-CoV-2 as it was found to be protective against lung injury
caused by a ventilator in animal models.