Effects of moderate exercise on relieving mental load of elementary school teachers

Increased Mental Well-Being and Reduced State Anxiety in Teachers After Participation in a Residential Yoga Program

BACKGROUND Reducing stress in the workplace improves mental health. Teaching is of social importance, but it may receive inadequate recognition and rewards. The present study compared mental well-being and state anxiety in primary school teachers who practiced 15 days of yoga in a residential setting with those who continued their usual routine. MATERIAL AND METHODS We enrolled 236 primary school teachers to participate in the study. We assigned 118 primary school teachers (group mean ±S.D., age 41.5±6.0 years, 74 females) to the experimental group; they underwent 15 days of yoga training for 6 hours/day) in a residential yoga center. The non-yoga control group (group mean ±S.D., age 42.3±6.0 years, 79 females) consisted of 118 teachers who continued with their normal teaching routine. RESULTS After 15 days in the residential yoga program, there was an increase in overall mental well-being (p<.001) and lower state anxiety (p<.01) (repeated-measures ANOVA, followed by post hoc multiple comparison tests). At baseline, the non-yoga control group had higher levels of state anxiety, presumably related to their remaining in the workplace. CONCLUSIONS The study was a 15-day, comparative, controlled trial. The results show that after 15 days of participation in the residential yoga program, primary school teachers increased all aspects of mental well-being and had reduced state anxiety.

Effects of circuit exercise on autonomic nerve system of survivors after surgery of breast cancer

[Purpose] This study aimed to investigate the effects of exercise on the autonomic nervous system of breast cancer survivors by measuring heart rate variability during an 8-week circulation exercise program. [Subjects and Methods] This intervention study included 22 volunteer female participants, younger than 65 years, who were selected from patients who had been diagnosed with carcinoma in situ and primary invasive breast cancer, stage I-III, in accordance with the American Joint Committee on Cancer (2009) and had undergone breast surgery. [Results] Despite the statistically significant differences in the low-frequency range (log), the high-frequency range (log), the standard deviation of the N-N interval, and the root mean square of differences values, which are heart rate variability indicators after exercise, between the two groups, no statistically significant difference was found in the low-frequency range/the high-frequency range values between the two groups. [Conclusion] The improvement in heart rate variability during the 8-week circulation exercise program confirms the increase in the activity of the autonomic nervous system of breast cancer patients after surgery.

Aromatherapy Improves Work Performance Through Balancing the Autonomic Nervous System

OBJECTIVE

This study analyzed the efficacy of aromatherapy in improving work performance and reducing workplace stress.

SUBJECTS

The initial sample comprised 42 administrative university workers (M_age = 42.21 years, standard deviation = 7.12; 10 male).

INTERVENTION

All sessions were performed in a university computer classroom. The participants were randomly assigned into an aromatherapy group (AG) and a control group (CG), and they were invited to participate in a specific session only once. They were seated in front of a computer. During the intervention period, some oil diffusers were switched on and were in operation throughout the session with petitgrain essential oil for AG sessions and a neutral oil (almond) for CG sessions. At the same time, participants completed a computer task on a specific Web site typing on their keyboard until they had finished it. The single times were different for all participants and were recorded on the Web site as "performance time."

OUTCOME MEASURES

Before and after the intervention, participants completed anxiety and mood state questionnaires (the Stait-Trait Anxiety Inventory [STAI] and the Profile of Mood States [POMS]). Heart-rate variability (HRV) was measured before (PRE), during (20-25 min), and after (POS) the intervention to analyze autonomic nervous system regulation.

RESULTS

The AG performed the Web site task 2.28 min faster than the CG (p = 0.05). The two groups showed differences in the following HRV parameters: low frequency (p = 0.05), high frequency (p = 0.02), standard deviation of all RR intervals (p = 0.05), and root mean square of differences (p = 0.02). All participants in all groups showed a decrease from PRE to POST for STAI (p < 0.001), Tension-POMS (p < 0.001), and Vigour-POMS (p = 0.01) scales.

CONCLUSIONS

Aromatherapy (inhaling petitgrain essential oil) can improve performance in the workplace. These results could be explained by an autonomic balance on the sympathetic/parasympathetic system through a combined action of the petitgrain main components (linalyl acetate, linalool, and myrcene). The final effect could be an improvement of the mental and emotional condition by a combination of reducing the stress level and increasing the arousal level of the participants in terms of attentiveness and alertness.

Effects of exercise intensity on hypertension prevalence in Korean men with high sodium intake

[Purpose] The purpose of present study was to investigate the effects of exercise intensity on hypertension prevalence in Korean men with high sodium intake. [Subjects and Methods] This study was based on the data collected from 2007 to 2013 in the Korean National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey. A total of 8853 male adults were included in the analysis. The odds ratios for hypertension according to exercise groups were assessed by using logistic regression of each sodium intake group. [Results] Among the 8853 subjects, 6243 had an eating habit of 4000 mg or more sodium consumption per day, and 2619 had less than 4000 mg. Among the 2619 subjects with less than 4000 mg sodium consumption, 16.7% subjects were diagnosed as having hypertension. In the subjects with 4000 mg or more sodium consumption, compared to the no-exercise group, the moderate-exercise group showed a lower likelihood of developing hypertension, with an odds ratio of 0.63 (95% confidence interval, 0.47–0.85) after adjusting for age. In multivariate models 1 and 2, odds ratios for the likelihood of developing hypertension in the moderate-exercise group decreased to 0.63 (0.43–0.91) and 0.66 (0.45–0.96), respectively. [Conclusion] Moderate exercise is significantly associated with a lower likelihood of developing hypertension in cases of high sodium intake.