Health Benefits of Kapalbhati Pranayam in Yoga – Femina

If you want to detoxify your body and fight such diseases as PCOS and diabetes, kapalbhati pranayam should be part and parcel of your health regimen. Here are the kapalbhati benefits that can stand you in good stead when you embark on executing a comprehensive health plan.

Essentially, it's a complex form of pranayam. To be precise, it is a set of rapid breathing techniques that have been an inextricable part of yoga since time immemorial. This yogic breathing exercise seeks to rid your body of harmful toxins. In fact, 'Kapal' means 'forehead' and 'bhati' denotes 'shining'. So, according to yoga experts, kapalbhati is something that ensures a 'shining forehead', a symbol of a bright and healthy mind.

Tip: Know the difference between kapalbhati and other forms of breathing exercises.

There are online tutorials galore on how to do kapalbhati. But it will certainly be better if you learn it from a yoga guru - a one-on-one kapalbhati tutorial can be more effective, according to experts. But, overall, there are some basic steps to follow, in order to enjoy the benefits of kapalbhati.

First of all, practise kapalbhati yoga on an empty stomach. Sit in a meditative pose - you can choose vajrasana or padmasana. Keep your palms on your folded knees, don't clutch them - keep them open, facing the ceiling. Keep your spine straight. Inhale and then breathe out, while pulling your stomach in.

Be relaxed while you breathe in and breathe out. Repeat this 20 times, which normally account for one set of kapalbhati breathing exercises. Initially, you can do a couple of sets of kapalbhati. You can enjoy the kapalbhati benefits only when you follow the techniques to the T.

Tip: Focus on your breathing and do not get distracted while doing kapalbhati.

Basically, there are three kinds of kapalbhati and the benefits are more or less the same. The basic form of kapalbhati that we discussed above is generally known as Vatakrama Kapalbhati, where the accent is entirely on how you are breathing - rapidly, pulling your stomach in and in short bursts. Then there is a variety called the Vyutkrama Kapalbhati, which needs you to take in water through your nostrils and spit it out through your mouth.

Sheetkrama Kapalbhati, on the other hand, needs you to take in water through your mouth and let it out through your nostrils. Needless to say, the last two varieties need a fair amount of training and practise.

Tip: Do not try Vyutkrama and Sheetkrama on your own - learn from an expert first.

In a 2016 article, published in the International Journal of Yoga, researchers say, "Deep inhalation makes the dead space of the lungs active, thus improving oxygenation of tissues and cleanses the body as a whole."

There's one school of experts who believe that over 80 per cent of the toxins in our body are released while exhaling during pranayam. So, kapalbhati, being a more rigorous form of pranayam, can detoxify our body almost entirely. Therefore, removing toxins is one of the celebrated kapalbhati benefits.

Tip: Practise kapalbhati to protect your lungs against toxic air, thanks to rising pollution levels.

Yes, kapalbhati can make you lose weight. But first, you need to know how kapalbhati can fight a condition called Metabolic Syndrome (MS). To put it simply, MS is a medical term that describes a cocktail of conditions such as obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure. MS can expose you to a higher risk of coronary heart diseases, among other things.

A 2016 study, carried in the International Journal of Yoga (IJOY), says, "Kapalabhati is considered as a form of abdominal-respiratory-autonomic exercise which stimulates the respiratory, abdominal and gastrointestinal receptors. Since kapalabhati induces a positive influence on the centres within the skull, the vital areas of the brainstem, cortex, their efferent pathways, and effector organs may also get stimulated. As a result, the synchronous discharge from the autonomic nervous system, pineal gland, and hypothalamus that regulate the endocrine and metabolic processes increases which, in turn, accelerates fat metabolism.

This eventually increases basal metabolic rate, reduces fat deposition, and ultimately ends up in weight reduction." In other words, by improving metabolic rate, kapalbhati can lead to weight loss. Indeed this can be a wonderful kapalbhati benefit.

Tip: Incorporate kapalbhati in your weight loss strategies.

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) can wreak havoc on your overall well-being. To put it simply, PCOS is a complex condition affecting several organs, including the hypothalamus, the pituitary glands, ovaries, pancreas, peripheral glucose-sensitive tissues, and skin. Whats more, the symptoms of PCOS vary from woman to woman, in terms of even the severity with which they manifest. Although no study has conclusively proved that breathing exercises such as kapalbhati can cure PCOS, we can perhaps say that doing kapalbhati can help you fight PCOS.

The 2016 IJOY study says, "Since PCOS and MS share a common pathogenic pathway, it is worthwhile to consider that kapalabhati can be effective against the features of PCOS too, though there is a dearth of studies and literature in this regard." All in all, there's no harm in trying kapalbhati for combating PCOS.

Tip: Do not rely solely on kapalbhati to get rid of PCOS. Consult a gynaecologist to know if such breathing exercises can help you in any way.

As we all know, pranayam can be effective against stress by letting our body breathe in more oxygen. Kapalbhati therefore should be practised if you want to feel rejuvenated from within - you can count this as a kapalbhati benefit. In fact, experts say that practising kapalbhati regularly can help you deal with chronic anxiety; the breathing exercises seek to calm your mind.

There's a note of caution for people with heart diseases though - you need to consult a heart specialist before you opt for kapalbhati because it's a rapid breathing exercise.

Tip: Practise kapalbhati to destress.

In general, yoga, which can help you control obesity, is recommended for fighting diabetes. A 2018 study titled, 'Therapeutic Role of Yoga in Type 2 Diabetes', explains, "Abdominal stretching during yoga exercises is believed to result in the regeneration of pancreatic cells.

The various postures during yoga practice help to improve the sensitivity of -cells to glucose, thereby improving insulin secretion, and increase the blood supply to the muscle and muscle relaxation, thereby improving glucose uptake."

As far as controlled yogic breathing exercises such as kapalbhati are concerned, the study notes, "The abdominal pressure created during exhalation in kapalbhati improves the efficiency of -cells of the pancreas." Therefore, insulin secretion is facilitated. Overall, kapalbhati can help you in controlling diabetes, and, hence, this is a veritable kapalbhati benefit.

Tip: Incorporate kapalbhati in your yoga arsenal to fight diabetes.

A. While we sing paeans to kapalbhati benefits, we should also keep some basic points in mind. To begin with, kapalbhati can have side effects if you do not practise it in the right way. Therefore, learn it from a trained professional to avoid getting such side effects as hernia, hypertension, vomiting tendencies and dizziness. Also, you should not practise kapalbhati if you are pregnant or if you have a chronic heart condition.

A. You may come across literature suggesting that kapalbhati can be effective in fighting liver diseases such as hepatitis, cirrhosis and jaundice. However, there's no study yet that indicates that kapalbhati can be used against liver problems. But it does help to solve digestive issues.

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Health Benefits of Kapalbhati Pranayam in Yoga - Femina