Effectiveness of Yoga-based Exercise Program Compared to Usual Care, in Improving HbA1c in Individuals with Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized Control Trial

BACKGROUND: This study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of a yoga-based exercise program (YBEP) in improving glycemic control in people with type 2 diabetes mellitus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients on stable oral glucose-lowering agents for at least 3 months and HbA1c 7.5%–10% were randomized in 1:1 ratio. The primary outcome measure was the difference of change in mean HbA1c between groups. RESULTS: The participants (n = 81) had mean (±standard deviation) age of 50.6 (±8.5) years and HbA1c of 8.5 ± 0.7% (68.97 ± 7.42 mmol/mol). The follow-up data were available in 96% (78/81) of participants. Of 40 participants, 25 (62.5%) attended ≥75% (≥10 out of 13) of the sessions in YBEP. On the intention to treat analysis, a favorable reduction (0.21% 95% confidence interval [−0.34, 0.75], P = 0.454) in HbA1c was seen in YBEP group as compared to usual care. The reduction in HbA1c by ≥0.5% was observed in 44.7% of participants in YBEP as compared to 37.5% in usual care arm, respectively. Those who attended ≥75% of the sessions had better HbA1c reduction of 0.3% in comparison to 0.1% reduction seen in those who attended <75% of the sessions. CONCLUSIONS: YBEP demonstrated a clinically relevant HbA1c reduction compared to usual care in participants who had attended at least 75% of the yoga sessions. The reduction in HbA1c by >0.5% in 44.7% in the yoga group, suggests, that it can be prescribed as an exercise to individuals who are unable to walk either due to limited joint mobility, adverse weather conditions, lack of space for walking, cultural or religious prohibitions for women for outdoor physical activity, and so on. CTRI registration no: CTRI/2017/05/008564.