Yoga isnt just for improving muscle strength and flexibility. New research published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology found that yoga may be a safe way to reduce fatigue and improve overall health in breast cancer survivors.

Women recovering from breast cancer often experience troubled sleep as result of their treatments which can lead to increased fatigue and inflammation.

Fatigue is a downward spiralthe less you do, the less youre able to do. The less youre able to do, the less you do, lead author Janice Kiecolt-Glaser, professor of psychiatry and psychology at The Ohio State University, told FoxNews.com.

Lowering inflammation can maximize overall health post-cancer treatment, since it is associated with a number of negative health outcomes including coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, arthritis and Alzheimers disease.

For women recovering from breast cancer, exercise is one of the best ways to lower fatigue and inflammation. However, cancer treatment often leads to a substantial decline in cardiorespiratory fitness, because the therapies are so debilitating. Breast cancer survivors have a 30 percent lower level of cardiorespiratory fitness compared to their sedentary counterparts who havent had treatment.

Researchers chose to try yoga with breast cancer survivors, because it can be used with all levels of fitness and can be adapted for women with physical limitations.

Yoga is easier to have women to try. Rather than saying, Lets try running, it may seem less demanding and daunting, Kiecolt-Glaser said.

Over a period of six years, researchers at Ohio State University studied the effects of yoga on inflammation, mood and fatigue levels in breast cancer survivors who had completed cancer treatment within the past three years.

In the randomized controlled trial of 200 women between the ages of 27 and 76, the women followed a 12-week hatha yoga intervention. The women performed a set sequence of yoga postures created by yoga teacher Marcia Miller, which included breathing and meditation.

Millers yoga sequence emphasized mindfulness and used yoga bolsters and blankets to make the movements as safe as possible for the women. All yoga group subjects did the same sequence and practiced for 90 minutes twice a week. Immediately after the trial, the yoga group had a 41 percent drop in fatigue, and markers for inflammation were lower compared to a non-yoga control group. Researchers followed up with participants three months later and again discovered improved health measures. Women who had practiced yoga had 57 percent less fatigue and 13 to 20 percent less inflammation compared to the non-yoga group.

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Yoga can decrease inflammation, fatigue in breast cancer survivors