September is National Yoga Month, and across the country yoga studios are opening their doors -- and hopefully, opening minds, too -- with free classes for anyone interested in learning more about yogas health benefits.

Among the many health benefits is better digestion, with certain yogic postures zeroing in on constipation, bloating, gas and other minor ailments.

In an interview with the Everyday Health website, yoga studio owner Lisa Korchma said that the regular practice of yoga, supplemented by a good diet and possibly even meditation, can bring about better digestive health.

Specific yoga poses, or asanas, do the trick, Korchma said.

Forward folding poses, for instance, compress the abdominal cavity so that when you release the bend, fresh blood and oxygen return to your digestive organs.

Poses using seated twisting can target gas and bloating. Many other non-seated twists, she added, relieve discomfort because they wring out the organs and promote bowel movements.

A similar recommendation for forward bends and twists came from Jillian Pransky, a restorative yoga expert interviewed in Yoga Journal magazine.

Pransky added that as a tension-reliever, yoga can aid peristalsis, the wavelike, involuntary movements of the intestinal muscles necessary for digestion and waste elimination.

In addition, yoga gets good marks among support groups for irritable bowel syndrome and inflammatory bowel diseases because it can be an excellent stress reliever.

At the HelpforIBS.com website, an entry on yoga praised it for stabilizing digestion and relieving constipation, diarrhea, bloating, gas and pain. It also pointed out that yoga can prevent or minimize menstrual cramps, which often go hand-in-hand with IBS. ___________________________________________________ More From EmpowHER: Go Fish For Heart Health

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Yoga a tool for combating digestive issues