Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) are major public health problems in the USA and worldwide. Yoga has been proven effective in numerous studies to improve cardiovascular risk factors, with a reduction in the risk of heart attacks and strokes. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have recently emerged as key regulators of metabolism by playing a crucial role in cholesterol and lipid metabolism, fatty acid metabolism, insulin and glucose homeostasis. Yoga has been shown to induce a dynamic shift in miRNAs and reset their target genes expression associated with metabolites and pathways connected to CVD and MetS to a normal physiological state. 120 subjects will be included in the study. After recruitment, subjects will be randomized to one of two groups: Yoga (n=60) or Control (n=60) group. Patients randomized to Yoga, will practice yoga poses in a chair for 30 min at least 3 days a week by watching video instruction for 16 weeks. Control group patients will follow standard of care (SOC) treatment. At the enrollment day and at the 16-weeks follow-up visit, 15ml of blood will be collected from all participants for miRNAs expression profile.
The aim of the prospective randomized single center study is to evaluate the effect of a short-term (16 weeks) yoga program on micro RNA (miRNA) expression and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in patients with CVD.