Yoga may ease sleep problems caused by chemo

The question: Getting a good night’s sleep can be troublesome for people with cancer, especially around the time of chemotherapy treatments. Some people find help with sleep medications, but might a stress-reduction program such as yoga offer a nondrug alternative?

This study randomly assigned 39 people with cancer to either a seven-week series of Tibetan yoga classes or a waiting list for the classes. Participants were undergoing chemotherapy or had received it within the past year. Yoga sessions emphasized imagery and exercises that were not physically demanding, including controlled breathing techniques, visualization and simple, low-impact movements. Via questionnaires after three months, those in the yoga group reported better sleep overall: They fell asleep more quickly, slept longer and used fewer sleep medications than those on the waiting list.

Who may be affected by these findings? Cancer patients being treated with chemotherapy.

Caveats: Whether the sleep benefit stemmed from individual aspects of the yoga program or the program as a whole was not determined. Also, the number of people sampled was small and the duration of the study was relatively brief; yoga experts say techniques should be practiced for at least six months to achieve full benefit.

Bottom line: Cancer patients having difficulty sleeping might want to consider Tibetan yoga.

Find this study: April 15 online issue of the journal Cancer, available at http://www3.interscience.wiley.com (type “Tibetan yoga” in the search field).

Learn more about sleep disorders related to cancer at www.cancer.gov (go to “Coping with Cancer”) and at www.cancer.org (type “sleep” in the search field).