Bengaluru: A groundbreaking study conducted at Nimhans, in collaboration with Harvard Medical School (USA), has discovered that incorporating yoga as an adjunct therapy significantly accelerates recovery from opioid withdrawal symptoms, nearly halving the recovery time.The research, published in Journal of the American Medical Association Psychiatry on Jan 7, revealed that patients practising yoga alongside standard buprenorphine (a semi-synthetic opioid) medication overcame withdrawal in just five days, compared to nine days for those on medication alone. Participants also reported better sleep, reduced anxiety, and less pain.The study involved 59 participants, aged 18 to 50, with a mean age of 25.6. They were recruited between April 30, 2023, and March 31, 2024, and were divided into two randomised groups at Nimhans’ addiction medicine inpatient ward. The participants came from Karnataka, West Bengal, and Manipur.One group participated in a 45-minute yoga program that included relaxing postures, pranayama (breathing exercises), and brief ‘Yoga Nidra’ (guided meditation), delivered in 10 sessions over 14 days, in conjunction with buprenorphine. The other group received standard care, which included psychosocial support, counselling, and routine treatment protocols.Researchers measured heart rate variability (HRV) as a key outcome, noting the intense stress reactivity associated with opioid withdrawal. The yoga group exhibited improved baseline HRV, indicating reduced sympathetic activity and a strengthened parasympathetic response, along with other benefits.Dr Prabhat Chand, head of Nimhans’ Centre for Addiction Medicine, commented, “Opioid addiction is not conducive to treatment and is much more challenging than tobacco or alcohol dependence. This is why we focused this study on opioid addiction.” Around 80% of participants had abused tapentadol, a prescription painkiller prevalent in Bengaluru, while others reported using injectable heroin; researchers noted that tapentadol misuse is specific to the region.The study emphasised that pharmacological treatments alone are insufficient for addressing withdrawal-related stress. Researchers highlighted yoga as a low-cost, high-impact supportive therapy with significant public health potential.Discussions are currently under way to scale this intervention. The researchers also plan to explore integrating “just-in-time” alerts and geocoding technologies to support participants during the maintenance stage.
