Study finds nine-month heart-rate-variability differences after 10-day yoga, naturopathy and diet program for hypertension

Current assessment: The available evidence supports reporting that a 10-day, multi-part program of yoga, naturopathic treatments and dietary modification was associated with nine-month differences in selected heart-rate-variability (HRV) measures among adults with hypertension. The study does not isolate yoga’s effect, and its findings should not be described as proof of lasting changes to stress regulation more broadly.

The underlying randomized controlled trial was published in the Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies in 2024, rather than being newly published on August 23, 2026. A PTI report carried by ThePrint on August 23 said researchers at SDM College of Naturopathy and Yogic Sciences in Ujire, Karnataka, had found autonomic-function differences that remained detectable nine months after the 10-day intervention ended.

Reported facts

According to the study abstract, researchers randomly allocated 262 people with hypertension to an intervention group or a control group, with 131 participants in each group. For 10 days, the intervention group received yoga and naturopathic treatments; ThePrint additionally reported that the program included a DASH-based dietary component. HRV was assessed at baseline, immediately after the program and again nine months later.

HRV describes variation in the intervals between heartbeats and is commonly used as a non-invasive indicator associated with autonomic nervous-system activity. The authors reported increases in high-frequency HRV and decreases in low-frequency HRV and the LF/HF ratio over follow-up, with the magnitude of change greater in the intervention group. The abstract identifies a statistically significant between-group difference in the LF/HF ratio.

ThePrint reported that the trial was registered with India’s Clinical Trials Registry and supported by the Ministry of AYUSH. The published abstract lists the registration number as CTRI/2019/01/016883.

Supporting evidence

The strongest available source is the article’s indexed abstract, which identifies the trial as randomized, states the participant total and group sizes, and confirms the 10-day intervention and nine-month HRV follow-up. Its conclusion is comparatively restrained: the results suggest a shift toward parasympathetic activity after integrated yoga and naturopathy treatment.

That interpretation is broadly consistent with a 2026 systematic review and meta-analysis of pranayama trials in people with hypertension. The review found reduced heart rate and a possible modest blood-pressure benefit, but characterized HRV improvements as modest and called for larger, more standardized trials. That broader evidence supports viewing yoga-based practices as possible adjuncts, not as established substitutes for clinical hypertension care.

Limitations and competing evidence

The most important limitation is attribution. Participants received a package of treatments, including yoga, naturopathy and diet modification, so the trial cannot determine whether yoga itself drove the reported HRV differences. The control group did not receive a comparable attention-matched program, which can complicate interpretation of lifestyle-intervention results.

The available abstract also reports significant HRV changes in both the intervention and control groups during follow-up, while specifying a significant between-group difference for LF/HF ratio. A cautious reading is therefore that the intervention was associated with a stronger change in selected HRV measures, rather than a definitive, across-the-board durable reset of autonomic function.

Further, HRV is a physiological proxy rather than a direct clinical measure of psychological stress, medication needs, cardiovascular events or long-term blood-pressure control. The evidence does not establish that the program permanently changes the stress-response system, prevents hypertension complications, or should replace prescribed medication and monitoring.

Current conclusion

The available record supports a measured report on a published randomized trial in which an integrated 10-day yoga, naturopathy and diet program was associated with sustained differences in HRV among people with hypertension. The evidence is strongest for a change in a limited set of autonomic markers within that combined program. It does not establish a lasting effect from yoga alone, nor a general treatment claim for hypertension. Access to the full protocol, adherence data, medication changes during nine-month follow-up, attrition details and complete between-group outcomes would materially sharpen the assessment.