The study is one of two pilot studies being carried out as part of an effort of the UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Medicine (OCIM) and the Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana (SVYASA) to create an international collaboration for research on the health effects of yoga.

Yoga and related meditation practices represent one of the most important complementary and alternative medicine systems used in Asia and the United States. SVYASA is one of India’s leading institutions for yoga practice and research.

The key goal of this pilot research is to assess the feasibility of studying of a yoga-based lifestyle intervention to prevent development of diabetes in pre-diabetes and to collect preliminary data on the efficacy of the intervention.

We will screen approximately 400 first degree relatives of patients with diabetes in order to recruit about 100 participants with impaired glucose tolerance. These participants will be randomized to either get a 2 month yoga-based lifestyle intervention immediately, or to become part of a wait-list control group that will receive the intervention after 2 months.

The primary study outcome will be changes in glucose tolerance after 2 months of the intervention. Secondary outcomes will include changes in insulin sensitivity (measured by HOMA), weight, blood pressure, cholesterol, and mood. We will follow participants for 4 months after study enrollment to assess maintenance of study related changes.

If the intervention is both feasible and shows potential efficacy, data from this study will be used to support development of a larger randomized, controlled trial to prevent diabetes in persons with impaired glucose tolerance who are at high risk of developing diabetes. We will also test hypotheses that the yoga-based lifestyle intervention will lead to improved insulin sensitivity, weight loss, lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, and improved mood in the study population.