Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2024 Oct 15;32(3):207-218.
doi: 10.1177/09727531241282516. eCollection 2025 Jul.

Effect of Yoga Therapy on Hypothyroidism: A Systematic Review

Rudra B Bhandari  1 , Pintu K Mahto  1
Affiliations
Review

Effect of Yoga Therapy on Hypothyroidism: A Systematic Review

Rudra B Bhandari et al. Ann Neurosci. .

Abstract

Background: Hypothyroidism (HT) is the most prevalent endocrine disorder, affecting approximately one in 10 out of 35 adults, with a higher prevalence in females and the elderly.

Purpose: This systematic review (SR) aimed to discuss the effects of yoga on markers and comorbid conditions of HT.

Methods: The SR was registered with the PROSPERO (PROSPERO 2022 CRD42022312990). Google Scholar, PubMed, Cochrane, and EMBASE were searched for the relevant English language interventional studies published from 31 December 1947 to 31 December 2023 by using the keywords 'meditation OR breath regulation OR yoga OR yoga nidra AND hypothyroidism OR hypothyreosis OR underactive thyroid OR low thyroid'. Of the 4078 screened studies, eight eligible studies (three RCTs, two pilot studies, two pre-post trials, and one case study) with 421 HT patients (392 females and 29 males) and three to six-month yoga interventions were included. Two independent review authors extracted study characteristics and synthesised them descriptively. RCTs and NRSIs were assessed for risk-of-bias (RoB) using Cochrane tools RoB2 and ROBINS-1.

Results: The findings suggest that yoga effectively improves the thyroid profile, lipid profile, heart rate variability, pulmonary functions, anxiety, depression, and quality of life among HT patients.

Conclusion: Yoga may be an inexpensive add-on preventive and therapeutic option for HT. The clinical and methodological heterogeneity among the studies did not allow for meta-analysis (MA). Well-designed MAs are warranted by including rigorous RCTs to draw valid conclusions and defined mechanisms regarding the efficacy of yoga practices/interventions on HT.

Keywords: Yoga; breath regulation; meditation; mind-body medicine; thyroid disorders.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. PRISMA Flow Diagram for Study Selection.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Summary of RoB for RCTs.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.. Summary of RoB for NRSIs.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

  • Yoga for stroke rehabilitation.
    Lawrence M, Celestino Junior FT, Matozinho HH, Govan L, Booth J, Beecher J. Lawrence M, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017 Dec 8;12(12):CD011483. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD011483.pub2. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017. PMID: 29220541 Free PMC article.
  • Pharmacotherapy for anxiety and comorbid alcohol use disorders.
    Ipser JC, Wilson D, Akindipe TO, Sager C, Stein DJ. Ipser JC, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015 Jan 20;1(1):CD007505. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD007505.pub2. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2015. PMID: 25601826 Free PMC article.
  • Physical activity for treatment of irritable bowel syndrome.
    Nunan D, Cai T, Gardener AD, Ordóñez-Mena JM, Roberts NW, Thomas ET, Mahtani KR. Nunan D, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2022 Jun 29;6(6):CD011497. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD011497.pub2. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2022. PMID: 35766861 Free PMC article.
  • Yoga for epilepsy.
    Panebianco M, Sridharan K, Ramaratnam S. Panebianco M, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017 Oct 5;10(10):CD001524. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD001524.pub3. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2017. PMID: 28982217 Free PMC article.
  • Yoga for asthma.
    Yang ZY, Zhong HB, Mao C, Yuan JQ, Huang YF, Wu XY, Gao YM, Tang JL. Yang ZY, et al. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2016 Apr 27;4(4):CD010346. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD010346.pub2. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2016. PMID: 27115477 Free PMC article.
See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Brito JP, Ross JS, El Kawkgi OM, et al. Levothyroxine use in the United States, 2008-2018. JAMA Intern Med 2021; 181: 1402–1405. DOI: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2021.2686 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Zhang M, Zhang W, Tan J, et al. Role of hypothyroidism in obstructive sleep apnea: a meta-analysis. Curr Med Res Opin 2016; 32: 1059–1064. DOI: 10.1185/03007995.2016.1157461 - PubMed
    1. Wyne KL, Nair L, Schneiderman CP, et al. Hypothyroidism prevalence in the United States: a retrospective study combining national health and nutrition examination survey and claims data, 2009–2019. J Endocr Soc 2023; 7: bvac172. DOI: 10.1210/JENDSO/BVAC172 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bagcchi S. Hypothyroidism in India: more to be done. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol 2014; 2: 778. DOI: 10.1016/S2213-8587(14)70208-6 - PubMed
    1. Chaker L, Razvi S, Bensenor IM, et al. Hypothyroidism. Nat Rev Dis Primers 2022; 8: 1–17. DOI: 10.1038/s41572-022-00357-7 - PubMed