Yoga may help speed recovery from opioid withdrawal

A small Indian study reported that adding yoga to buprenorphine roughly halved recovery time from opioid withdrawal; the trial involved 59 men and was reported in JAMA Psychiatry.

Researchers report that adding yoga to standard buprenorphine therapy was associated with faster recovery from opioid withdrawal in a small study in India. The trial tested a short program of breathing, postures and guided relaxation delivered alongside medication. Study authors suggest these practices may help reduce stress responses that remain active during withdrawal. The report was published in JAMA Psychiatry. Key findings: - The study enrolled 59 men experiencing mild to moderate opioid withdrawal; all received buprenorphine and half also received ten 45-minute yoga sessions over 14 days. - Participants who received yoga had an average recovery time of about 5 days, compared with about 9 days for those who received buprenorphine alone. - The yoga group showed reductions in anxiety, improved sleep quality, eased pain, and improvements in heart rate. - The trial sample was all male; researchers said future studies will include women and examine whether benefits persist beyond the withdrawal period. Summary: In this small study, adding yoga to standard buprenorphine treatment was associated with a shorter withdrawal period and improvements in anxiety, sleep, pain, and heart rate. The evidence is limited by the small, all-male sample, and researchers plan further studies that include women and assess longer-term outcomes.