‘Sit N Fit’ Chair Yoga to Help Osteoarthritis Patients
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shtanga yoga, Kundalini yoga and Bikram yoga are all popular ways to increase strength, flexibility and balance and to reduce stress. Two FAU researchers plan to bring a new type of yoga into the mainstream: “Sit N Fit” Chair Yoga. Ruth McCaffrey, D.N.P., FAAN, Professor of Nursing in the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, and Juyoung Park, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work in FAU’s College for Design and Social Inquiry, received a $389,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health to study the effect of the “Sit N Fit” Chair Yoga Program on adults 65 years of age and older who have osteoarthritis and are unable to participate in standing exercises.
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“Sit N Fit” Chair Yoga, which was developed by yoga instructor Kristine Lee, was studied by the two researchers in a project originally funded by the Faculty Research Seed Grant Program of the Division of Research.
Although exercise and yoga are known treatments for reducing pain and improving function in adults with osteoarthritis, up to 50 percent of elders cannot participate in traditional exercises or yoga classes due to poor balance, pain or fear of falling. The “Sit N Fit” Chair Yoga Program is a safe alternative because it is practiced while sitting in a chair or by using a chair for support during gentle yoga exercises. “This grant provides us with the opportunity to collect evidence about the health outcomes and potential effectiveness of the ‘Sit N Fit’ Chair Yoga Program in elders with osteoarthritis,” said McCaffrey. “Creating an evidence-based program that can be replicated is important, as it has the potential to disseminate safe, effective, low-cost and widely available treatment for this disabling joint disease.” According to the American Journal of Managed Care, osteoarthritis is a leading cause of pain and disability among elders, currently affecting 57 million people in the United States. The Annals of
the Rheumatic Diseases Journal estimates that 70 percent of people over 70 years of age suffer from osteoarthritis and associated symptoms. This two-year study measures physiologic outcomes such as pain, balance, gait speed and walking ability as well as psychosocial outcomes such as depression, life satisfaction, fatigue and the ability to participate in social interactions. Its potential impact on public health is high, as the program could help to keep elders in the community for a longer time and thus contribute to a reduction in the cost of healthcare for America’s aging population. “The interdisciplinary focus of this project in the areas of physical and psychosocial health has the potential for broadening application across the health care professions,” said Park. “If our study supports the efficacy of this approach, we hope the ‘Sit N Fit’ Chair Yoga Program will be adopted wherever older adults congregate to help improve their functional ability.”