Breathing to younger skin: ‘reversing the molecular mechanism of skin aging with yoga’

In recent times, the practice of yoga has taken a more mainstream popularity in a fast-paced life. This ancient tradition that has resurfaced has many hidden values, and challenges modern day science to undergo new research and increase understanding of its impact on the body. This article is a commentary aiming to correlate and extrapolate recent evidence-based research on some of the known molecular benefits of yoga, and its possible correlation with skin aging. Yoga is a 5000-year-old ancient Indian way of life, which includes changes in mental attitude, diet and the practice of specific techniques such as yoga asanas (postures), breathing practices (pranayama) and meditation to attain the highest level of consciousness [1]. The increasingly wide use of these practices has triggered numerous research studies, especially in recent decades, which suggest that yogic/meditative practices have significant positive effects on the mind–body system and thereby can have an effect on overall improved health and quality of life [2,3]. Skin appearance is a primary indicator of age and, like most organs of the body, undergoes changes over the passage of time [4]. The molecular and cellular process of skin aging is similar to that occurring in most internal organs and involves slow deterioration in tissue function. The stratum corneum layer might remained unchanged but the overall thickness of the epidermis and dermis is affected in aging skin, with a noted flattening of the dermoepidermal junctions [5].