Trial reportPsychopharmacology2013
The acute effects of yogic breathing exercises on craving and withdrawal symptoms in abstaining smokers.
Trial report in Psychopharmacology, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 68 citations in OpenAlex.
- Controlled breathing and heart rate variability biofeedback for substance use-related outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2026Pooled it
- Effects of exercise of different intensities on withdrawal symptoms among people with substance use disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in physiology · 2023Pooled it
- Mindfulness for smoking cessation.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2022Pooled it
- Effect of exercise type on smoking cessation: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.BMC research notes · 2017Pooled it
- Characteristics of randomized controlled trials of yoga: a bibliometric analysis.BMC complementary and alternative medicine · 2014Pooled it
- Mind-body practices: an alternative, drug-free treatment for smoking cessation? A systematic review of the literature.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2013Pooled it
- The effects of mindfulness-based yogic breathing on craving, affect, and smoking behavior.Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors · 2020Trial
- Yoga as a Complementary Therapy for Smoking Cessation: Results From BreathEasy, a Randomized Clinical Trial.Nicotine & tobacco research : official journal of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco · 2019Trial
- Trial
- Testing the efficacy of yoga as a complementary therapy for smoking cessation: design and methods of the BreathEasy trial.Contemporary clinical trials · 2014Trial
- Article
- Development, validation and feasibility testing of a 12-minute Yoga-Breath Linked Intervention to Stop Smoking (Y-BLISS) module.Journal of family medicine and primary care · 2025Article
- Evaluation of intervention components to maximize yoga practice among people with chronic pain taking opioid agonist therapy: A factorial experiment using the multiphase optimization strategy framework.Contemporary clinical trials · 2024Article
- Exercise and Smoking Cessation.Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · 2024Review
- Analogy between classical Yoga/Zen breathing and modern clinical respiratory therapy.Journal of anesthesia · 2020Review
- Long-Term Effects of Mind-Body Exercises on the Physical Fitness and Quality of Life of Individuals With Substance Use Disorder-A Randomized Trial.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2020Article
- Pregnant Smokers' Experiences and Opinions of Techniques Aimed to Address Barriers and Facilitators to Smoking Cessation: A Qualitative Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2019Article
- Current Evidence on Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback as a Complementary Anticraving Intervention.Journal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.) · 2018Review
- Randomized controlled trial on the effect of Al-Quran recitation vs counseling on smoking intensity among Muslim men who are trying to quit smoking.Malaysian family physician : the official journal of the Academy of Family Physicians of Malaysia · 2018Article
- Clickotine, A Personalized Smartphone App for Smoking Cessation: Initial Evaluation.JMIR mHealth and uHealth · 2017Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
rationaleBreathing exercises have been proposed as a way of combating cigarette cravings, potentially presenting a low-cost, easily scalable smoking cessation aid.
objectiveThe aim of this study is to evaluate the acute impact of breathing exercises based on yogic pranayama on cravings in abstaining smokers.
methodsParticipants visited the laboratory on two occasions 24 h apart and were asked to abstain from smoking 12 h prior to the first visit until the end of the second visit. Smokers (N = 96) were randomly allocated to a yogic breathing exercise (YBG) or video control (VCG) group. The former was instructed on breathing exercises, practised these for 10 min and asked to use these when experiencing cravings until the next visit. The latter was shown a breathing exercise video for 10 min and asked to concentrate on their breathing. Strength of urges to smoke, other craving measures and mood and physical symptoms associated with cigarette withdrawal were assessed at the beginning and end of the first visit, and again at the second visit.
resultsAt immediate follow-up, in the laboratory, all craving measures were reduced in YBG compared with VCG (strength of urges: F(1, 96) = 16.1, p < 0.001; cigarette craving: F(1, 96) = 11.3, p = 0.001; desire to smoke: F(1, 96) = 6.6, p = 0.012). There was no effect on mood or physical symptoms. Adherence to the breathing exercise regimen in the following 24 h was low, and at 24 h follow-up, there was no evidence of reduced cravings in YBG compared with VCG.
conclusionsSimple yogic-style breathing exercises can reduce cigarette craving acutely in the laboratory. Further research is needed to determine how far this translates into field settings.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.