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MULTIPLE IDENTITIES VIA SPIRITUALITY, HISTORIES AND CULTURAL RE-PRESENTATIONS 145Figure 10. Frequency of published journal articles on “yoga” (left) and “meditation” (right) indexed in the Medline electronic medicaldatabase.An overview of clinical studies on yoga andmindfulness applications for various illnesses andspecial subpopulations in the medical literatureindicates that emotional health is a key measuredoutcome. 11 Stress reduction is a main outcomemeasured in most if not all yoga-related studies,alongside changes in physical strength and otherphysiological parameters.Meta-analyses of various systematic reviews of yogaindicates positive outcomes with recommendations formore studies with more refined methodologies, inorder to be able to make more definite conclusions.Meta-analytical reviews using random-controlledtrials, with an increase in sample size, uniformity andrefinement of methodologies, have helped to increasethe quality of yoga-related studies. 12The mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR)program started by Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn at theUniversity of Massachusetts School of Medicine is agrowing specialty in the health care field. The MBSRmodel, originally spanning eight weeks, is important asit reasserts a holistic approach to stress reduction. Itcombines different components of traditional yoga(stretching asanas, breath awareness and meditation),and integrates them into a modern health care setting.A 2004 meta-analysis of MBSR studies has shown thatthe approach can be effective in helping a broad rangeof individuals, contributing to symptom reduction inpatients suffering from pain, cancer, heart disease,depression, and anxiety, as well as for those who arestressed but generally healthy. 13 While a 2007 metaanalysisof MBSR studies for anxiety and moodsymptom reduction, compared to active controls,indicated that there was no reliable effect, 14 a 2009meta-analysis of MBSR studies for cancer patientsindicated that that MBSR helps improve cancerpatients’ mental health. 15 A 2009 systematic reviewand meta-analysis of MBSR for healthy people alsoshowed that it is able to reduce stress in suchcandidates. 16I have summarized the health benefits of mindfulnessand yoga training in Figure 11 below.The Work of the 2010/2011 API Fellows