While there has been so much said about benefits attached with constant practice of Yoga, and now researchers from Duke University Medical Center are trying to probe a bit more on the underlying theory.

For the same, they examined over 100 studies, which shed light on the effect of yoga and mental health. It has been known that Yoga instills a calming effect, thereby relieving stress laden mind. This is what intrigued the team to unearth concrete evidence suggesting how people get cured from mental stress.

It was observed that yoga leaves positive impact on those who suffer from mild depression and insomnia. It goes onto help those who have showed symptoms of psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia, eating disorders and cognition problems and ADHD.

"If a large national study were done, it could turn out that yoga is just as good and may be a low cost alternative to people with unmet needs", said lead study author, Dr. P. Murali Doraiswamy, a professor of psychiatry and medicine at Duke University Medical Center

As many as 15.8 million adults in the US alone follow the popular exercise as per a survey by the Harris Interactive Service Bureau. The results further affirm that yoga goes beyond its earlier definition of a cultural phenomenon and is now strengthening health benefits.