Completed

NCT Number: NCT05459025

Effectiveness of Aromatherapy Yoga

College students, particularly female students, often suffer from severe stress and poor sleep. Aromatherapy yoga has become a popular exercise in recent years and may help reduce stress and improve sleep quality, although empirical evidence is limited. We investigated the effective-ness of aromatherapy yoga intervention in reducing stress and improving sleep quality among female college students. Eighty-nine participants (44 in the experimental group [aromatherapy yoga] and 45 in the control group [yoga]), with an average age of 19.88 ± 1.13 years, were en-rolled in this quasi-experimental study. Interventions were performed in the respective groups once a week for 12 weeks, for 90 minutes each time. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test and Mann-Whitney U test (including effect size) were used to test the differences in stress reduction and sleep quality before and after the intervention.

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Key information

Conditions

Female College Students

Age range

18 year–21 year

Sex eligibility

Female

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Asia Univeraity

Taichung, WuFeng, 41354, Taiwan

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

We included female college students aged > 18 years, who were able to understand the questionnaire.

Exclusion criteria

We excluded male students, those with a history of respiratory disease, asthma, or allergy to flowers, plants, or essential oils, those who worked at night, and those with a history of mental diseases.

Treatment and study plan

Aromatherapy yoga

Behavioral

The research assistant diluted the Lavandula angustifolia essential oil with distilled water (1:75) 10 min before the yoga session started. The solution was then atomized by three aroma diffusers, placed in the front, middle, and back of the classroom. The distance from each participant was less than 10 m to ensure that the aroma was absorbed com-pletely. The yoga course for the aromatherapy yoga group was the same as that of the yoga only group. The yoga group only took a yoga course, without aromatherapy.

Yoga

Behavioral

The design of the yoga lessons was based on a past study and a professional yoga instruction book. Yoga lessons were led by certified yoga tutors.

Primary outcomes

Perceived Stress Scale 14 (PSS-14)

Time frame: 10-15 minutes

PSS-14 is the scale that is most widely used for measuring the degree to which situations in one's life are appraised as being stressful.
Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI)

Time frame: 10-15 minutes

The PSQI developed by Buysse et al. [45], which evaluates sleep quality of the participants in the past month.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Yang Shang-Yu

Other

Registry information

Official study title

Effectiveness of Aromatherapy Yoga in Stress Reduction and Sleep Quality Improvement Among Female College Students: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Important dates

Study start: 2021
Primary completion: 2021
Study completion: 2021
First posted: Jul 14, 2022
Registry last updated: Jul 14, 2022

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

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This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.