but that there was "little apparent uptake of yoga to address [existing] cardiovascular conditions and risk factors". Yoga was cited by respondents as a cause of these lifestyle changes; the survey notes that the relative importance of the various factors had not been assessed. Other conditions There is little reliable evidence that yoga is beneficial for specific medical conditions, and an increasing amount of evidence that it is not, as follows. A systematic review in 2013 found weak evidence for the use of yoga for rheumatic diseases, examining outcomes of pain and disability, with no evidence of its safety. A 2015 systematic review found no evidence of benefit in treatment of epilepsy or menopause-related symptoms. According to the American Cancer Society, practice of yoga can improve strength and balance in cancer patients, is "unlikely to cause harm", and does not "interfere with cancer treatment". The society notes that yoga "cannot cure cancer" but that yoga may help to improve the quality of life in cancer survivors, as shown in a randomised controlled trial of women who had had breast cancer. Measured outcomes included fatigue, depression, and sleep quality. A systematic review in 2015 found "promising" evidence that exercise helps people with dementia perform activities of daily living (ADLs), but no evidence that cognition, neuropsychiatric symptoms, or depression were benefited; yoga was not distinguished from other forms of exercise. A 2010 systematic review showed no effect of yoga on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), measured by teacher rating on the ADHD overall scale. A systematic review in 2019 concluded that there was not enough evidence to be able to assess the effectiveness of yoga for treating women with urinary incontinence. Safety Although relatively safe, yoga is not a risk-free form of exercise. Sensible precautions can usefully be taken – for example the avoidance of advanced moves by beginners, not combining practice with psychoactive drug use, and avoiding competitiveness. A small percentage of yoga practitioners each year suffer physical injuries analogous to sports injuries. The practice of yoga has been cited as a cause of hyperextension or rotation of the neck, which may be a precipitating factor in cervical artery dissection. See also Exercise is Medicine Neurobiological effects of physical exercise Yoga foot drop References Sources External links International Association of Yoga Therapists Vox: I read more than 50 scientific studies about yoga. Here's what I learned by Julia Belluz Alternative medicine