AIIMS Study Finds Yoga Boosts Tobacco Quit Rates by About 50%

Researchers at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi conducted a systematic review and meta‑analysis of seven randomised controlled trials involving 629 participants from India, the United States and Thailand. Published online in the journal *Nicotine & Tobacco Research* in November 2025, the study found that participants who practiced yoga alongside standard cessation treatments had roughly 50 % higher odds of achieving short‑term tobacco abstinence compared with those receiving standard care alone.

The review also reported that yoga participants experienced lower levels of anxiety, depression, stress and overall improved mental well‑being. AIIMS researchers stressed that yoga should be used as an adjunct to established cessation methods such as behavioural counselling, nicotine‑replacement therapy and prescription medications, not as a standalone replacement.