| Stress affects entry-level dental hygiene students due to the rigorous nature of the program’s curriculum and the clinical applicationsof knowledge and skills. Unmanaged stress can negatively impact students’ mental and physical health. Therefore, safe and feasible stress reducing interventions for entry-level dental hygiene students are necessarydue to the gap in the literature. This experimental study utilizedperceived stress and physiological data gathered from entry-level dental hygiene students assigned to either a 15 minute yoga intervention ora control group. Data was measured pre-and post-trial. In addition, the physiological data was measured pre-and post-intervention and pre-exam for the control group.Analysis demonstrated small positive effects on blood pressure and perceived stress within the yoga group; however,statistical significance of differential, beneficial effects of yoga versus control were not demonstrated.Research on a larger sample of entry-level dental hygiene studentsand a longer yoga-trial periodwarranted.KeyWords: stress, dental hygiene student(s), yoga, yoga benefits, yoga effects on stress, yoga and education,yoga and college students,yoga and perceived stress, yoga and physiological measures. |