Effects of Moxa (folium Artemisiae Argyi) Smoke Exposure on Heart Rate and Heart Rate Variability in Healthy Young Adults: A Randomized, Controlled Human Study

Objective. To determine the effects of the moxa smoke on human heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV).Methods. Fifty-five healthy young adults were randomly divided into experimental (n=28) and control (n=27) groups. Experimental subjects were exposed to moxa smoke (2.5 ± 0.5 mg/m3) twice for 25 minutes in one week. ECG monitoring was performed before, during, and after exposure. Control subjects were exposed to normal indoor air in a similar environment and similarly monitored. Followup was performed the following week. Short-term (5 min) HRV parameters were analyzed with HRV analysis software. SPSS software was used for statistical analysis.Results. During and after the first exposure, comparison of percentage changes or changes in all parameters between groups showed no significant differences. During the second exposure, percentage decrease in HR, percentage increases in lnTP, lnHF, lnLF, and RMSSD, and increase in PNN50 were significantly greater in the experimental group than in control.Conclusion. No significant adverse HRV effects were associated with this clinically routine 25-minute exposure to moxa smoke, and the data suggests that short-term exposure to moxa smoke might have positive regulating effects on human autonomic function. Further studies are warranted to confirm these findings.