What’s This Research About?
If engaged in regularly, healthy behaviors such as physical activity and healthy eating can greatly benefit health. In contrast, unhealthy eating habits and physical inactivity, are connected to several of the world’s top-10 causes of death and disease. At the same time, yoga is commonly portrayed in yoga communities as a health-promoting tool, often embedded in lifestyle statements such as “take your yoga practice off your mat” and practicing “a yogic diet”. So, what does the research say? For example, does practicing yoga have anything to do with two of the most important health determinants – what you eat and how you move during the rest of your day when you are not on your mat?
This study examines the relationship between engagement in yoga practice, eating behaviors, and physical activity among young adults.
TITLE: Yoga’s potential for promoting healthy eating and physical activity behaviors among young adults: a mixed-methods study
PUBLICATION: International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity
AUTHORS: Allison W. Watts, Sarah A. Rydell, Marla E. Eisenberg, Melissa N. Laska and Dianne Neumark-Sztainer
Healthy eating was assessed through servings of fruits and vegetables (FV), sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), and snack foods and frequency of fast-food consumption.
Physical activity behaviors were assessed through engagement in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA).
Yoga practitioners were defined as practicing yoga at least 30 minutes per week.