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. 2018 Mar:24:69-75.
doi: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2017.12.003. Epub 2017 Dec 27.

Yoga and body image: Findings from a large population-based study of young adults

Dianne Neumark-Sztainer  1 , Richard F MacLehose  2 , Allison W Watts  3 , Carly R Pacanowski  4 , Marla E Eisenberg  5
Affiliations

Yoga and body image: Findings from a large population-based study of young adults

Dianne Neumark-Sztainer et al. Body Image. 2018 Mar.

Abstract

This study explored the potential for yoga to promote body satisfaction in a general population of young adults. The sample included 1664 participants (M age: 31.1, SD=1.6years) in Project EAT, a 15-year longitudinal study. Data from the third and fourth waves (EAT-III and EAT-IV), collected five years apart, were utilized. Practicing yoga (≥30min/week) was reported by 16.2% of young adults. After adjusting for EAT-III body satisfaction and body mass index, yoga practitioners had higher concurrent body satisfaction at EAT-IV than those not practicing yoga (difference: 1.5 units [95% CI: 0.1-2.8], p=.03). Among participants within the lowest quartile of prior (EAT-III) body satisfaction, there was preliminary evidence that body satisfaction at EAT-IV was higher among yoga practitioners than in other young adults. Findings suggest that yoga may be associated with improved body satisfaction, particularly among young adults with low prior body satisfaction.

Keywords: Body image; Eating disorders; Population-based sample; Yoga; Young adults.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest: None

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