Abstract:
As women get older, they experience a variety of physical and hormonal changes
that significantly alter the biomechanics of their musculoskeletal system. This
study looked at how yoga affected the participants' foot arch indices. This study's
objective was to compare the arch indices of female yoga practitioners with those
of non-practitioners to ascertain how yoga affected female arch indices. In the
present experimental study, fourteen female students (seven each were yoga
practitioners and non-yoga practitioners) from Banaras Hindu University in
Varanasi, India, were selected using purposive sampling method. Their arch
indices were determined by measuring their footprints which were obtained on a
paper using ink pad. The alpha level for the t-test was set at P < 0.05 to compare
the arch indices of the two groups. The Average Arch Index of left and right foot
for female yoga practitioners (Mright = 6.260 and Mleft = 6.181) is lower than the
score (Mright = 6.573 and Mleft = 6.621) for non-yoga practitioners. Thus, the
statistical analysis revealed that there exist significant differences between the arch
indexes of women in both groups. Female yoga practitioners have lower arch
indices than non-yoga practitioners, which does not necessarily mean that they
also have pes planus problems. The study suggests that practising yoga regularly
may help to lower the risk of flat feet.
