The Prevalence of Yoga Practice: A Survey in the Kolhapur Population

Abstract

Background: Yoga is a form of alternative medicine, which aims for an overall physical, mental, andspiritual health. Several benefits of yoga in terms of disease prevention have been well documented inliterature. However, there is a lack in the studies relating to its prevalence, especially in the Indian scenario.Here we aimed to decipher the prevalence of yoga practice in the Kolhapur population.Method: A survey was conducted on 5003 residents of Kolhapur. The survey was designed to evaluate theknowledge and practice of yoga in the respondents. Socio-demographic variables were presented by MSExcel. Logistic regression was performed by R-studio 1.2.5001.Results: Most of the yoga users were between 40-49 years. The primary occupation of most of them wasservice. Men were more likely to practice yoga, as compared to females (OR-0.29, P<0.05). Also, older(OR-1., P<0.5) and retired people (OR-1.8, P<0.05) were more like to practice yoga. Yoga was also shownto be mostly practiced among people of higher economic status as opposed to people with low economicstatus.Conclusion: This is the first study on the prevalence of yoga practice in Kolhapur population. Results depictthat a considerable number of people knew about yoga, but only a few of them practiced it. Additionalstudies are thus required for a better deduction of yoga prevalence.