Abstract

Background and aim: Swimming is considered to be a very good exercise for maintaining proper health and also has a profound effect on the lung function of an individual. Regular swimming practice should produce a positive effect on the lungs by increasing the pulmonary capacity and thereby improving the lung functions. The purpose of choosing swimmers instead of any other sportspersons was that previous studies have shown that swimming produces the maximum effect on the lungs compared to any other sport. Material & method: Present study had been carried out on 20 healthy male swimmers volunteers in between 20- 25 years age group. 20 students of the same age group, who were not engaged in any kind of sport, were chosen as controls. The pulmonary function tests were recorded with the RMS Helios 702 spirometer. The pulmonary function test were compared between swimmers & non swimmers with the Paired and unpaired‘t’ test was used at appropriate places as a statistical test. The p -value <0.05 was considered significant. Result: A significant increase in pulmonary function test was observed in swimmers as compared to non swimmers. Conclusion: Regular swimming practice may tend to alter the elasticity of lungs and chest wall which lead to an improvement in the lung functions of the swimmers. Thus swimming produces maximum effects on the lungs and higher values for lung volumes and flow rates in swimmers. Such exercises when undertaken in milder forms could be used in the rehabilitation process for the patients recovering from asthma and other lung diseases.

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