Children & Yoga: Why Yoga Matters For 21st Century Children

Competition. When children are taught that their value is based on external rewards, they can lose willingness to be curious unless they get something out of it. Yoga teaches them to discover the moment, then find innovation and self determination.

Trauma. When children are traumatized, which can be as simple as getting hurt on the playground or as horrible as physical and emotional abuse, their little nervous systems , when already stressed, get locked into the body/mind, causing isolation, aggression, violence, frozenness, stomachaches, headaches and other more serious illnesses. Yoga is very soothing. It calms the nervous system, boosts immunity, harmonizes the self, helps children embody then move through difficult feelings, turns on the parasympathetic system, reduces ADD, and fosters cooperative environments.

Anxiety. Anxiety can be caused by stress, competition, trauma, lack of sleep, over scheduling, too much homework, relationship issues at school, tests, family problems. There is an endless list. Yoga, especially the practices of creative visualization, meditation, slow breathing, and deep forward bends, can really help reduce anxiety and recondition the nervous system, allowing children to form their own inner connections and self empowerment.

ADD/ADHD is the inability of children to stay focused, be comfortable in their surroundings, have ease in social situations, and have follow through with tasks. Yoga, because of its slow progressive methods to engage the entire being, teaches children how to regulate themselves, build an internal sense of rhythm and express their energy creatively.

Violence and Aggression. There are many situations that trigger violence and aggression. Yoga class may provide the one safe place for a child to find their inner language and experience healing. The practice of Loving Compassion is the foundation of any good children’s yoga program. Children’s social-emotional development depends on a balanced loving harmonious learning environment, which yoga creates. Teaching Loving Compassion has tremendous health and societal benefits, DHEA (what keeps us young!) is raised astronomically in people who live by loving compassion. These people also have lower cortisol production thus allowing them to live more fully in the parasympathetic nervous system, our "here I am and it’s all okay!" nervous response.

Inability to express emotions. When a child does not experience the necessary steps of social-emotional development, mental illness can develop, violence and aggression can increase, and frozen feelings keep children uninspired, bored, restless and experiencing poor health in bones, joints and organs. Yoga engages all the senses, creates a loving learning environment so children can relax and be more receptive, allowng them to experience confidence, curiosity and comfort in relating to others. A relaxed receptive body produces a relaxed receptive brain, willing and, most importantly, able to learn.

Childhood Obesity. Children who suffer from obesity have more adult health issues as children now than ever before. They can lose their innate ability to make creative choices. They can develop language skill issues, lose their energy, hence their vitality. Yoga for children, which involves creative play, gets kids off their seats and on the yoga mat. Their brain develops more rapidly. Learning coordination in movement increases brain power, according to a recent issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. Movement and creative play stimulate brain derived neurotrophic factor, which stimulates healthy bone growth.