This year, the
Spanish Association of Pediatrics
published that COVID-19 has provoked an increase of up to 47 up to 47% increase in mental health disorders in children.. Since the pandemic and confinement, children show more depressive symptoms and more anxiety. According to the same source, before the pandemic, it was already estimated that about 10% of children and 20% of adolescents suffered from mental disorders, caused by factors other than Covid.
The data from this study reveal that it is more necessary than ever to pay attention to the mental health of young people. mental health of the youngest. And that’s why since Smile and LearnIn addition to taking care of the curricular content, we have opted for tools that help them to know their emotions or learn relaxation techniques. An example of this is our large collection of yoga videos for children.
Yoga, a practice full of benefits for children
Yoga is a discipline well known for its enormous physical and mental health benefits, and some of them are especially important if worked on at an early age. These are some of them:
Improves posture.
The practice of yoga works various muscle groups and is an excellent sports activity. In addition, their work focuses mainly on the spine, which is especially beneficial to counteract bad posture that can be caused by backpacks loaded with books, bad posture when studying or typing on the computer or cell phone … and that is quite likely to accompany them throughout their lives. Acquiring good postural habits in childhood can be key to improving your posture during your youth and adulthood as well.
Normally, before starting the yoga class, stretching exercises are performed to prepare the muscles. This helps to perform less forced movements and to have greater flexibility to prevent joint damage.
Increases self-esteem.
Among its many benefits, it also seems to be associated with increased self-esteem. The practice of yoga teaches us to listen to the body, to thank it for its function and to appreciate it as it is. This mind-body connection helps us to be present and reminds us of the importance of paying attention to the signals our body sends us. Knowing that they have to spend time taking care of themselves can be a very positive exercise in improving children’s self-esteem.
Enhances concentration.
In a society of many stimuli and distractions it is easy to lose sight of what is really important, so we often do not pay attention to what we are doing at any given moment. It happens to all of us: we are more and more accustomed to using the phone while doing any other activity, and we are sure that we often catch ourselves with thoughts and worries even when we are relaxing at home. Children are no exception and, precisely, the work of concentration is one of the most difficult tasks in the case of children and can help them, for example, to pay attention in class or to relax when they get home.
Yoga can be very beneficial in this regard. During the practice, you will have to get used to focusing on your breathing, consciously inhaling and exhaling, so you will learn not to be distracted during the process.
Promotes relaxation.
There are many reasons why a child may suffer from stress or anxiety, from family circumstances or situations at school to routine changes such as back to school. When detecting a significant change in the child’s mood, it is always advisable to consult a professional. However, it appears that the practice of yoga can significantly help to reduce its symptoms.
First, because like any other physical activity, it releases endorphins, also known as happiness hormones. In addition, slow and conscious breathing allows the body to calm down and the mind to relax.
It’s fun.
A key aspect that cannot be missed is fun, and even more so if it is a child. For this reason, it is necessary that the contents of yoga be adapted to the age of the child, for example, replacing the name of the postures or asanas with more descriptive and fun ones that have to do with nature or animals. The little ones will have a lot of fun when they have to imitate the postures of the turtle or the frog. Medical studies support the enormous health benefits of laughter. Maintaining high levels of happiness in the little ones can only mean one thing: greater involvement in yoga.
At Smile and Learn, we have a wide variety of yoga videos for kids that you can use whenever you want. If you haven’t tried our educational platform yet, you can do it for free by filling out the following form this form.
