Yoga for Mental Health in Children (Plus Other OT Interventions to Help)

Supporting the mental health of our children and youth today is critical. It can be very difficult for children when it comes to nurture emotional well-being, positive behavior, and social participation. Did you know that there is strong evidence to support yoga for mental health in children? Research indicates that certain occupational therapy interventions such as yoga are beneficial to maintaining mental health in children.

Research on Occupational Therapy and Children’s Mental Health

The American Journal of Occupational Therapy published a systemic review and meta-analyses to identify evidence for occupational therapy interventions for children and youth with and at risk for mental health concerns. There were 5,310 articles screened, 357 were retrieved for full-text review, and 62 met the inclusion criteria of interventions that were activity or occupation based.

Results of the Study on Yoga for Mental Health in Children and Other OT Interventions

Data analysis was completed on the 62 articles that were included in the research review on occupational therapy and children and youth mental health. The studies were categorized by type: outdoor camps, video and computer games, productive occupations and life skills, meditation, animal-assisted interventions, creative arts, play, sports, and yoga.

The results indicated the following:

• the studies were classified as Level I, Level II and Level III – 20 (32%) were Level I studies, 22 (36%) were Level II studies, and 20 (32%) were Level III studies.
• moderate to strong evidence supports the use of yoga and sports for children’s mental health.
• moderate-strength evidence supports the use of play and creative arts.
• evidence for the use of animal-assisted interventions, meditation, video and computer games, and productive occupations was of low strength.

Conclusion

The researchers concluded that there is substantial evidence exists to support the use of activities that involve active participation to address the mental health, behavioral, and social participation concerns of children and youth. The strongest evidence supported sports and yoga for mental health It is important for Occupational Therapists to work with the children to determine the best intervention for each specific child.

Reference: Cahill, S. M., Egan, B. E., & Seber, J. (2020). Activity-and Occupation-Based Interventions to Support Mental Health, Positive Behavior, and Social Participation for Children and Youth: A Systematic Review. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 74(2), 7402180020p1-7402180020p28.

Yoga Resources for Children

Yoga Cards:  If you want to start yoga for mental health benefits in children, check out this download of 30 yoga cards with directions, Sun Salutation sequence and over 20 game ideas.  FIND OUT MORE INFORMATION

This Yoga Bingo digital download includes everything you need to play this fun filled movement game.  There are 30 bingo boards so you can play with the entire class and 36 calling cards.