12-week kindergarten-based yoga program improves behaviour in children

A new study, published in Frontiers of Psychology, has assessed the impact of a kindergarten-based yoga program on cognitive performance, visual-motor co-ordination, and inattentive and hyperactive behaviours in five year old children.

In the study, researchers assessed the impact of a kindergarten-based yoga program, using a randomised controlled trial, conducted over 12 weeks. 15 children performed Hatha-yoga twice a week for 30 minutes, another 15 children performed generic physical education twice a week for 30 minutes, and 15 children performed no kind of physical activity, serving as a control group.

The researchers found that, of all the activities performed by the children, practicing yoga had significant positive impact on the development and behaviour of inattention and hyperactivity.

Yoga also had a significant positive impact on the completion times for two visomotor precision tasks in comparison to those in the physical education group, and the visual attention scores of the yoga group were also higher in comparison to the control group.

Researchers believe that, based on their results, yoga represents “a sufficient and cost-benefit effective exercise which could enhance cognitive and behavioural factors relevant for learning and academic achievement among young children.”