3 Benefits to Ayurvedic Practices for Children
By- Tracy Bannister
84 percent of children ages 5-11 are considered to be in excellent health. 16 percent, then, fall into a less fortunate category. Children are in a constant state of growing and learning, which can be negatively impacted if their physical health isn’t top-notch. Fortunately, intervention and prevention can help keep your child as happy and healthy as possible. Ancient Ayurvedic health practices offer a means of exactly that with an approach that is tailored to your child’s individual needs.
Vata, Pitta, and Kapha
You likely have a range of things you do for your health including eating well, working out and investing in insurance. Just like you, your child is an individual, with their own needs. Determining which Ayurvedic mind-body type your child is can help you identify and meet their unique set of needs, both mental and physical. Most often, a child will not be 100 percent in one group, but may be a mix of two or sometimes even more. Touch up on the seven different mind-body groups, and make notes of your child’s behaviors, likes, and dislikes in order to determine what group or groups they fall in. Once you have a solid idea of their grouping, you’ll be able to identify more closely what they need from you in order to thrive.
Optimized Nutrition
A big part of thriving involves a proper and optimal diet to meet high nutritional needs for growing and developing. Feeding your child a diet that follows Ayurvedic principles will give your child all of the vitamins and nutrients they need for mind and body, with none of the junk that can inhibit their development. Some changes are really quite easy, like buying only organic and eliminating frozen and canned veggies. Other changes can be a bit more challenging if your child is used to other eating habits, but stay positive! Introduce food changes slowly, and get them involved in the meal planning and preparation to get them excited for new foods. When a body and mind is well-nourished, the growth and advancement in your child will be quite astonishing.
Mind-Body, Body-Mind
Nourishing the physical body properly will show in both physical and mental ways; nourishing the mind will also not only benefit your child’s mental state, but their physical state as well, as these are all connected. Ayurveda recognizes how these things are intertwined. Children are in the Kapha (growing) state, which means they are very absorbent of thing around them, like a sponge. For them to grow into their best, healthiest selves, it’s important that they absorb only good things; this is an important component for Ayurvedic practice. Avoiding violent TV programs, for example. Only watching informative, happy, and enlightening programming will help ensure your child is getting only positive input, thus nourishing their mind.
Many would agree that Ayurvedic practices are actually exponentially more beneficial for children, as they are in a very delicate stage of their life. How they grow and develop in childhood will have a huge impact on their physical and mental health as teens and even more so as adults. Setting them up for success now with proper health practices is vital.
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