Yoga in Schools: The Scientific Rationale, Prevalence and Research Evidence - Sat Bir S. Khalsa

1. Yoga in Schools: The Scientific Rationale, Prevalence and Research Evidence December 29, 2015 8th International Conference Yoga & Education: Principles & Practice Kaivalyadhama Brigham & Womens Hospital Harvard Medical School Sat Bir S. Khalsa, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School Director of Research, Kundalini Research Institute Research Director, Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health Editor in Chief, International Journal of Yoga Therapy Research Associate, Benson Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine

2. Psychophysiology of Yoga

3. Yoga teaches you the techniques and awareness to stay healthy. You gain strong immune, glandular and nervous systems. This foundation gives you energy and lets you deal with the mental and spiritual facets of your life. Yogi Bhajan

4. Bagchi and Wenger, 1957 physio- logically Yogic meditation represents deep relaxation of the autonomic nervous system From: Electro-physiological correlates of some Yogi exercises, Bagchi BK, Wenger MA, Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology, 7 (Suppl):132-149, 1957.

5. the effects of Kirtan Kriya suppressing expression of inammation-related genes and up-regulating expression of genes involved in antiviral and immunoglobulin responses

6. Yoga Meditation and Cerebral Blood Flow From: Cerebral blood flow differences between long-term meditators and non- meditators, Newberg AB, Wintering N, Waldman MR, Amen D, Khalsa DS, Alavi A. Conscious Cognition, 19:899-905, 2010. CBF of long-term meditators was signicantly higher (p < .05) compared to non- meditators in the prefrontal cortex, parietal cortex, thalamus, putamen, caudate, and midbrainThe observed changesappear in structures that underlie the attention network and also those that relate to emotion and autonomic function. Non-meditators Meditators

7. Yoga, Brain Structure and Pain From: Insular Cortex Mediates Increased Pain Tolerance in Yoga Practitioners, Villemure C, Ceko M, Cotton VA, Bushnell MC, Cerebral Cortex (in press), 2013.

8. Reasons for Practice in a Beginners Program From: Yoga in the real world: Perceptions, motivators, barriers, and patterns of use, Quilty MT, Saper RB, Goldstein R, Khalsa SBS, Global Advances in Health and Medicine, 2:44-49, 2013.

9. 23 chapters with theory, rationale, research & practice ~60 chapter contributors, ~30 yoga therapist contributors

10. Yoga Practices (postures, breathing, relaxation, meditation) Mind-Body Awareness Mindfulness Attention Concentration/Cognition Self/social Awareness Behaviors, Mental State, Health & Performance Mood, Well-Being, Psychological Disorders, Positive Behaviors, Negative Behaviors, Physical Health, Cognitive/Academic Performance, Relationships, Quality of Life Self-Regulation Emotion Regulation Stress Regulation Resilience Equanimity Psychological Self-Efficacy Physical Fitness Flexibility Strength Balance Respiratory Function Physical Self-Efficacy

11. Yoga for Children/Adolescents

12. Child / Adolescent / School Challenges

13. M ajority of seriously impairing and persistent conditions have child- adolescent onsets and high

14. From: One-year incidence of psychiatric disorders and associated risk factors among adolescents in the community. Roberts RE, Roberts CR, Chan W., Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 50:405-15, 2009. Adolescent / School Mental Health Challenges

15. From: Cumulative prevalence of psychiatric disorders by young adulthood: a prospective cohort analysis from the Great Smoky Mountains Study, Copeland W, Shanahan L, Costello EJ, Angold A, Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 50:252-61, 2011. the lifetime prevalence of psychiatric problems by age 21 well exceeds 80%, suggesting that the experience of psychiatric illness is nearly universal.

16. Academic Pediatrics, 9:212-220, 2009.

17. Pediatric Physical Therapy. 20:66-80, 2008

18. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2945853/pdf/PE_7_8_20.pdf

19. Demonstrated Benefits in Children Stress, anxiety, depression Self-concept Cognitive function, memory, perception Flexibility Cardiopulmonary fitness Psychomotor & neuromuscular performance Weight loss

20. Yoga Use in the Last 12 Months 2012 From: Use of complementary health approaches among children aged 4-17 years in the United States: national health interview survey, 2007-2012, Black LI, Clarke TC, Barnes PM, Stussman BJ, Nahin RL, National Health Statistics Report, 78:1-19, 2015. There was a statistically significant increase in the use of any yoga, tai chi, or qi gong between 2007 (2.5%) and 2012 (3.2%). Most of this increase can be attributed to the increased use of yoga (2.3% to 3.1%)

21. Yoga in Schools

22. Implementing Yoga within the School Curriculum: A Scientific Rationale for Improving Social-Emotional Learning & Positive Student Outcomes Butzer B, Bury D, Telles S, Khalsa SBS Journal of Children's Services, (in press), 2016.

23. Yoga in Education The very essence of education is concentration of mind, not the collection of facts. If I had to do my education once again, I would not study facts at all. I would develop the power of concentration and detachment From: Swami Vivekananda, in Education, Compiled from the speeches and writings of Swami Vivekananda, T.S. Avinashilingam,1943. Swami Vivekananda

24. Yoga in Education the faculty of voluntarily bringing back a wandering attention, over and over again, is the very root of judgment, character and will. No one is [master of himself] if he have it not. An education which should improve this faculty would be the education par excellence. From: William James, The Principles of Psychology, 1890. William James - 1890

25. From: The Hygiene of the School Child, LM Terman, 1914. the health and welfare of a child will be regarded as one of as much importance as arithmetic and geography

26. Implementing Yoga within the School Curriculum: A Scientific Rationale for Improving Social-Emotional Learning & Positive Student Outcomes Butzer B, Bury D, Telles S, Khalsa SBS Journal of Children's Services, (in press), 2015.

27. Survey of Formal Yoga Programs ~36 existing yoga in schools programs # of years in service 2 to 21 yrs, mean 9 yrs ~940 schools across the United States more than 5,400 trained instructors 42% of programs require 200-hr YA certification 75% offer programs from pre- to high school 8 full yoga sessions only, 3 in-class only, 25 both

28. Research on Yoga in Schools

29. From: Are There Benefits from Teaching Yoga at Schools? A Systematic Review of Randomized Control Trials of Yoga-Based Interventions, Ferreira-Vorkapic C Feitoza, Marchioro M, Simes J, Kozasa E, Telles S, Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Article ID 345835, 2015. Systematic Review of Yoga in Schools RCTs

30. Bibliometric Review Published Yoga/School Studies ~50 studies of yoga in school settings ~2/3 done in U.S., ~1/4 in India ~60% elementary school, ~25% high school ~50% used RCT, ~25% uncontrolled only 10% were after school programs

31. Published Yoga/School Studies

32. Published Yoga/School Studies

33. Published Yoga/School Studies Stress coping Self-regulation Physical and emotional arousal Aggression, hostility, anger Mood, anxiety, depression Rumination, cognitive functioning Self-esteem Mental, social & physical well-being Behavior

34. Yoga in Public School Research 12-week 1-hr Yoga Ed/Kripalu classes 2-3 times/week RCT, yoga vs. physical education, N ~ 100 Qualitative interviews post-program Self-report pre-post mental health questionnaires

35. Mental Health Outcomes

36. Mental Health Outcomes

37. Academic Outcomes From: Yoga May Mitigate Decreases in High School Grades, Butzer B, van Over M, Noggle Taylor JJ, Khalsa SBS, Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine Volume, Article ID 259814, 2015.

38. Physiological Outcomes From: Effects of a classroom-based yoga intervention on cortisol and behavior in second- and third-grade students: A pilot study, Butzer B, Day D, Potts A, Ryan C, Coulombe S, Davies B, Weidknecht K, Ebert M, Flynn L, Khalsa SBS. Journal of Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 20:41-49, 2015.

39. Before youre taking a test relax and breathe and you dont get as nervous or as tense. I used breathing outside the classroom in my life to calm me down if I was stressed or angry I would then do the breathing to calm me down and I will probably continue to do thisI was less anxious about school in general... Yoga denitely helped with sleeping ... it would take me a long time to get to sleep. When I was doing yoga it was much easier to fall asleep and stay asleep. Stress From: Qualitative evaluation of a high school yoga program: Feasibility and perceived benefits, Conboy LA, Noggle JJ, Frey JL, Kudesia RS, Khalsa SBS, Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing, 9:171-180, 2013.

40. I learned how to pay attention to how my body feels... Respecting how my body works ... the poses helped with gaining control over myself ... yoga gave me a new perspective on my body and I have more control than I thought I did. I have been eating healthier, more fruits and vegetables and not a lot of junk food; [for example] ice cream and candy... Awareness From: Qualitative evaluation of a high school yoga program: Feasibility and perceived benefits, Conboy LA, Noggle JJ, Frey JL, Kudesia RS, Khalsa SBS, Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing, 9:171-180, 2013.

41. I am fascinated by the culture of yoga, how people can change their lives and help themselves physically, emotionally ... I am interested in learning more. I have been a lot more happier lately ... I feel like a better person, making better choices, and staying out of trouble. It (yoga) has made a huge impact on our schoolIt is making our school a better place. Transformation From: Qualitative evaluation of a high school yoga program: Feasibility and perceived benefits, Conboy LA, Noggle JJ, Frey JL, Kudesia RS, Khalsa SBS, Explore: The Journal of Science & Healing, 9:171-180, 2013.

42. Kripalu | center for yoga & health