Introducing Yoga in USA Schools may be a Good Way to Tackle Obesity Crisis

Launching Yoga in USA's elementary, middle, and high schools is a good way to tackle the obesity crisis, according to Hindus living in the US. Acclaimed Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, said that there was a significant need to incorporate Yoga in the lives of children and youth of the country.

Though Yoga originated in Hinduism with traces going back to around 2,000 BCE, it was "a living fossil" and a mental and physical discipline handed down from one guru to next, for everybody to share and benefit from.

Rajan Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, quoted Patanjali, author of the basic text Yoga Sutra, who said that Yoga was a methodical effort to attain perfection, through the control of the different elements of human nature, physical and psychical.

According to reports, over two-thirds of adults in USA are overweight or obese and about 17 percent children/adolescents from 6-19 years are overweight. Overweight and obesity are risk factors for heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and other health problems and obese spent about 42 percent more in health care costs compared to normal-weight persons.

Exercise and behavior modification form part of the prevention/treatment of obesity/overweight. About 40 percent of adults report no leisure-time physical activity and as children get older, participation in regular physical activity decreases dramatically, reports suggest.

According to National Institutes of Health, Yoga may help one to feel more relaxed, be more flexible, improve posture, breathe deeply, and get rid of stress.

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Source-ANI