Can Yoga and Meditation Practice Motivate Teenagers to Adopt a Healthier Lifestyle: An Epidemiological Study

BackgroundThe rapid technological growth and the ease of access to Internet to the current generation population (Generation Z, alpha) right from their early days of life, has its both advantages and disadvantages. The present epidemiological study evaluates the impact of yoga and meditation practices on the teenagers' mental health and lifestyle choices.MethodsThe total sample size is 425, of age group 13-19, 237 were practicing either yoga, meditation or both, while 188 practiced neither meditation nor yoga. Several different parameters were assessed via the PROMIS pediatric forms. Several lifestyle habits were also assessed using subjective questions.ResultsOur study has demonstrated that teens who practiced yoga and meditation had a significantly positive effect on the parameters such as positive affect (p value <.001), global health (p value = .03) and cognitive health (p value = .02) compared to their peers who did not practice any yoga or meditation. It was also shown a negative effect on parameters such as psychological stress experiences (p value = .06), sleep related problems (p value = .41).ConclusionsAlong with the mental and cognitive health, the decisions and choices made by the teenagers who practice yoga and meditation are shown to be better than their peers in this Indian epidemiological study.