Yoga for children.

There is an increasing interest in the use of yoga for children to calm the mind and increase health and well being. Despite scant but increasing evidence supporting the efficacy of yoga in children, special yoga programs within schools are being developed for children and adolescents. This increasing popularity of the potential benefits of yoga may encourage parents to consider yoga for their children and request referrals or clarification of the purported effects. A description of the philosophical basis of yoga, the basic components of a yoga practice, safety concerns, and how to locate and evaluate a yoga program for children will be addressed.