4 Lifestyle keys for children balance

If you are a mother, you easily know that a child without routine is a confuse child. Ayurveda point certain times during the day and a few tips to make that routine flow for both of you.

Daily Rhythms/Sleep

We also have daily cycles of doshas in addition to the dosha seasons.  They happen twice a day. The first cycle begins when the sun rises:

5 a.m. to 10 a.m. – Kapha time

10 a.m. to 2 p.m. – Pitta time

2 p.m. to 6 p.m. – Vatta time

When the sun sets the second cycle begins:

6 p.m. to 10 p.m. – Kapha time

10 p.m. to 2 a.m. – Pitta time

2 a.m. to 6 a.m. – Vata time

Your child will have a sound, restful sleep when going to bed during Kapha time (6 p.m. to 10 p.m.).

The morning is the time of day that your child will feel energized and naturally stronger and maybe a bit stiff so good to exercise. Just as the rain creates a moist environment for a seed to grow into a plant, the body makes mucus to lubricate the body. So some children have a runny nose on rising in the morning.

The midday summer cycle is from10 a.m. to 2 p.m. when the sun is highest and the digestive system is powerful so a good time to eat a large meal for fuel for the rest of the day.

The winter cycle from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. is a busy time for the nervous system. These three cycles repeat themselves in the second half of the daily cycle, from sunset to sunrise.

Exercise/Play

Knowing your children’s kid-types will help you to choose sports and physical activities that they like. This will give them a good start to make exercise and play a part of their life.

Breathing for Health

Breathing is key to your child’s health so proper breathing is a good foundation to develop in the early years of life. The practice of nasal breathing has been used for thousands of years.  People learned that their children caught fewer colds with nasal breathing.  There is a reason for this. It creates a stronger nervous system and intelligence.  It also allows access to the more subtle energies of the body.

Babies naturally do nasal breathing and as children get older they often start to do mouth breathing. In the past, parents learned to turn their children on their sides and to close their lips to have nasal breathing.

Why nasal breathing for your child?

Breathing through the nose delivers the air deeper into the lobes of the lungs. The inside of the nose has turbinates which act like turbines causing a more rotating, forceful stream of air.

Breathing into the lower part of the lungs helps as 60% to 80% of the lung’s blood supply is there for the oxygen gas exchange. The nerve receptors for the parasympathetic nervous system are more concentrated into the lower lobes of the lungs. This system creates the relaxation response in the body, increases immunity and digestion as well as decreasing the heart rate.

Breathing through the mouth or when a child is crying moves the air to the upper lobes of the lungs. Here the stress receptors are located which are connected with the sympathetic nervous system – the “fight or flight response.”  Bringing a screaming baby to the mother’s breast creates instant calm as the babies need to breathe through their noses and removes this stress response.

Knowing this it makes sense to breathe into all five lobes of the lung.  Children who do nasal breathing develop calmness and peace on the inside and are better able to manage the stressful life situation on the outside. 

For the most part, before 7 years of age children are natural breathers unless they develop the habit of mouth breathing. They breathe like babies, with the tummy (navel point) moving out in the inhale and in and up on the exhale.

Practice the “natural breath” with your children.  It is a simple breath sitting in easy pose with the spine straight.  You can make it fun by suggesting the lungs are like a balloon being blown up.

Hydration

Another secret for good health and to prevent infection is drinking enough pure water to stay fully hydrated. Warm water or room temperature water is much better to drink for good digestion.

Children are exposed to soft drinks which are very sweet and not providing good hydration. One tip to get your child used to drinks with less sugar, caffeine (dehydrating as a diuretic), preservatives, coloring agents etc. is to dilute fruit juices with water and use juices with no added sugar. You will have a calm, happy child instead of a hyperactive and dehydrated child.

 Of course there is no fast rule on this as children occasionally like treats, like a soft drink or pizza. You can slowly introduce pure water into your child’s diet e.g. a bottle of water in the lunch box.

A good guideline for good hydration is that your child will urinate 6 times a day and the urine is clear and a very pale yellow color.