"The choking game" and pranayama

An adolescent died last week in Mumbai. Initially ruled as a suicide, the parents had the courage to come out and say it was actually "the choking game" that killed the child. Children - typically between the ages of 9 and 16 - deprive their brain of Oxygen for a momentary high they get.

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/ml.asp?Ref=VE9JTS8yMDA3LzEyLzE5I0FyMDAxMDA=&Mode=HTML&Locale=english-skin-custom

You can see more on this at
http://www.stop-the-choking-game.com/en/home.asp
including a video going through the scenario.

Some yoga practices too require the holding of energy inside the body through various locks - e.g. Mahabandh. The net effect of some of them is a reduction in the amount of Oxygen going to the brain. Is that too harmful - at what point does one draw the boundary. The video referred to above says that at 3 minutes of Oxygen deprivation, brain cells start dying irreversibly. At 5 minutes, the brain may stop functioning. Are yoga practices that involve bandhs for a minute or two OK, or are they harmful. Everyone needs to make this decision themselves. The takeaway is - when in doubt, do less, rather than more.

One final thought - may be it is time to teach yoga to children for more reasons. Yes, they can get what they want, but in an environment that is not dangerous to them.