new delhi on the eve of international day of yoga idy the who on monday said policymakers should consider integrating yoga into communitybased mental health and wellbeing initiatives while increasing efforts to leverage the potential of safe and effective traditional medicinethe un agencys regional director for southeast asia poonam khetrapal singh said regular yoga practice can help people of all ages and incomes achieve adequate physical activity making it a highimpact costeffective way to prevent and control noncommunicable diseases ncds one of southeast asia regions eight flagship prioritiesit has been shown to have immediate psychological effects decreasing anxiety and stress and increasing feelings of emotional and social wellbeingthroughout the covid19 response yoga has helped hundreds of millions of people from all countries and cultures stay healthy and well highlighting that yoga is for all of humanity the theme of this years idy event singh said in a statementconsistent with the regionwide push to reorient health systems towards strong primary health care phc policymakers should consider integrating yoga into communitybased mental health and wellbeing initiatives while also increasing efforts to leverage the power and potential of safe and effective traditional medicine she saidthe region continues to intensify action to increase physical activity and enhance mental health in line with its flagship priorities the who global action plan on physical activity gappa 20182030 comprehensive mental health action plan 20132030 and the sustainable development goals khetrapal singh saidlast year the who launched a regional roadmap on implementing the gappa which will help member states identify and implement policies to achieve a 15 per cent relative reduction in the prevalence of insufficient physical activity by 2030ministers of health and education from across the region issued a call to action to scale up the implementation of comprehensive health programmes in schools including by facilitating physical activityamid the ongoing covid19 response and recovery policymakers should explore integrating yoga into preventive and promotive health strategies especially for mental health a core priority in the months and years ahead the regional director saidin march who and the indian government signed an agreement to establish the who global centre for traditional medicine gctm in jamnagar indiathe gctm which is supported by an investment of usd 250 million from the centre has a strategic focus on evidence and learning data and analytics sustainability and equity and innovation and technology with the overall aim of optimising the contribution of trm to global health and sustainable developmentthe mission of the gctm aligned with the regions longstanding focus on strengthening traditional medicine trm system performance monitoring increasing safety monitoring for such products enhancing research capacity and integrating safe and effective trm into health service delivery especially at the phc level the who said