Children are the most powerful motivators for change | Dr. Richa Agnihotri | TEDxMcMasterU

Children inspire us to be our best selves and motivate us to make healthier and better choices. If we lean into this innate strength and capacity for connection projected by kids, we can make better choices that directly impact our health and wellbeing, and also theirs - and an entire generation. And to take it further, they learn through our modelling how to live healthier lives - for ourselves and the planet. So, this reciprocal force can spur important change and requires us, as adults - anyone who interacts with children in any capacity - to lean in and really listen to the kids. For that power is not just in each child, but also within each and every one of us who were once kids. Dr. Richa Agnihotri is a Community Pediatrician, President of the Community Paediatrics Section of the Canadian Paediatrics Society, and Adjunct Assistant Clinical Professor at McMaster University who is certified in Lifestyle Medicine. As a passionate advocate for child health and wellbeing, she believes in the healing and health-promoting power of strong relationships and in the immense power of working collaboratively to recreate a modern-day version of the "village" it takes to raise a child. She works with partners in her local community to enhance child health and wellbeing, practices social prescribing, and teaches children's yoga. In her clinical work, she employs healthcare coaching strategies to help families build healthy habits based on their own values, goals, and barriers, and within the context of their social determinants of health. She has a website where she blogs and shares free family resources and a TH-cam channel for building children's health literacy. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx