Mindfulness (metacognition) and Health benefits.
Mindfulness meditation and stress hormone cortisol.
Mindfulness meditation, the practice of paying more attention to the present moment, helps lower stress hormones and decreases inflammation in the body, scientists have proven for the first time.
Studies have shown that mindfulness can decrease self-reported stress levels and make people feel calmer, but until now it was unknown if it was having a biological impact on the body.
Now scientists in the US have shown that an eight week course of mindfulness, involving daily classes, can help lower inflammatory molecules and stress hormones by around 15 per cent.
Meditation and anti aging.
A 2011 study found that 30 experienced meditators in the three-month “Shamatha Project” meditation retreat had, by its end, significantly greater activity of an enzyme called telomerase, which keeps the protective tips of chromosomes, called telomeres, intact. (Cells with shortened telomeres, according to a prevailing but not unquestioned theory, age faster.) Greater telomerase activity might reflect epigenetic changes that increase the activity of the telomerase gene.
A 2012 study of long-term meditators found different patterns of DNA activation, possibly reflecting epigenetic effects, during periods of self-reported “higher states of consciousness” compared to ordinary awareness.
A 2014 study led by Richard Davidson of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, found lower expression of genes involved in inflammation and of molecules that activate genes (an epigenetic effect) in 19 experienced meditators after a day of intensive meditation, but not in a control group of 21 non-meditators. Such epigenetic regulation of genes involved in inflammation “may represent some of the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic potential of mindfulness-based interventions,” the researchers concluded.
Reduce cancer risk.
Recent research suggests that meditation and other similar lifestyle changes may also be able to reduce the risk of cancer. A small study done by Dr. Dean Ornish and scientists at University of California, San Francisco found that men with low-risk prostate cancer who underwent an hour long breathing and meditation exercise every day along with other activities like yoga or walking had decreased expression in genes associated with cancer [5]. Specifically, the research team found that RAS family oncogenes (RAN, RAB14, and RAB8A) were down-regulated as a result of the activities.
Meditation: A Potent Antioxidant.
In a study, relaxation and diaphragmatic breathing led to increased antioxidant activity in athletes following exhaustive exercise, and also had a cascading effect of decreasing post-workout cortisol, and increasing the production of melatonin (powerful antioxidant and vital sleep hormone).
Another study found decreased levels of blood lactate, and higher levels of the powerful antioxidant glutathione in Sudarshan Kriya practitioners.
To manage pain.
One of the best-studied medical uses of meditation is for helping manage chronic pain. The form of meditation often employed for this purpose is mindfulness meditation, which involves fully focusing on whatever is being experienced from moment to moment. The idea is to take note of the here-and-now experience without judging or reacting to it. For chronic pain sufferers, mindfulness may help them notice and accept their pain without becoming anxious and panicky, which just makes the pain worse. However, a study from the University of Montreal suggests that long-term practice of mindfulness meditation may also lead to physical changes in the brain that directly affect pain perception. The study matched 17 expert meditators with non-meditators of the same age and gender. Structural MRI brain scans showed that the meditators had a thicker cortex in certain pain-related areas of the brain. This cortical thickening was associated with lower pain sensitivity.
To improve sleep.
Research indicates that meditation may help fight insomnia. In a study from India’s National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, researchers looked at how sleep was affected by vipassana meditation. This form of meditation involves focusing the mind on mental and physical processes in order to develop insight. The study included 105 healthy men between the ages of 30 and 60. Half were experienced vipassana meditators, and half had no experience with any type of meditation. The meditators showed enhanced slow wave (deep) sleep and REM sleep across all age groups. In contrast, the non-meditators showed a pronounced decline in slow wave sleep with age, a sign of declining sleep quality in the older men.
To lower blood pressure.
Research suggests that meditation may help lower blood pressure. In a study published in the American Journal of Hypertension, 298 college students were randomly assigned to either a Transcendental Meditation (TM) group or a waiting list (control) group. The study found that TM helped the students decrease psychological distress and increase coping ability. More interestingly, in a subgroup of students at risk for high blood pressure later in life, these changes were associated with a reduction in blood pressure. That’s heartening news, because young adults with even slight elevations in blood pressure have a three times greater risk of developing full-blown high blood pressure within the next 30 years.
To enhance concentration.
Meditation has an undeserved reputation for being esoteric and difficult to learn. In truth, it’s really nothing more than the practice of focusing the mind intently on a particular thing or activity. It seems logical that regular meditation would hone a person’s powers of concentration, and a recent study in the Journal of Neuroscience found just that. In the study, three months of intensive meditation training led to improvements in attentional stability – the ability to sustain attention without frequent lapses.
To connect with others.
Meditation might seem like the ultimate in self-absorption. But at least one form of meditation, known as loving-kindness meditation, also seems to help build a sense of social connectedness. In loving-kindness meditation, the mind is sharply focused on compassionate feelings and well wishes that are directed toward real or imagined others. A study in the journal Emotionfound that just a few minutes of this form of meditation practice increased positive, connected feelings toward strangers.