The clear take home is that a meditative state of mind will strengthen mind and health significantly. Learn to develop a meditative state of mind and alter habits to support just that.
This all needs to be built directly into our education system to produce admirable productive citizens. We are slowly figuring out how to actually do it and lifetime habits are powerfully indicated to produce long lives.
The rewards are clearly there..
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Scientists Discover What Meditation Does To Your Gut &Your Brain
Arjun WaliaJune 28, 2016
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2016/06/28/scientists-demonstrate-what-meditation-does-to-your-gut-your-brain/
Numerous studies have indicated the many physiological benefits of meditation, and the latest one comes from Harvard University.
An eight week study conducted by Harvard
researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) determined that
meditation literally rebuilds the brains grey matter
in just eight weeks. It’s the very first study to document that
meditation produces changes over time in the brain’s grey matter. (1)
“Although the practice of
meditation is associated with a sense of peacefulness and physical
relaxation, practitioners have long claimed that meditation also
provides cognitive and psychological benefits that persist throughout
the day. This study demonstrates that changes in brain structure may
underlie some of these reported improvements and that people are not
just feeling better because they are spending time relaxing.” – (1) Sara Lazar of the MGH Psychiatric Neuroimaging Research Program and a Harvard Medical School Instructor in Psychology
The Study
The study involved taking magnetic
resonance images (MRI) of the brain’s of 16 study participants two weeks
prior to participating in the study. MRI images of the participants
were also taken after the study was completed.
“The analysis of MR images,
which focused on areas where meditation-associated differences were seen
in earlier studies, found increased grey-matter density in the
hippocampus, known to be important for learning and memory, and in
structures associated with self-awareness, compassion and
introspection.” (1)
For the study, participants engaged in
meditation practices every day for approximately 30 minutes. These
practices included focusing on audio recordings for guided meditation,
non-judgmental awareness of sensations, feelings and state of mind.
“It is fascinating to see the
brain’s plasticity and that, by practicing meditation, we can play an
active role in changing the brain and can increase our well-being and
quality of life. Other studies in different patient populations have
shown that meditation can make significant improvements in a variety of
symptoms, and we are now investigating the underlying mechanisms in the
brain that facilitate this change.” – (1) Britta Holzel, first author of the paper and a research fellow at MGH and Giessen University in Germany
The Gut
Researchers from Harvard have also
released another study showing that meditation can have a significant
impact on clinical symptoms of gastrointestinal disorders, irritable
bowel syndrome (IBS) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The study
showed that elicitation of the relaxation response (a physical state of deep rest that changes the physical and emotional responses to stress) is a very big help.
The study comes out of the Benson-Henry
Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)
and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC). This is the very
first study where the use of the “relaxation response” was examined in
these disorders, and the first to investigate the genomic effects of the
relaxation response in individuals with any disorder. The report was
published in the journal PLOS-ONE. (source)
Given the two studies cited above, and
all of the other documented health benefits of meditation, this should
open the door for more studies to examine the benefits of meditation for
a wide range of diseases.
“Our results suggest exciting
possibilities for further developing and implementing this treatment in a
wider group of patients with gastrointestinal illness. Several studies
have found that stress management techniques and other psychological
interventions can help patients with IBS, at least in the short term;
and while the evidence for IBD is less apparent, some studies have
suggested potential benefits. What is novel about our study is
demonstration of the impact of a mind/body intervention on the genes
controlling inflammatory factors that are known to play a major role in
IBD and possibly in IBS.” – Brandon Kuo of the gastrointestinal unit in the MGH Department of Medicine, co-lead author of the report. (source)
For those of you who are unaware, IBS
and IBD are chronic conditions that produce similar symptoms which
include; abdominal pain, and changes in bowel function, like diarrhea.
IBD also includes ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, which leads
one to suffer from severe inflammation in all or part of the
gastrointestinal tract. Science has shown us that stress intensifies
these symptoms, which is why this study regarding meditation and these
diseases holds a great deal of importance.
The relaxation response has been subject
to several studies that clearly show that its regular practice (induced
by meditation) directly affects physiologic factors such as oxygen
consumption, heart rate, blood pressure and again, stress and anxiety.
It was first described over 40 years ago by Herbert Benson, director
emeritus of the Benson-Henry Institute and co-author of the paper
presented in this article.
The study had 48 adult participants,
with 19 of them being diagnosed with IBS and 29 with IBD. There was
weekly relaxation response training, as well as in their home for 15 t0
20 mintues each day.
The study enrolled 48 adult participants
— 19 of whom had been diagnosed with IBS and 29 with IBD — who
participated in a nine-week group program focused on stress reduction,
cognitive skills, and health-enhancing behaviors. Each of the weekly
sessions included relaxation response training, and participants were
asked to practice relaxation response elicitation at home for 15 to 20
minutes each day. Along with aspects featured in other group programs
offered at the Benson-Henry Institute, this program included a session
specifically focused on gastrointestinal health.
“Both in patients with IBS and
those with IBD, participation in the mind/body program appeared to have
significantly improved disease-related symptoms, anxiety, and overall
quality of life, not only at the end of the study period but also three
weeks later. While there were no significant changes in inflammatory
markers for either group of participants, changes in expression were
observed in almost 200 genes among participants with IBS and more than
1,000 genes in those with IBD. Many of the genes with altered expression
are known to contribute to pathways involved with stress response and
inflammation.” (source)
How To Meditate
A common misconception about meditation
is that you have to sit a certain way or do something in particular to
achieve the various benefits that it can provide. All you have to do is
place yourself in a position that is most comfortable to you. It could
be sitting cross legged, lying down in a bed, sitting on a couch etc,
it’s your choice.
Another common misconception about
meditation is that you have to “try” to empty your mind. One important
factor I enjoyed reading from the study mentioned above is that
participants were engaged in “non-judgmental awareness of sensations,
feelings and state of mind.” When meditating, you shouldn’t try to
“empty” your mind. Instead, try to let your thoughts, feelings and
whatever emotions you are feeling at the time flow. Don’t judge them,
just let them come and go and be at peace with it.
I also believe that meditation is a
state of being/mind more than anything else. I feel that one does not
have to sit down for half an hour and “meditate” so to speak in order to
reap the benefits of it, or to be engaged in the practice itself. One
can be engaged in meditation while they are on a walk, for example, or
the time they have right before they sleep. Throughout the day, one can
resist judging their thoughts, letting them flow until they are no more,
or just be in a constant state of peace and self awareness. Contrary to
popular belief, there is more than one way to meditate.
“You will have to understand one
of the most fundamental things about meditation: that no technique
leads to meditation. The old so-called techniques and the new scientific
biofeedback techniques are the same as far as meditation is concerned.
Meditation is not a byproduct of any technique. Meditation happens
beyond mind. No technique can go beyond mind.” – Osho
Sources:
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