The Body on Meditation

TheBrainOnMedit_BFL_Info_2015

The Body on Meditation

Studies show that meditation can improve our psychological wellbeing by reducing stress, anxiety, addiction, and depression and by improving memory and critical thinking. But did you know that meditating can also make structural changes to the brain? Meditation can change the way neurons talk to each other, creating new circuits. It can also help some brain regions become thicker while making others less dense. And let’s not forget the body; meditating can reduce blood pressure and even bolster the immune system.
Read on to learn more about what’s happening when you sit down and tune out.
Pain Matrix
In one study conducted by Kober and Associates, study subjects were given a pain stimulus – a painfully hot sensation on their arms. The heat was applied without any instruction, and then again with the directive to ask themselves this question: “Is this tolerable pain? Can I handle it?”
The researchers found that not only did the study’s participants report 27% lower pain sensation after using the mindfulness technique, they were also able to measure 45% less brain activity in the pain matrix after subjects implemented the exercise. They concluded that mindfulness can improve the perception of pain and the actual neural response to pain. Their research was confirmed when Dr. Joshua Grant conducted the same pain experiment on subjects who already practiced meditation. He found that the number of hours of meditation a person had completed was directly related to his or her ability to handle the pain during the experiment.
Amygdala
The amygdala is involved in the way we experience negative emotions, like stress. The region actually grows denser as a result of stress. But those who practice meditation show decreased activity in this area during stressful moments and a reduction of amygdala density over time. That means meditation can not only alter acute stress response, it can play a role in shaping the structure of the brain.
For example, in one study, cigarette smokers were split into two groups: one attended eight mindfulness meditation training sessions and the other took a popular smoking cessation course. While both groups smoked less, the group that learned meditations showed less stress response in the amygdala when they were later asked to recall painful memories while being studied in an fMRI scan.
Prefrontal cortex
The prefrontal cortex begins to thin with age, contributing to cognitive function decline in later years. Meditation may be able to reverse the pattern, as there is suggested evidence of an inverse correlation between prefrontal thickness and meditation practice.
Hippocampus
We each have two hippocampi – seahorse-shaped brain regions that help us form new memories from experiences. Like the amygdala, the hippocampus is responsive to stress. However, the hippocampus actually shrinks in response to stress. Sara Lazar, meditation researcher, conducted brain imaging research on a group of 16 people before and after taking a standard eight-week mindfulness-based stress response training course. They found that the group increased the concentration of grey matter in the left hippocampus following the training.
PCC {Posterior cingulate cortex}
Lazar also found increases in gray matter density as a result of meditation in the PCC, which is associated with creativity, rumination, self-reflection, and the way a person assesses how any given situation related to him or her as an individual.
TPJ [Temporo-parietal junction]
Lazar’s research also found increased gray matter density as a result of meditation in the TPJ, which serves the reverse function of the PCC. TPJ is associated with perspective-taking and empathy. This may increase an individual’s ability to read the emotions on stranger’s faces.
Heart
Meditation may protect against heart disease. One study conducted by the University of California, Los Angeles of 40 adults found that the eight-week meditation training reduced concentrations of the market C-reactive protein, which is associated with the development of heart disease.
Immune system
In the same UCLA study mentioned above, researchers found a drop in the expression of a group of genes that active inflammation and contribute body’s immune response in correlation with the 8-week meditation course.
Blood pressure
In a study at the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine in Boston, hypertension patients were instructed to try “relaxation response” – a daily meditation method developed by a cardiologist. After three months of practice, 40 of the 60 participants were able to reduce their medication thanks to reduced levels of blood pressure. The meditative practice may have helped the body increase production of nitric oxide – a gas that can expand blood vessels, increasing the channels through which blood can flow and thus lowering the pressure required to pump blood through the body.