Meditation Group Research Articles

Mindfulness Meditation Reduces Intraocular Pressure, Lowers Stress Biomarkers and Modulates Gene Expression in Glaucoma: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Reducing intraocular pressure (IOP) in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) is currently the only approach to prevent further optic nerve head damage. However, other mechanisms such as ischemia, oxidative stress, glutamate excitotoxicity, neurotrophin loss, inflammation/glial activation, and vascular dysregulation are not addressed. Because stress is a key risk factor affecting these mechanisms, we evaluated whether mindfulness-based stress reduction can lower IOP and normalize typical stress biomarkers. In a prospective, randomized trial 90 POAG patients (180 eyes; age above 45 y) were assigned to a waitlist control or mindfulness meditation group which practiced daily for 21 days. We measured IOP (primary endpoint), quality of life (QOL), stress-related serum biomarkers [cortisol, β-endorphins, IL6, TNF-α, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), reactive oxygen species (ROS), total antioxidant capacity (TAC)], and whole genome expression. Between-group comparisons revealed significantly lowered IOP in meditators (OD: 18.8 to 12.7, OS 19.0 to 13.1 mm Hg) which correlated with significantly lowered stress-biomarker levels including cortisol (497.3 to 392.3 ng/mL), IL6 (2.8 to 1.5 ng/mL), TNF-α (57.1 to 45.4 pg/mL), ROS (1625 to 987 RLU/min/104 neutrophils), and elevated β-endorphins (38.4 to 52.7 pg/mL), BDNF (56.1 to 83.9 ng/mL), and TAC (5.9 to 9.3) (all P<0.001). These changes correlated well with gene expression profiling. Meditators improved in QOL (P<0.05). A short course of mindfulness-based stress reduction by meditation in POAG, reduces IOP, improves QOL, normalizes stress biomarkers, and positively modifies gene expression. Mindfulness meditation can be recommended as adjunctive therapy for POAG.

Effects of Sahaj Samadhi meditation on heart rate variability and depressive symptoms in patients with late-life depression – RETRACTED

Late-life depression (LLD) is a disabling disorder and antidepressants are ineffective in as many as 60% of cases. Converging evidence shows a strong correlation between LLD and subsequent risk of cardiovascular disease. There is a need for new, well-tolerated, non-pharmacological augmentation interventions that can treat depressive symptoms as well as improve heart rate variability (HRV), an important prognostic marker for development of subsequent cardiovascular disease. Meditation-based techniques are of interest based on positive findings in other samples.AimsWe aimed to assess the efficacy of Sahaj Samadhi meditation (SSM), an underevaluated, standardised and manualised meditation intervention, on HRV and depressive symptoms. Eighty-three men and women aged 60-85 years, with mild to moderate depression and receiving treatment as usual (TAU) were randomised to either the SSM or TAU arm. Those allocated to SSM attended 4 consecutive days of group meditation training, using personalised mantras followed by 11 weekly reinforcement sessions. HRV and Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD; 17-item) score were measured at baseline and 12 weeks. All time and frequency domain measures of HRV did not significantly change in either arm. However, there was significant improvement in the SSM arm, compared with TAU, on the HRSD (difference in mean, 2.66; 95% CI 0.26-5.05; P = 0.03). Compared with TAU, SSM is associated with improvements in depressive symptoms but does not significantly improve HRV in patients with LLD. These results need to be replicated in subsequent studies incorporating a group-based, active control arm.Declaration of interestR.I.N. is the Director of Research and Health Promotion for the Art of Living Foundation, Canada and supervised the staff providing Sahaj Samadhi meditation. S.R. has received research funding from Satellite Healthcare for a mindfulness meditation trial in patients on haemodialysis. The remaining authors report no financial or other relationship relevant to the subject of this article.

Do meditators and non-meditators have different HRV dynamics?

PurposeThe heart is a complex system and many researchers have been recently studying cardiac behavior using the theory of nonlinear dynamical systems. One of the most appealing tools for analyzing heart function is the heart rate variability (HRV) signal. This study aimed to elucidate the HRV dynamics of six distinct states: spontaneous normal breathing (SNB) and metronomic breathing (MB), as non-meditator groups, before Chinese Chi meditation (CCM), during CCM, before Kundalini yoga meditation (KYM), and during KYM, as meditator groups. MethodsThe HRV data were obtained from the Physionet database. Lagged Poincare indices, Lyapunov exponent (LE), Lempel-Ziv complexity (LZ), and 4 types of entropy were calculated. ResultsThe results showed the greatest discrepancies in the lagged Poincare indices for KYM and CCM. In contrast, the least variations were achieved for MB. Compared to SNB, an enhancement in the log energy entropy and a reduction in the LZ and other entropies were concluded during KYM and CCM practices. In contrast, a reverse pattern was observed for MB. Using support vector machine, HRV dynamics were classified with average accuracies of 99.14 and 98.2% and average sensitivities of 99.87 and 99.57% for pre-KYM and during KYM, respectively. ConclusionIt was shown that the HRV dynamics were significantly different in meditators and non-meditators.

The Lived Experiences of Experienced Vipassana Mahasi Meditators: an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

Research into the effects and mechanisms of mindfulness training draws predominantly on quantitative research. There is a lack of understanding about the subjective experiences of experienced mindfulness meditators, which may provide additional insights into the effects, processes and context of mindfulness training. This qualitative study explored the lived experiences of a novel group of experienced mindfulness meditators who practise Vipassana Mahasi (VM) meditation. The study aimed to understand how experienced VM practitioners make sense of the effects of practice and what processes they ascribe to it. Participants attended semistructured interviews, and their responses were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Results yielded overarching themes including (a) improvements in hedonic and eudaimonic well-being; (b) insights into self, others and perception of reality; (c) attaining equanimity; and (d) physical and interpersonal difficulties. Participants perceived VM as a ‘cleansing’ process whereby maladaptive responses were eliminated through mindfulness, other supportive mental qualities, decentering and nonattachment. The findings revealed a complex and dynamic set of interdependent outcomes and processes, which are reinforced by Buddhist teachings and ethical practices. This study highlights the need for additional interdisciplinary research into topics such as insight generation and supportive mental qualities cultivated during VM, novel states of well-being informed by Buddhist constructs and interpersonal difficulties related to long-term practice. Findings also suggest that incorporating Buddhist teachings and ethics into mindfulness-based interventions may enhance practitioner understanding and implementation of meditation techniques.

Mindful breath awareness meditation facilitates efficiency gains in brain networks: A steady-state visually evoked potentials study

The beneficial effects of mindfulness-based therapeutic interventions have stimulated a rapidly growing body of scientific research into underlying psychological processes. Resulting evidence indicates that engaging with mindfulness meditation is associated with increased performance on a range of cognitive tasks. However, the mechanisms promoting these improvements require further investigation. We studied changes in behavioural performance of 34 participants during a multiple object tracking (MOT) task that taps core cognitive processes, namely sustained selective visual attention and spatial working memory. Concurrently, we recorded the steady-state visually evoked potential (SSVEP), an EEG signal elicited by the continuously flickering moving objects, and indicator of attentional engagement. Participants were tested before and after practicing eight weeks of mindful breath awareness meditation or progressive muscle relaxation as active control condition. The meditation group improved their MOT-performance and exhibited a reduction of SSVEP amplitudes, whereas no such changes were observed in the relaxation group. Neither group changed in self-reported positive affect and mindfulness, while a marginal increase in negative affect was observed in the mindfulness group. This novel way of combining MOT and SSVEP provides the important insight that mindful breath awareness meditation may lead to refinements of attention networks, enabling more efficient use of attentional resources.

Spirituality in pain medicine: A randomized experiment of pain perception, heart rate and religious spiritual well-being by using a single session meditation methodology

The aim of this study is to investigate different effects on pain perception among randomly assigned volunteers practicing meditation compared to a relaxation condition. The study examines whether participants of the experimental conditions (meditation versus relaxation) differ in the change of pain perception and heart rate measurement and in religious and spiritual well-being after an intervention. Method: 147 volunteers (long-term practitioners and novices) were randomly assigned to the experimental conditions with a headphone guided 20-minute single session intervention. The change in their pre- and post-intervention pain perception was measured using Quantitative Sensory Testing and Cold Pressor Testing (CPTest), their stress-level was compared by monitoring heart rate, and their religious and spiritual well-being by using the Multidimensional Inventory for Religious/Spiritual Well-Being (MI-RSB48). Additionally, dimensions of the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) measured the psychological resilience of the participants; pain and stress experience, and the state of relaxation and spirituality experience were assessed. Five persons were excluded due to failure in measuring the heart rate and 29 participants had to be excluded because of high values on the BSI. Results: The meditation group showed an increase in their pain tolerance on the CPTest and a decrease in their pain intensity for heat after the experimental condition, in contrast to the relaxation group. Futhermore, the meditation group showed a higher level of religious spiritual well-being (MI-RSB48 Total score) as well as in the sub-dimensions General Religiosity, Forgiveness, and Connectedness after the experimental condition, compared to the relaxation group. Our data is consistent with the hypothesis that meditation increases pain tolerance and reduces pain intensity, however, further work is required to determine whether meditation contains similar implications for pain patients.

The Effect of Anapanasati Meditation on Depression: A Randomized Control Trial

Aim: To study the effect of Anpanasati Meditation on individuals with moderate depression. Methods: A total of 115 participants who were willing to participate in the study were recruited for the study. Anapanasati meditation was used as an intervention. The participants were divided into two groups experiment and control groups. Experiment group had 59 persons performing Anapanasati meditation and Control group had 56 persons not performing any type of meditation. The experiment group practiced one hour of Anapanasati meditation daily under the supervision of experts for six months and continued their daily routine and control group was not given any intervention, but they continued their daily routine. Beck Depression Inventory II is used to assess the depression level. Results: The BDI score before and after Anapanasati meditation was analysed for both experiment and control groups using Paired Samples T test. The experiment group has shown significant reduction in the BDI (P &lt; 0.05) score after the intervention whereas in the control group the reduction in BDI score was not significant. Conclusion: This study has shown that after six months of intervention, the subjects with moderate depression who practiced Anapanasati meditation had a significant decrease in their Depression score and the control group has not shown significant change in the depression score.

Experimental effects of brief, single bouts of walking and meditation on mood profile in young adults.

Background: To examine the effects of an acute bout of aerobic exercise and meditation on mood state among young adults. Methods: Participants (N= 66, mean age = 21.3 years) were randomly assigned to walk,meditate, or sit (control) for 10 minutes. Participants’ mood state was monitored before and after the intervention using the Profile of Mood States (POMS) questionnaire. Results: Significant group x time interaction effects were observed for the POMS composite scores (P=0.05). When evaluating three POMS sub scales separately (depression/dejection,anger/hostility, and fatigue/inertia), only fatigue/inertia was found to have a significant group x time effect (P=0.04). Post hoc paired t tests revealed that fatigue/inertia sub scale scores significantly decreased from baseline to post-intervention in both the exercise (P=0.03) and meditation (P<0.001) groups. However, POMS composite scores decreased significantly in the meditation group (P<0.001) but not in the exercise group (P=0.10). Conclusion: A 10-minute bout of brisk walking and meditation both improved mood state,when compared to an inactive control group. A single bout of brisk walking or meditation may offer suitable strategies to improve mood state among young adults.

Recovery from stress: an experimental examination of focused attention meditation in novices.

Identifying strategies that aid in recovery from stress may benefit cardiovascular health. Ninety-nine undergraduate meditation novices were randomly assigned to meditate, listen to an audio book, or sit quietly after a standardized stressor. During recovery, meditators' heart rate variability and skin conductance levels returned to baseline, whereas only heart rate variability returned to baseline for the audio book and control groups. Positive and negative affect were no different than baseline following meditation, whereas, both audio book and control groups had lower positive affect and higher negative affect following the intervention. Findings suggest that the sympathetic nervous system is uniquely affected by meditation, and novices may benefit emotionally from meditating after a stressor. Further research is needed to determine meditation's utility in recovering from stress.

Gender differences in response to a school-based mindfulness training intervention for early adolescents

Mindfulness training has been used to improve emotional wellbeing in early adolescents. However, little is known about treatment outcome moderators, or individual differences that may differentially impact responses to treatment. The current study focused on gender as a potential moderator for affective outcomes in response to school-based mindfulness training. Sixth grade students (N = 100) were randomly assigned to either the six weeks of mindfulness meditation or the active control group as part of a history class curriculum. Participants in the mindfulness meditation group completed short mindfulness meditation sessions four to five times per week, in addition to didactic instruction (Asian history). The control group received matched experiential activity in addition to didactic instruction (African history) from the same teacher with no meditation component. Self-reported measures of emotional wellbeing/affect, mindfulness, and self-compassion were obtained at pre and post intervention. Meditators reported greater improvement in emotional wellbeing compared to those in the control group. Importantly, gender differences were detected, such that female meditators reported greater increases in positive affect compared to females in the control group, whereas male meditators and control males displayed equivalent gains. Uniquely among females but not males, increases in self-reported self-compassion were associated with improvements in affect. These findings support the efficacy of school-based mindfulness interventions, and interventions tailored to accommodate distinct developmental needs of female and male adolescents.

A randomised active-controlled trial to examine the effects of an online mindfulness intervention on executive control, critical thinking and key thinking dispositions in a university student sample

BackgroundArguments for including mindfulness instruction in higher education have included claims about the benefits of mindfulness practice for critical thinking. While there is theoretical support for this claim, empirical support is limited. The aim of this study was to test this claim by investigating the effects of an online mindfulness intervention on executive function, critical thinking skills and associated thinking dispositions.MethodParticipants recruited from a university were randomly allocated, following screening, to either a mindfulness meditation group or a sham meditation group. Both the researchers and the participants were blind to group allocation. The intervention content for both groups was delivered through the Headspace online application, an application which provides guided meditations to users. Both groups were requested to complete 30 guided mindfulness meditation sessions across a 6 week period. Primary outcome measures assessed mindfulness, executive functioning, critical thinking, actively open-minded thinking and need for cognition. Secondary outcome measures assessed wellbeing, positive and negative affect, and real-world outcomes.ResultsIn a series of full-information maximum likelihood analyses, significant increases in mindfulness dispositions and critical thinking scores were observed in both the mindfulness meditation and sham meditation groups. However, no significant effects of group allocation were observed for either primary or secondary measures. Furthermore, mediation analyses testing the indirect effect of group allocation through executive functioning performance did not reveal a significant result and moderation analyses showed that the effect of the intervention did not depend on baseline levels of the key thinking dispositions, actively open-minded thinking and need for cognition.ConclusionNo evidence was found to suggest that engaging in guided mindfulness practice for 6 weeks using the online intervention method applied in this study improves critical thinking performance. While further research is warranted, claims regarding the benefits of mindfulness practice for critical thinking should be tempered in the meantime.Trial registrationThe study was initially registered in the AEA Social Science Registry before the recruitment was initiated (RCT ID: AEARCTR-0000756; 14/11/2015) and retrospectively registered in the ISRCTN registry (RCT ID: ISRCTN16588423) in line with requirements for publishing the study protocol.

Insight meditation and telomere biology: The effects of intensive retreat and the moderating role of personality

A growing body of evidence suggests that meditation training may have a range of salubrious effects, including improved telomere regulation. Telomeres and the enzyme telomerase interact with a variety of molecular components to regulate cell-cycle signaling cascades, and are implicated in pathways linking psychological stress to disease. We investigated the effects of intensive meditation practice on these biomarkers by measuring changes in telomere length (TL), telomerase activity (TA), and telomere-related gene (TRG) expression during a 1-month residential Insight meditation retreat. Multilevel analyses revealed an apparent TL increase in the retreat group, compared to a group of experienced meditators, similarly comprised in age and gender, who were not on retreat. Moreover, personality traits predicted changes in TL, such that retreat participants highest in neuroticism and lowest in agreeableness demonstrated the greatest increases in TL. Changes observed in TRGs further suggest retreat-related improvements in telomere maintenance, including increases in Gar1 and HnRNPA1, which encode proteins that bind telomerase RNA and telomeric DNA. Although no group-level changes were observed in TA, retreat participants’ TA levels at post-assessment were inversely related to several indices of retreat engagement and prior meditation experience. Neuroticism also predicted variation in TA across retreat. These findings suggest that meditation training in a retreat setting may have positive effects on telomere regulation, which are moderated by individual differences in personality and meditation experience. (ClinicalTrials.gov #NCT03056105).

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy v. treatment as usual in adults with ADHD: a multicentre, single-blind, randomised controlled trial.

There is a high need for evidence-based psychosocial treatments for adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to offer alongside treatment as usual (TAU). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a promising psychosocial treatment. This trial investigated the efficacy of MBCT + TAU v. TAU in reducing core symptoms in adults with ADHD. A multicentre, single-blind, randomised controlled trial (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02463396). Participants were randomly assigned to MBCT + TAU (n = 60), an 8-weekly group therapy including meditation exercises, psychoeducation and group discussions, or TAU only (n = 60), which reflected usual treatment in the Netherlands and included pharmacotherapy and/or psychoeducation. Primary outcome was ADHD symptoms rated by blinded clinicians. Secondary outcomes included self-reported ADHD symptoms, executive functioning, mindfulness skills, self-compassion, positive mental health and general functioning. Outcomes were assessed at baseline, post-treatment, 3- and 6-month follow-up. Post-treatment effects at group and individual level, and follow-up effects were examined. In MBCT + TAU patients, a significant reduction of clinician-rated ADHD symptoms was found at post-treatment [M difference = -3.44 (-5.75, -1.11), p = 0.004, d = 0.41]. This effect was maintained until 6-month follow-up. More MBCT + TAU (27%) than TAU participants (4%) showed a ⩾30% reduction of ADHD symptoms (p = 0.001). MBCT + TAU patients compared with TAU patients also reported significant improvements in ADHD symptoms, mindfulness skills, self-compassion and positive mental health at post-treatment, which were maintained until 6-month follow-up. Although patients in MBCT + TAU compared with TAU reported no improvement in executive functioning at post-treatment, they did report improvement at 6-month follow-up. MBCT might be a valuable treatment option alongside TAU for adult ADHD aimed at alleviating symptoms.

A Pragmatic Evaluation of Symptom Distress After Group Meditation for Cancer Patients and Caregivers: A Preliminary Report

ContextComplementary health approaches such as meditation may help improve cancer patient and caregiver symptoms, yet little research has examined the clinical application of these programs. ObjectivesWe explored the effects of a meditation group class, offered as part of an integrative medicine clinic at a comprehensive cancer center, on patient and caregiver self-reported symptoms. MethodsParticipants (patients and caregivers) of any three meditation group classes offered—Power of Breath (PB), Sacred Sounds (SS), and Movement & Breath (MB)—were asked to complete the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS; scale 0–10, 10 most severe) before and after participation. ESAS individual items and subscales were analyzed; distress subscales included global (global distress score 0–90), physical (physical distress score 0–60), and psychological (psychological distress score, 0–20). Data were analyzed examining premeditation/postmeditation scores using paired t-tests and between types of meditation using analyses of variance. ResultsOne hundred forty-two unique participants (76 patients and 66 caregivers) attended one or more meditation groups (mean 1.84) from May to December 2015 (265 total attendance: PB n = 92; SS n = 87; MB n = 86). For all participants, we observed clinically significant reduction/improvement in global distress scores (−5.17, SD 8; P < 0.0001) and in individual symptoms (ESAS decrease ≥ 1; means) of well-being (−1.36 SD 1.7; P < 0.0001), fatigue (−1.34 SD 1.9; P < 0.0001), anxiety (−1.26 SD 1.6; P < 0.001), and shortness of breath (−1.2 SD 2; P = 0.001). Comparing class length (60 vs. 90 minutes), class content (PB vs. SS vs. MB), and participants (caregivers vs. patients), there were no statistically significant differences in symptom score reduction. ConclusionA single meditation group class offered as part of clinical care resulted in relief of multiple self-reported symptoms in both patients and caregivers.

The Impact of Yoga Nidra and Seated Meditation on the Mental Health of College Professors.

Background:World statistics for the prevalence of anxiety and mood disorders shows that a great number of individuals will experience some type of anxiety or mood disorder at some point in their lifetime. Mind–body interventions such as Hatha Yoga and seated meditation have been used as a form of self-help therapy and it is especially useful for challenging occupations such as teachers and professors.Aims:In this investigation, we aimed at observing the impact of Yoga Nidra and seated meditation on the anxiety and depression levels of college professors.Materials and Methods:Sixty college professors, men and women, aged between 30 and 55 years were randomly allocated in one of the three experimental groups: Yoga Nidra, seated meditation, and control group. Professors were evaluated two times throughout the 3-month study period. Psychological variables included anxiety, stress, and depression.Results:Data analysis showed that the relaxation group presented better intragroup results in the anxiety levels. Meditation group presented better intragroup results only in the anxiety variable (physical component). Intergroup analysis showed that, except for the depression levels, both intervention groups presented better results than the control group in all other variables.Conclusions:Prepost results indicate that both interventions represent an effective therapeutic approach in reducing anxiety and stress levels. However, there was a tendency toward a greater effectiveness of the Yoga Nidra intervention regarding anxiety, which might represent an effective tool in reducing both cognitive and physiological symptoms of anxiety.

The effect of spiritual care on the body image of patients undergoing amputation due to type 2 diabetes: A randomized clinical trial

Background:Body image, as an important factor in quality of life (QOL) satisfaction, in amputee patients is strongly affected by amputation, which can put the patient at risk of psychological disorders such as depression. Hence, this study was conducted to investigate the effect of spiritual care on body image in patients with type 2 diabetes-related amputation.Materials and Methods:In this study, an experimental pretest-posttest design with two groups was used. A total of 54 participants (Males = 41, Females = 13) aged between 40 and 72 who had diabetes-related amputation participated in the study. The participants were randomly assigned to the meditation and control group. For the experimental group, three sessions of meditation, and for control group, three sessions regarding prevention of diabetic foot ulcer were conducted. The participants in the experimental group were asked to perform meditation exercises for a month. The data was collected via Amputee Body Image Scale before and 4 weeks after the intervention.Results:There were no significant differences between groups on demographic variables. After intervention, the meditation group showed lower levels of body image disturbance compared with the control group, which was significant (t=3.41, p = 0.001).Conclusions:It can be concluded that meditation can improve body image in patients with diabetes-related amputation. In addition, because of no side effects and high acceptance of spiritual care, this method can be used as a way to improve the condition of patients.

Meditation-induced neuroplastic changes of the prefrontal network are associated with reduced valence perception in older people.

Background:Neuroplastic underpinnings of meditation-induced changes in affective processing are largely unclear.Methods:We included healthy older participants in an active-controlled experiment. They were involved a meditation training or a control relaxation training of eight weeks. Associations between behavioral and neural morphometric changes induced by the training were examined.Results:The meditation group demonstrated a change in valence perception indexed by more neutral valence ratings of positive and negative affective images. These behavioral changes were associated with synchronous structural enlargements in a prefrontal network involving the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the inferior frontal sulcus. In addition, these neuroplastic effects were modulated by the enlargement in the inferior frontal junction. In contrast, these prefrontal enlargements were absent in the active control group, which completed a relaxation training. Supported by a path analysis, we propose a model that describes how meditation may induce a series of prefrontal neuroplastic changes related to valence perception. These brain areas showing meditation-induced structural enlargements are reduced in older people with affective dysregulations.Conclusion:We demonstrated that a prefrontal network was enlarged after eight weeks of meditation training. Our findings yield translational insights in the endeavor to promote healthy aging by means of meditation.

Building Sangha in the American Healthcare Setting for Persons with Chronic Disease

For persons with chronic disease, participation in meditation interventions can reduce anxiety, depression, and chronic disease symptoms in a dose dependent fashion. Unfortunately, information about how to support long-term participation in such an intervention is lacking. Therefore, a recent discovery of persons with chronic lung disease who have maintained a self-led meditation group for more than four years created an opportunity to analyze experiences, meanings and relationship dynamics of this community-based meditation group. A focused ethnography was conducted using the following techniques: participant observation of four group meditation sessions, semi-structured interviews of six group participants, the interviewer's reflective practice and collection of demographic information. Analysis of transcribed audio-recordings followed an iterative approach. Findings highlighted the inclusive nature of the group sessions that supported meditation practice through the processing of ancient wisdom traditions similar to a traditional Sangha. Reflecting the current culture of non-affiliation, the group often moved beyond religious teachings to use the environment, literature and pop culture representations to teach wisdom traditions. Data analysis revealed that the holistic group characteristics of wisdom circling, non-Stopping, organic way-finding and sacred space were supported by identifiable yet inseparable individual and group actions. This holistic pattern is best described through the metaphor of flocking birds. This self-led group supports long term meditation practice and provides a sense of eudemonic well-being for a diverse group of individuals in an accessible community setting.

Differential Experimental Effects of a Short Bout of Walking, Meditation, or Combination of Walking and Meditation on State Anxiety Among Young Adults.

Single bouts of aerobic exercise and meditation have been shown to improve anxiety states. Yet to be evaluated in the literature, we sought to examine the effects of a single, short bout of aerobic exercise or meditation, as well as exercise and meditation combined on state anxiety among young adults. Randomized controlled trial. University. Participants (N = 110, mean age = 21.4 years) were randomly assigned to walk, meditate, walk then meditate, meditate then walk, or to sit (inactive control). All walking and meditation bouts were 10 minutes in duration. Participants' state anxiety was monitored before and after the intervention using the State Trait Anxiety Inventory questionnaire. Significant group × time interaction effects were observed ( P = .01). Post hoc paired t tests revealed that state anxiety significantly decreased from baseline to postintervention in the meditation ( P = .002), meditation then walk ( P = .002), and walk then meditation ( P = .03) groups but not the walk ( P = .75) or control ( P = .45) groups. Meditation (vs a brisk walk) may be a preferred method of attenuating anxiety symptomology. Individuals desiring the health benefits associated with aerobic exercise may achieve additional anxiolytic benefits if they employ a brief meditation session before or after exercising.

Epigenetic clock analysis in long-term meditators

In this paper, we examined whether meditation practice influences the epigenetic clock, a strong and reproducible biomarker of biological aging, which is accelerated by cumulative lifetime stress and with age-related chronic diseases. Using the Illumina 450K array platform, we analyzed the DNA methylome from blood cells of long-term meditators and meditation-naïve controls to estimate their Intrinsic Epigenetic Age Acceleration (IEAA), using Horvath's calculator. IEAA was similar in both groups. However, controls showed a different IEAA trajectory with aging than meditators: older controls (age≥52) had significantly higher IEAAs compared with younger controls (age <52), while meditators were protected from this epigenetic aging effect. Notably, in the meditation group, we found a significant negative correlation between IEAA and the number of years of regular meditation practice. From our results, we hypothesize that the cumulative effects of a regular meditation practice may, in the long-term, help to slow the epigenetic clock and could represent a useful preventive strategy for age-related chronic diseases. Longitudinal randomized controlled trials in larger cohorts are warranted to confirm and further characterize these findings.