PULSE POINTS
RESEARCH:
Meditation Can Significantly
Change the Brain
n a study entitled “Meditation Experience is Associated
with Increased Cortical Thickness,” researchers discovered that meditation does not only help to reduce
stress, but can also change the brain’s gray matter, a
major part of the central nervous system that is
associated with memory and processing information.
Research participants were asked to take part in an eightweek Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction program. Using
MRIs, the brain activities of the participants were measured
before and after the program.
According to Dr. Sara Lazar, one of the research authors and
a neuroscientist at Massachusetts General Hospital as well as
professor at Harvard Medical School, research data showed
that, after eight weeks of meditation, meditators have an
I
increased amount of gray matter in four regions of the brain,
namely:
1. Posterior cingulate – involved in mind-wandering and
self-relevance
2. Left hippocampus – in learning, cognition, memory and
emotional regulation
3. Temporo parietal junction (TPJ) – associated with
perspective-taking, empathy and compassion
4. Pons – an area of the brain stem where regulatory neurotransmitters are produced
In addition, the research further discovered that the amygdala,
the fight or flight part of the brain which is important for anxiety,
fear and stress, decreased in size among participants who went
through the mindfulness-based stress reduction program.
FOR MORE about the amazing plasticity of the brain and how to help improve your guests’ brain health, read
“State of Mind” on page 34.
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PULSE
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May 2016