Can Meditation Change Your Brain?

cnn.com:

Contemplative neuroscientists say that making a habit of meditation can strengthen brain circuits responsible for maintaining concentration and generating empathy.

Read the whole story: cnn.com

Comments

[Keith DeBoer]

11:59 AM on 11/25/2010

If anyone is interested here's an interesting video from brain researcher Fred Travis on meditation, brain waves and peak performance in top Olympic athletes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s64qA4sQVa8

[David Orme-Johnson]

01:38 PM on 11/04/2010

A friend told me that the URL to the PDFs of full articles of NIH funded research on the TM technique’s effects on cardiovascular disease didn't work, so here it is again. http://www.doctorsontm.com/national-institutes-of-health .

[David Orme-Johnson]

03:31 PM on 11/03/2010

A recent paper by Fred Travis at Maharishi University of Management and Jon Shear of Virginia Commonwealth University has identified three distinct types of meditation, which can be classified according to their different effects on the EEG (Consciousness and Cognition 2010, in press, doi:10.1016/j.concog.2010.01.007). The CNN blog made a great start in reporting meditation research, but there is much more to the story to tell, which hopefully it will give space to in future posts.

[David Orme-Johnson]

03:31 PM on 11/03/2010

Another powerful tool that has been used in meditation research is EEG synchrony and coherence. These measures more directly show the functional integration of brain activities than neuroimaging. Randomized controlled studies have shown that the TM increases EEG coherence and synchrony in the alpha frequency range, not only during meditation, but outside of meditation as well (e.g., Signal Processing 2005 85(11):2213-2232; International Journal of Psychophysiology 2009 71(2):170-176). When we first discovered this in the 1970s, there was little understanding of the functional significance of EEG coherence and synchrony. Our early studies suggested that alpha EEG coherence was correlated with such things as creativity, concept learning, moral reasoning, and experiences of transcendental consciousness (e.g., Electroencephalography & Clinical Neurophysiology 1977 43(4); 581-582. (Abstract); International Journal of Neuroscience 1981 13(4):211-217). In the last two decades, basic research in laboratories around the world has shown that the rhythms of the EEG organize and coordinate neural activity in the brain. Different EEG frequencies have different roles to play in brain organization. For example, alpha wave coherence and synchrony, as seen during the TM technique, is known to organize distant areas of the brain, much as a conductor keeps the different parts of an orchestra playing together in harmony. It provides large-scale neural communication and integration necessary for mental health, conscious awareness, and general cognitive processes such as attention, semantic processing, memory, and learning, (Trends in Neurosciences 2007 30(4):150-158; Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews 2008 32(5); 1001-1013).

[David Orme-Johnson]

03:29 PM on 11/03/2010

fMRI, although a powerful tool, has its limitations. What neuroimaging methods like the fMRI show are ‘hotspots’ of localized brain activity during tasks. For example, my colleagues at the University of California at Irvine and I found that the “pain matrix” of the brain responds half as much in TM meditators than controls, supporting subjective reports that TM reduces reactivity to pain and stress, possibly via reducing anxiety (NeuroReport 2006 17(12):1359-1363). One of the major findings using fMRI is that different forms of meditation have different effects on the brain, which is not surprising, considering that different practices involve quite different perceptual and cognitive processes. One cannot generalize from research on one form of meditation that others will have the same effects on the brain or behavior.

[David Orme-Johnson]

03:27 PM on 11/03/2010

The CNN blog is correct in saying that the development of fMRI in the last decade has greatly facilitated meditation research. However, serious research on meditation began long before that. In the 1930’s, soon after EEG was invented, physiologist Mary Brazier went to India to measure Yogis, and since the 1960’s the Japanese and Indians have been seriously studying the physiological effects of various forms of meditation.
Meditation research received major attention in scientific circles in 1970 with Keith Wallace’s publication “Physiology Effects of Transcendental Meditation” in Science magazine, which was quickly followed by his papers in the American Journal of Physiology and Scientific American. There are now over 340 peer-reviewed published scientific papers on the TM technique, all of which are relevant to the effects of meditation on the brain, and all of which were not mentioned in the blog. For example, this link will take you PDFs of full articles of NIH funded research on the TM technique’s effects on the autonomic nervous system as reflected in reduced cardiovascular disease. http://www.doctorsontm.com/national-institutes-of-health.

[neuromancer2010]

04:14 PM on 11/02/2010

There was an interesting article in Huff Post about a brain study that looked at the content of mental activity (what people are thinking about) while measuring brain patterns and found that people thinking about God, compared to thinking about more mundane things, showed absolutely no change in brain patterns. But mere thinking is a different process from practicing a meditation technique that can actually change your state of consciousness and style of brain function.

The first studies on the brain patterns of meditation were done on TM meditators in 1970 at Harvard and UCLA, showing high alpha synchrony during meditation and carrying over after meditation. Those early studies (published in American Journal of Physiology and Scientific American) have been independently replicated dozens of times over the past 40 years. Now the brain pattern of 'transcending' is well known.

'Transcending' is a specific and very different experience from mindfulness, concentration or controlled focus — and the differences in brain patterns verify the distinctions.

TM enables mental activity to settle down as consciousness "expands" during meditation; one experiences the state of "pure consciousness" — or the Self, awareness by itself with no thoughts or sensations.

Alpha synchrony in the prefrontal cortex recorded during TM is definitely a strengthening of the neural circuitry, a strengthening of the brain's connectivity — the brain's CEO gets better connected with all other parts of the brain.

This article goes deeper into it: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jeanne-ball/keeping-your-prefrontal-c_b_679290.html

[jeanneyogini]

07:19 PM on 10/31/2010

It is great to see more research being done on what happens in the brain during meditation. I think this is the next frontier of science, to identify what mental techniques allow us to harness the minds latent potential. Would like to see University of Wisconsin collaborate with Iowa's Maharishi University's Center for Brain, Consciousness, and Cognition which has had a meditation lab for over 30 years. http://www.mum.edu/cbcc/

[Divya Mishra]

06:19 AM on 10/31/2010

meditation can be easily done when u go to the bed to sleep ....close ur eyes n feel urself...feel that after some period of time on this earth u wont exist...feel the oneness of urself with the universe..feel that u r soul..a spirit a free spirit...u r free from all the past present and future...n then go deepest into urself...feel urself..feel God...that will make u feel n make ur soul...spiritually high...n u see the difference when u wake up each time after sleep...!!!

[Brian Gavin]

05:46 AM on 11/01/2010

Feel that "u" and "r" are not words.

[Jimmy Goodman]

07:43 AM on 10/29/2010

Meditation definitely changes your brain. Neuroplasticity means every experience you have changes the brain, but nothing changes it like transcending, the process of mental activity subsiding and consciousness itself becoming primary, as during Transcendental Meditation.

More significant than increased activity of the frontal cortex or the limbic area are the definitive, positive changes in EEG coherence -- how the brain reorganizes its neural networks in meditators -- changes in the way the brain processes and structures information -- seen in 40 years of research on TM.

The category of practice that induces this holistic neurophysiological response is automatic self-transcending, distinct from controlled focus (such as Buddhist compassion meditation) and open monitoring (mindfulness). See the more in-depth article on meditation and brain function: http://www.huffingtonpost.com//jeanne-ball/how-meditation-techniques_b_735561.html

During automatic self-transcending, the mind goes beyond the mental activity of meditation itself to experience pure consciousness -- a 4th major state of consciousness unlike waking, dreaming or sleep, with its own unique neurophysiological characteristics.

'Transcending' here refers not to "feelings of transcendence" but to the experience of this 4th state -- the meditator has transcended all mental activity, yet maintains inner wakefulness.

Each of the 3 categories of meditation practices has its own brain pattern: controlled focus = gamma; open monitoring = theta; automatic self-transcending = frontal alpha coherence. (See the recent issue of the neuroscience journal "Cognitive Processing.") The categories are identified by the type of cognitive processing going on and the EEG pattern.

[SoulTherapy]

03:55 AM on 10/29/2010

Meditation is not about uncomfortable postures, concentration, mantras or prayers. It is not associated or linked to any religion, teacher, guru or spiritual philosophy. Meditation is about You. It is an individual practice; it is your journey into freedom and peace.

An excellent book regarding meditation and brain neuroplasticity is: The Joy Of Living by Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche.

Soul Therapy Newsflash: inspirational news, life-affirming posts, interesting links and cool videos: http://www.soul-therapy.com/News.html

Soul Therapy Facebook: spiritual and life-affirming posts and cool videos: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Soul-Therapy/278635488830

[frank day]

06:00 PM on 10/28/2010

Ommmm, moni omni padmi hummmmm.

I feel so much clearer now, I can feel for those who have not achieved such enlightenment.

[napasonoma]

03:56 PM on 11/01/2010

Wearing your ignorance on your sleeve is not a fashion statement.

[frank day]

04:01 PM on 11/01/2010

Thinking will change your brain. Give that a try.

[Danny Bloom]

02:47 AM on 10/28/2010

True or not? Heart drug Lipitor opens 'vivid dreaming' chambers in some?
Vivid dreaming - with drugs?

While the medical jury is still out on this question, the popular heart patient drug marketed by Pfizer is in a class of medications known as "statins".

Statins work, a heart doctor in Taiwan tells this reporter, by inhibiting an enzyme that results in lower levels of something called LDL, sometimes referred to as "bad" cholesterol, and raises levels of HDL, aka "good" cholesterol.

According to the medical literature out there online, clinical trials have indicated that ''abnormal'' - that is to say, "vivid dreams" - are sometimes seen in patients taking Lipitor following heart attacks and stent procedures..However, confirmed reports of such dreaming are still rare, occurring in less than two percent of patients studied so far.

[merlinspinoza]

05:43 PM on 10/27/2010

the word meditation is not enough in english ; meditation properly understood means TRANSCENDENTAL meditation(TM)
www.tm.org
about 600 studies show that most of the benefits ascribed to meditation are from and only from or mainly from TM program

Dr Fred Travis and DR Alarik Arenander are neuroscientists with main focus on meditation and brain scans ; 32 channel EEG ; very economical to do ; fMRI is a pretty penny ; a philanthropist should donate a fMRI machine to mum.edu

the comment by Neuromancer to the fullstory is very excellent :
http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2010/10/26/can-meditation-change-your-brain-contemplative-neuroscientists-believe-it-can/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+rss/cnn_living+(RSS:+Living)

[inlight1]

01:59 PM on 10/28/2010

Just one correction: Maharishi said there are many forms of meditation that lead one to the state of pure consciousness. TM happens to be the purest form of Raja Yoga that was taught to Maharishi by his teacher who followed the Shankara tradition.

Yes, the TM program has proven to immediately have a profound effect on the human nervous system where other meditations may take years of practice to achieve the same results.
I would suggest that you look at the eary historical research conducted by Dr. Keith Wallace at UCLA in the late 60's His reseach was a major breakthrough in the scientific study of consciousness. Hopefully he will not be forgotten.

[Klarsonent]

10:52 PM on 10/28/2010

"Merlinspinoza" I do not agree that TM is the only path to enlightenment. There are many paths and forms of meditation that lead to the ultimate human experience.

[Jimmy Goodman]

06:21 AM on 10/29/2010

Yes, you are undoubtedly right, Klarsonent, and that was an element of Maharishi's teaching (there are many paths to Enlightenment). Actually, I don't read either of the commenters above as making the claim that TM is the only way to Enlightenment. TM may well be the most CONSISTENTLY effective, most researched universal technique around (universal: anyone can practice it, no religious beliefs, no dogma, no philosophy), but TM teachers make it very clear that there are many ways to transcend. TM is a totally effortless technique of "non-doing," and if any practice is as effortless, as effective, it will essentially be the same technique. I recommend this HuffPo article about the distinctions between the various practices:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com//jeanne-ball/how-meditation-techniques_b_735561.html

[wm1066]

12:16 PM on 10/27/2010

Wow, I mention a famous hindu book about meditation, the Bahavagad Gita, on a story about meditation, and that gets moderated?

[Jimmy Goodman]

07:15 AM on 10/29/2010

Are you sure that's what happened? Sometimes comments just don't go through and it's an innocent malfunction. What was your comment? I love the Gita.