To the 67 percent of people who would rather get electrified than
meditate, here's some shocking news for you: Meditation may be a
powerful treatment for what ails you. Check out these five health and
wellness problems and learn how meditation can serve as medication. Then
decide for yourself: Shock or meditation?
#1. Pain
In a great ironic twist, meditation might actually make that electric shock hurt less, according to a study published in the Journal of Pain. Participants were given electrical stimulation and had to rate the pain from low to high. The researchers found that participants were less sensitive to the pain after being prepped with one 20-minute daily meditation for three consecutive days. In fact, a follow-up study reported that meditation reduced pain by 57 percent.
These findings may have implications for sufferers of diseases that cause chronic pain as a supplementary or alternative therapy. This is especially important considering that prescription painkillers can be dangerously addicting. (And even over-the-counter drugs painkillers pose surprising health threats.)
#2. Stress
Meditation's tie to stress reduction isn't new, but research is finding you may need less mediation than you think to reap the benefits. One 25-minute session of meditating for three days helped people feel less stressed than those who hadn't cleared their minds with a meditation, according to a study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology. The researchers also measured dispositional mindfulness, natural personality traits that resemble mindful thinking. "We found that participants low in mindfulness (either not receiving mindfulness meditation training or participants who are low in dispositional mindfulness) had the greatest psychological stress reactivity," reported the study authors.
#3. HIV Symptoms
As science continues to progress with new drug therapies that make HIV more manageable than ever before, mindfulness is also emerging as a powerful tool to help manage the ailment. A study of 173 HIV-positive patients not yet on antiretroviral therapy revealed that an eight-week mindfulness program improved self-reported symptoms. The research also indicated preliminary findings suggesting that meditation could improve CD4+ T-lymphocyte count, though the data was less conclusive. "CD4+ T Lymphocyte Count is a hallmark measure reflecting the status of immune competence and provides an indicator of disease progression from HIV to Aids," explain the study authors.
#4. Depression Relapse
Mindfulness is also a great ray of sunshine that can clear away the dark clouds brought on by depression. A study published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology found that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy reduced relapse from 78 percent to 36 percent. Notably, this group had already had three or more previous episodes, so this reduced relapse marks a true sigh of relief for people more prone to relapse.
#5. Inflammation
While inflammation is the body's natural reaction to stress and disease, if prolonged it can lead to disastrous results. Meditation could be the drug-free key to lowering this dangerous inflammation, according to research published in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. The researchers found that regular meditation lowered blood markers of inflammation by 1 milligram per milliliter of blood. Plus, the researchers found that the mediation techniques taught were more likely to be maintained after a year than other lifestyle changes.
Want to give meditation a whirl? Try this simple introductory meditation to get started.
#1. Pain
In a great ironic twist, meditation might actually make that electric shock hurt less, according to a study published in the Journal of Pain. Participants were given electrical stimulation and had to rate the pain from low to high. The researchers found that participants were less sensitive to the pain after being prepped with one 20-minute daily meditation for three consecutive days. In fact, a follow-up study reported that meditation reduced pain by 57 percent.
These findings may have implications for sufferers of diseases that cause chronic pain as a supplementary or alternative therapy. This is especially important considering that prescription painkillers can be dangerously addicting. (And even over-the-counter drugs painkillers pose surprising health threats.)
#2. Stress
Meditation's tie to stress reduction isn't new, but research is finding you may need less mediation than you think to reap the benefits. One 25-minute session of meditating for three days helped people feel less stressed than those who hadn't cleared their minds with a meditation, according to a study published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology. The researchers also measured dispositional mindfulness, natural personality traits that resemble mindful thinking. "We found that participants low in mindfulness (either not receiving mindfulness meditation training or participants who are low in dispositional mindfulness) had the greatest psychological stress reactivity," reported the study authors.
#3. HIV Symptoms
As science continues to progress with new drug therapies that make HIV more manageable than ever before, mindfulness is also emerging as a powerful tool to help manage the ailment. A study of 173 HIV-positive patients not yet on antiretroviral therapy revealed that an eight-week mindfulness program improved self-reported symptoms. The research also indicated preliminary findings suggesting that meditation could improve CD4+ T-lymphocyte count, though the data was less conclusive. "CD4+ T Lymphocyte Count is a hallmark measure reflecting the status of immune competence and provides an indicator of disease progression from HIV to Aids," explain the study authors.
#4. Depression Relapse
Mindfulness is also a great ray of sunshine that can clear away the dark clouds brought on by depression. A study published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology found that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy reduced relapse from 78 percent to 36 percent. Notably, this group had already had three or more previous episodes, so this reduced relapse marks a true sigh of relief for people more prone to relapse.
#5. Inflammation
While inflammation is the body's natural reaction to stress and disease, if prolonged it can lead to disastrous results. Meditation could be the drug-free key to lowering this dangerous inflammation, according to research published in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. The researchers found that regular meditation lowered blood markers of inflammation by 1 milligram per milliliter of blood. Plus, the researchers found that the mediation techniques taught were more likely to be maintained after a year than other lifestyle changes.
Want to give meditation a whirl? Try this simple introductory meditation to get started.
