Discover the Power of Meditation!
University Of Wisconsin Study Reports Sustained Changes In Brain
and Immune Function After Meditation
MADISON – In a small but highly provocative study, a University of Wisconsin-Madison research team has
found, for the first time, that a short program in "mindfulness meditation" produced lasting positive changes
in both the brain and the function of the immune system.
The findings suggest that meditation, long promoted as a technique to reduce anxiety and stress, might
produce important biological effects that improve a person's resiliency.
Richard Davidson, Ph.D., Vilas Professor of psychology and psychiatry at UW-Madison, led the research
team. The study, conducted at the biotechnology company Promega near Madison, will appear in an
upcoming issue of the journal Psychosomatic Medicine.
"Mindfulness meditation," often recommended as an antidote to the stress and pain of chronic disease, is a
practice designed to focus one's attention intensely on the moment, noting thoughts and feelings as they
occur but refraining from judging or acting on those thoughts and feelings. The intent is to deepen
awareness of the present, develop skills of focused attention, and cultivate positive emotions such as
compassion.
In the UW study, participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The experimental group, with 25
subjects, received training in mindfulness meditation from one of its most noted adherents, Jon Kabat-Zinn,
Ph.D. (Kabat-Zinn, a popular author of books on stress reduction, developed the mindfulness-based stress
reduction program at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center.) This group attended a weekly class
and one seven-hour retreat during the study; they also were assigned home practice for an hour a day, six
days a week. The 16 members of the control group did not receive meditation training until after the study
was completed.
For each group, in addition to asking the participants to assess how they felt, the research team measured
electrical activity in the frontal part of the brain, an area specialized for certain kinds of emotion. Earlier
research has shown that, in people who are generally positive and optimistic and during times of positive
emotion, the left side of this frontal area becomes more active than the right side does.
The findings confirmed the researchers' hypothesis: the meditation group showed an increase of activation
in the left-side part of the frontal region. This suggests that the meditation itself produced more activity in
this region of the brain. This activity is associated with lower anxiety and a more positive emotional state.
The research team also tested whether the meditation group had better immune function than the control
group did. All the study participants got a flu vaccine at the end of the eight-week meditation group. Then, at
four and eight weeks after vaccine administration, both groups had blood tests to measure the level of
antibodies they had produced against the flu vaccine. While both groups (as expected) had developed
increased antibodies, the meditation group had a significantly larger increase than the controls, at both four
and eight weeks after receiving the vaccine.
"Although our study is preliminary and more research clearly is warranted," said Davidson, "we are very
encouraged by these results. The Promega employees who took part have given us a wonderful opportunity
to demonstrate a real biological impact of this ancient practice."
Davidson, who is integrally involved with the HealthEmotions Research Institute at UW, plans further
research on the impact of meditation. He is currently studying a group of people who have been using
meditation for more than 30 years. His research team is also planning to study the impact of mindfulness
meditation on patients with particular illnesses.
Source: University of Wisconsin-Madison February 4, 2003
und, for the first time, that a short program in "mindfulness meditation" produced lasting positive changes in
both the brain and the function of the immune system.
The findings suggest that meditation, long promoted as a technique to reduce anxiety and stress, might
produce important biological effects that improve a person's resiliency.
Richard Davidson, Ph.D., Vilas Professor of psychology and psychiatry at UW-Madison, led the research
team. The study, conducted at the biotechnology company Promega near Madison, will appear in an
upcoming issue of the journal Psychosomatic Medicine.
"Mindfulness meditation," often recommended as an antidote to the stress and pain of chronic disease, is a
practice designed to focus one's attention intensely on the moment, noting thoughts and feelings as they
occur but refraining from judging or acting on those thoughts and feelings. The intent is to deepen
awareness of the present, develop skills of focused attention, and cultivate positive emotions such as
compassion.
In the UW study, participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups. The experimental group, with 25
subjects, received training in mindfulness meditation from one of its most noted adherents, Jon Kabat-Zinn,
Ph.D. (Kabat-Zinn, a popular author of books on stress reduction, developed the mindfulness-based stress
reduction program at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center.) This group attended a weekly class
and one seven-hour retreat during the study; they also were assigned home practice for an hour a day, six
days a week. The 16 members of the control group did not receive meditation training until after the study
was completed.
For each group, in addition to asking the participants to assess how they felt, the research team measured
electrical activity in the frontal part of the brain, an area specialized for certain kinds of emotion. Earlier
research has shown that, in people who are generally positive and optimistic and during times of positive
emotion, the left side of this frontal area becomes more active than the right side does.
The findings confirmed the researchers' hypothesis: the meditation group showed an increase of activation
in the left-side part of the frontal region. This suggests that the meditation itself produced more activity in
this region of the brain. This activity is associated with lower anxiety and a more positive emotional state.
The research team also tested whether the meditation group had better immune function than the control
group did. All the study participants got a flu vaccine at the end of the eight-week meditation group. Then, at
four and eight weeks after vaccine administration, both groups had blood tests to measure the level of
antibodies they had produced against the flu vaccine. While both groups (as expected) had developed
increased antibodies, the meditation group had a significantly larger increase than the controls, at both four
and eight weeks after receiving the vaccine.
"Although our study is preliminary and more research clearly is warranted," said Davidson, "we are very
encouraged by these results. The Promega employees who took part have given us a wonderful opportunity
to demonstrate a real biological impact of this ancient practice."
Davidson, who is integrally involved with the HealthEmotions Research Institute at UW, plans further
research on the impact of meditation. He is currently studying a group of people who have been using
meditation for more than 30 years. His research team is also planning to study the impact of mindfulness
meditation on patients with particular illnesses.
Source: University of Wisconsin-Madison February 4, 2003
Meditation
Meditation has changed my life!
That is a powerful statement. I cope with
the stress of life with greater ease as a
result of my meditation practice.
Various university studies have repeatedly
shown that people who meditate are more
peaceful, have increased immune function,
lower blood pressure, significant
improvement in cardiovascular health,
experience lower stress levels, have better
overall health, and not only live a better
quality of life, but live longer. Meditation
practices have also been shown to unleash
the creative powers of the mind.
Many people are aware of the many
amazing health and quality of life benefits
associated with meditation practices, but in
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it hard to find the time to fit in a weekly
meditation class to learn how to meditate,
never mind a daily practice of 20 minutes or
more.
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I wish you peace.
Cher
