Body-Mind Meditation Leads to Rapid, Positive Brain Changes
Natural News Friday, August 27, 2010 by: Atula Gupta
(NaturalNews) The importance of meditation has long been known to mankind, but scientists have now discovered the positive brain changes that occur after a session of meditation even if it is a brief one.
Chinese and US researchers at the University of Oregon studied the effects of a meditation technique known as Integrated Body Mind Training (IBMT) on 45 students who were randomly selected. One group of students practiced IBMT for half an hour every weekday for a month and the other group did a relaxation technique.
The scientists found that even a brief session of meditation strengthened the connections of the brain that regulate our emotional response. They also found that the group of students who were practicing IBMT had brain connections that started to strengthen in only 6 hours, which was not visible in the other group. In 11 hours the differences were all the more apparent.
The changes were noted mostly on the part of the brain known as anterior cingulate and the fibres connecting it. The inactivity of this part has been associated with dementia, ADHD, schizophrenia and depression and therefore scientists believe that the new study can help those who are fighting with these conditions apart from de-stressing.
The researchers said, "We believe this new finding is of interest to the fields of education, health and neuroscience."