20 Health Benefits Of Meditation According To Science

It goes without saying that the primary and the most common health benefits of meditation lies in the proper stress management.

Being able to concentrate and get rid of the unwanted shielding of stress is often achieved effectively when someone tries and meditates with full concentration.

The heightened levels of cortisol in the body have the possibility to trigger the release of cytokines which cause inflammation in the body.

In order to effectively avoid that and bring back the cortisol levels back to normal, the best way to do so is by meditation.

Even a conducted study (R) with over 3500 participants found the efficacy of meditation living up to the claims of being an effective stress buster.

You will often observe that meditation does impact one’s mental health more than it affects their physical health. It is actually important to have an approach that does cater to it.

That being said, meditation benefits in the cure of depression effectively.

Several studies conducted have deduced ways to find the same.

According to a study conducted in five middle schools around in Belgium on the students in between the age of 13-20, it was found that the students who practice mindfulness during the class did portray reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety in them which was monumental.

Not just that, study (R) has also confirmed meditation to be effective enough like that of the anti-depressant therapies that majority of the people indulge in.

Anxiety and panic attacks are no one’s best friend.

While there could be a number of ways to treating anxiety (R), science believes that the health benefits of meditation expand to healing this mental health issue as well.

It is important to understand that nothing is achieved within a day, mastering the art of meditation and channeling the positive energy for better health does take some time.

Habituate yourself into doing this one a regular basis for gaining the overall benefits.

Grey matter in our brain is the accumulation of nucleus in them. It is basically a very important part of our brain and nervous system and does require to be concentrated more for better functioning.

One of the most common scientific benefits of meditation is the fact that it helps in increasing the grey matter concentration in the brain.

A study (R) was conducted by the Harvard neuroscientists on 16 people in which they were subjected to an eight week course regarding mindfulness. They were made to indulge in guided meditation and had to integrate mindfulness into every prospect of their day to day life.

Upon conducting the MRI scan of the brain, the neuroscientists did find a steep increase in the concentration of grey matter in the brain following the course. It was predominantly more around the areas of learning, memory, emotions etc.

Self awareness is often one of the most common things that we lack.

There are actually a few varieties of meditation that helps contribute to better generation of self awareness within us. It not just helps you develop a better understanding of your inner self, but also lets you cultivate yourself to become a best version of you.

The type like the self-inquiry meditation is actually very helpful in helping you get a better understanding about yourself which is often hard to deduce.

In a conducted study (R) among 40 elderly men and women, it was reported that they experienced lesser feelings of loneliness and despair when they indulged in a mindful session altogether.

One of the best benefits of meditation is that it contributes to better improvement of the focus and attention.

In several studies conducted, the researchers have pointed out that it did became a lot easier for the person to have better focus and concentration on the work they are indulging in.

In another study conducted on students, they were found to have better and improved cognitive skills when they indulged in a simple 20 minutes of meditative training in a day.

Next on the list of the benefits of meditation is that it helps in improving one’s attention span. If you are someone who is very restless and takes around time to get around being attentive, the best way to bring it back on track is by indulging in any form of meditation that works best for them.

If you have been having trouble bringing your focus to one spot, this might just be the best option to peep into.

In a conducted study for 8 weeks of mindfulness, it was found that the same did have impacts in improving the overall ability of the participant to not just rethink but to also reorient.

When it comes to talking about the meditation benefits, it has been found to have amazing impacts on delaying or even preventing the risks associated with the age related memory loss, as witnessed in dementia and Alzheimer’s.

In a number of studies (R) conducted relating to the age related memory loss, it was found that doing Kirtan Kriya was actually beneficial enough in reversing the impacts and prevailing presence of such conditions altogether.

This is a constant chant of a string of mantras which has been proven beneficial in improving memory and the associated.

Not just that, there has also been an extensive study concerning 12 studies (R) conducted in old people who indulged in meditation. The studies did suggest that they experienced better attention and mental quickness in those volunteers.

If you didn’t know, the process of gyrification in our cortex is what helps in improving the overall thinking and decision making skills in us.

Gyrification is the formation of folds and convulsions in our cortex which helps the brain to process all the relayed information at a faster pace.

Studies have shown that people who have been long time meditators have the benefit of developing better gyrification which is associated with better decision making skills in our brain. Scientists have confirmed stating that better the gyrification, better is the decision making skills of the individual. In short, it is very effective in impacting the overall cognitive abilities in an individual.

One of the best benefits of meditation has been found to instill feelings of kindness in the minds of individuals.

If you haven’t heard of Metta, it is a type of meditation which instills a feeling of loving and kindness in the minds of the person doing it. It helps in building feelings of kind thoughts and positive feelings (R) not just towards one’s self but also towards other people.

Studies (R) have found that people who spend their time practicing Metta have been found to have better feelings of compassion and kindness in them.

Not just that, researchers (R) have also found that performing Metta meditation has better impacts in reversing the impacts of social anxiety and depression in general.

We are often subjected to pain, be it because of a wound or even something superficial that we are not aware of.

In a conducted study (R) in between 13 Zen masters and 13 non-practitioners, in which their brain activities were recorded with fMRI while being exposed to painful bursts of heat.

Upon recording the results, it was found that that ones who practiced Zen meditation, often known as Zazen reported to have lesser feeling of the pain in comparison to what was recorded in the fMRI.

In short, it deduces that even though they are experiencing the same kind of pain in their brain, they are not interpreting the similar intensity of pain in their minds.

Yet another one of the health benefits of meditation is the fact that it alleviates condition associated with substance abuse and addiction.

It is believed that it is the mental discipline you build through the meditation process that helps in igniting better responses to withdrawals and addiction in general.

Several researches (R) (R) have shown for a fact that meditation has been associated with better management of concentration, developing stronger willpower and helps one control their emotions better and thus has been associated with effective abstinence from addiction.

Not just that, meditation has also been found to have impactful effects in handling food addiction. Conducted study (R) has reported that participants could successfully reduce their desire or emotional and binge eating when they indulged in meditation.

ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is currently on the rise in numbers in various parts of the country.

If you are someone who wants to enjoy the scientific benefits of meditation, it is necessary one is well acquainted with what ADHD is and how it affects our daily life.

In a conducted study (R), a group of 50 people were subjected to undergo a mindfulness based cognitive therapy following which their interactions were recorded and studied.

The researchers reported reduced hyperactivity and impulsive behaviour in the participants which is very common for ADHD patients. This helped in improving the overall symptoms of the condition and contributing for their better health.

If you have been struggling with lack of sleep and such, it is necessary to ensure that you indulge in meditation.

It has been proven beneficial for someone suffering from insomnia.

In a conducted study (R), the researchers compared two mindfulness programs conducted with participants. One included meditation while the other didn’t.

Upon concluding the results, the scientists found that the group which did meditate was able to fall asleep faster in comparison to the ones who didn’t. Not only did they fall asleep sooner, their quality of sleep was a lot better as well.

Given the fact that meditation benefits in calming down your mind, it is believed to bring down the stress levels as well. The combination of the two has been found to have amazing impacts on the overall mind peacefulness that induces sleep faster.

Experts have suggested saying that since mindful meditation helps in improving focus and attention, it is very effective in improving the recalling of memory as well.

If you have been having a hard time keeping everything in mind and recalling what has been going wrong around, it is very effective to indulge in some meditation for amazing results.

Meditation has been reported to have impacts in improving concentration inspite of distractions which was what proved out to be a positive impact on the memory consolidation and recalling.

Given the kind of stress we are subjected to on a daily basis, it is not surprising that the same is reflected on our blood pressure as well.

Having high blood pressure consistently end up being a threat to the overall well being of an individual. It is important to keep the blood pressure levels in check for better heart health.

Meditation has been associated with proper stress management and bringing in better peace of mind which is the reason why it is effective in treating the condition of hypertension that many suffer from.

Several studies have explained that indulging in meditation does have positive impacts in enhancing the creative fields in one’s mind.

The form of “open monitoring” meditation has been found to be very effective in handling the overall prospects of not just better performance but also helping in instilling creativity and divergent thinking (R) in individuals.

Following recording the results, it was found that the participants did end up performing better and more creatively in the tasks that were assigned to them.

Cardiovascular diseases have been found to have more death risks in comparison to the other forms of diseases around.

Even a conducted study with over 200 high risk patients, they were observed for having a reduced 48% reduction in the overall risks related to the heart diseases and such.

The conclusions and reports do suggest that the people who did indulge in regular meditation were found to have reduced the risks of myocardial infarction, stroke and even mortality as a whole. The reduced rate of stress and blood pressure was found to be the reason behind the managed risks of heart diseases.

Not just the overall prospect of diseases, practicing mindful meditation has been found to have beneficial impacts on the overall rate of inflammatory diseases in individuals.

It has also been found to have impacts on the genetic as well as the molecular impacts on the body which end up decreasing the rates of production of inflammatory factors (R) that could end up causing and inducing inflammatory diseases in the body.

It also helps in ensuring better and faster recovery from a stressful condition.

Apart from everything, one of the best health benefits of meditation is the fact that it helps in managing the signs and symptoms associated with treating the pre-menstrual and menopausal symptoms.

More than 20 randomised studies have concluded these factors associated. The main reason behind the same is believed to the managed levels of cortisol in the body.

When the levels of cortisol are in check, it helps keep the other hormones in check as well, thereby helping regulate the conditions associated with women health.

All in all, when it comes to the health benefits of meditation, the possibilities are more than we could even imagine. It is important to ensure that you practice meditation mindfully, knowing the in and outs of the process. In order for experiencing the meditation benefits for health, it is important to be aware of the process involved.