It changes brain activity, reducing activation in the amygdala, an area critical for processing fear.
The safest type of meditation for the anxious and depressed.
All the people in the study had never meditated before in their lives.
This type of meditation can decrease emotional reactivity, decrease mind wandering, increase the ability to focus and improve arousal.
The benefits are seen at a molecular level, reducing the inflammatory response.
The benefits are seen at a molecular level, reducing the inflammatory response.
Mind-body practices such as meditation, yoga and Tai Chi can reverse the effects of stress on our DNA, research finds.
Usually stress causes increased levels of a molecule called nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kB).
This is involved in the reaction to stress and how our genes are expressed.
It also has a key role in how our bodies respond to infection.
Practices like meditation reduce the levels of this stress-related molecule.
They also lower the levels of cytokines in the body — these are linked to inflammation at the cellular level.
Ms Ivana Buric, the study’s first author, said:
“Millions of people around the world already enjoy the health benefits of mind-body interventions like yoga or meditation, but what they perhaps don’t realise is that these benefits begin at a molecular level and can change the way our genetic code goes about its business.
These activities are leaving what we call a molecular signature in our cells, which reverses the effect that stress or anxiety would have on the body by changing how our genes are expressed.
Put simply, MBIs cause the brain to steer our DNA processes along a path which improves our wellbeing.
More needs to be done to understand these effects in greater depth, for example how they compare with other healthy interventions like exercise or nutrition.
But this is an important foundation to build on to help future researchers explore the benefits of increasingly popular mind-body activities.”
For the study, researchers pulled together the results of 18 different studies on 846 people across 11 years.
The study was published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology (Buric et al., 2017).
The treatment also has no side effects.
The treatment also has no side effects.
Ten minutes of mindfulness meditation could be an effective alternative to painkillers, new research finds.
The quick meditation session was enough to reduce anxiety about pain and increase both pain tolerance and threshold.
The results come from a study of 24 healthy young people.
Half meditated for 10 minutes while the other half just sat quietly.
Then they plunged their hands first into warm water and then into ice water for as long as they could.
Dr Osama Tashani, the study’s first author, said:
“While further research is needed to explore this in a more clinical setting on chronic pain patients, these results do show that a brief mindfulness meditation intervention can be of benefit in pain relief.
The ease of application and cost effectiveness of the mindfulness meditation may also make it a viable addition to the arsenal of therapies for pain management.
The mindfulness mediation was led by a researcher who was a novice; so in theory clinicians could administer this with little training needed.
It’s based on traditional Buddhist teachings which focuses attention and awareness on your breathing.”
The study was published in the journal Pain Studies and Treatment (Tashani et al., 2017).
The Swedish research included 215 patients with anxiety, depression and stress-related problems.
The Swedish research included 215 patients with anxiety, depression and stress-related problems.
Learning mindfulness in a group can be just as effective as individual cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), research finds.
Professor Jan Sundquist, who led the research, said:
“Our new research shows that mindfulness group therapy has the equivalent effect as individual CBT for a wide range of psychiatric symptoms that are common among this patient group.
We have shown in a previous study that mindfulness group therapy is just as effective as individual CBT for the treatment of typical depression and anxiety symptoms; something we also observed in the new study.”
The Swedish research included 215 patients with anxiety, depression and stress-related problems.
Half had individual CBT and the other half attended group mindfulness sessions.
The results showed that both groups improved.
Professor Sundquist said:
“As mental illnesses are increasing at a very fast rate it is absolutely essential to expand the treatment alternatives for this patient group in primary healthcare.
Our view is that the scarce resources should be partly reallocated to mindfulness group therapy so that the limited availability of individual psychotherapy can be utilised in an optimal fashion.”
The study was published in the journal European Psychiatry (Sundquist et al., 2017).
It can be hard to tell what is anxiety and whether it needs treatment.
It can be hard to tell what is anxiety and whether it needs treatment.
Anxiety is a sense of uneasiness, concern or agitation that varies from mild to severe.
At the milder end, it is vague and starts to make you feel unsettled, jumpy and worried.
Towards the more severe end it provokes inner turmoil, feelings of dread and can have a serious impact on everyday life.
Everyone experiences anxiety to some degree and sometimes these responses are severe.
Examinations, medical procedures, public speaking and so on can lead to anxiety and loss of sleep.
How anxiety impacts your everyday life determines whether it is a ‘disorder’ or ‘regular’ anxiety.
Anxiety that causes persistent problems with sleeping or seriously interferes with everyday life could require some treatment.
Some people get very anxious over things which others would not consider that anxiety-provoking.
If you are worrying all the time or regularly experiencing unpleasant physical and psychological symptoms, then this could be a sign of something deeper.
Deep-rooted anxiety often leads to avoidance of the anxiety-provoking object or situation.
This type of anxiety can consistently stop you from doing the things you might otherwise like to do.
Anxiety typically has both psychological and physical symptoms.
Here are some typical psychological symptoms:
Physical symptoms could include:
This is not a completely list, people report many different types of physical and psychological symptoms.
Severe anxiety is also linked to depression, insomnia and misusing drugs.
It can lead to problems at work and in relationships and difficulty in enjoying everyday, pleasurable pursuits.
There are a large range of factors that could influence whether you experience anxiety as a mental health problem.
Here are some possible causes:
Often, chronic anxiety stems from a variety of causes specific to your lifestyle, situation and genetics mixed together.
Anxiety disorders come in various types.
These are some of the main ones:
Psychological therapies are very effective for anxiety disorders.
In particular, cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) has been found to help many types of anxiety disorders.
Dr Jeremy Dean’s latest book “The Anxiety Plan” is based on the principles of CBT and provides 42 strategies for dealing with anxiety.
Other ways of managing anxiety yourself include:
Understandably, some people find self-help too difficult.
If so, psychologists, psychiatrists and other mental health professionals can provide the psychological support required.
Along with psychological therapies, people are often prescribed medications.
Some people find they need medication, but bear in mind that:
Four types of medication are:
Even if you do decide to take medication, also consider self-help options at the same time as these can work better in the long-run.
→ Get Dr Jeremy Dean’s new anxiety ebook.
How to keep the emotional brain in check.
How to keep the emotional brain in check.
Some people say that they are just not ‘mindful’ people, and nothing can be done about it.
New research, though, suggests that even those who are not mindful can benefit from meditation to help control their emotions.
Mr Yanli Lin, the study’s first author, said:
“Our findings not only demonstrate that meditation improves emotional health, but that people can acquire these benefits regardless of their ‘natural’ ability to be mindful.
It just takes some practice.”
For the research people were asked to look at a series of upsetting images right after meditating for the first time.
Those meditating for the first time were able to control their emotions just as well as those who were naturally mindful.
They were able to rein in their emotions just as successfully after meditating as those with better inbuilt skills.
Measurements of the electrical activity in the brain also confirmed the improved emotional control after meditation.
Dr Jason Moser, a study co-author, said:
“If you’re a naturally mindful person, and you’re walking around very aware of things, you’re good to go.
You shed your emotions quickly.
If you’re not naturally mindful, then meditating can make you look like a person who walks around with a lot of mindfulness.
But for people who are not naturally mindful and have never meditated, forcing oneself to be mindful ‘in the moment’ doesn’t work.
You’d be better off meditating for 20 minutes.”
Mindfulness is the process of paying attention to thoughts, feelings and sensation in the moment.
→ Read on for more benefits of mindfulness, including quick instructions for mindfulness meditation.
The study was published in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (Lin et al., 2016).
The hormone has already been linked to greater altruism, social bonding and other positive effects.
The hormone has already been linked to greater altruism, social bonding and other positive effects.
Oxytocin — popularly known as the ‘love hormone’ — boosts feelings of spirituality, new research finds.
Men who took the hormone reported feeling more positive and with a greater sense of spirituality up to a week later.
Oxytocin is a neurotransmitter produced during sex.
It has already been linked to greater altruism, social bonding and other positive effects.
Dr Patty Van Cappellen, who led the study, said:
“Spirituality and meditation have each been linked to health and well-being in previous research.
We were interested in understanding biological factors that may enhance those spiritual experiences.
Oxytocin appears to be part of the way our bodies support spiritual beliefs.”
In the study, after taking the hormone, men took part in a guided meditation.
Those given oxytocin were more likely to agree with statements like:
During the meditation, those taking oxytocin were more likely to say they felt positive emotions like inspiration, hope, love, gratitude and serenity.
Dr Van Cappellen said:
“Spirituality is complex and affected by many factors.
However, oxytocin does seem to affect how we perceive the world and what we believe.”
The study was published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (Van Cappellen et al., 2016).
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