Four Fantastic Health Benefits of Meditation
Meditation is one of the most beneficial
practices one can engage in, and just about everyone knows they should make time for
it. Meditation has a wonderfully calming effect on the body and mind, and encourages
a less stressed, more peaceful and aware state of being.
Unfortunately though, most people get swept up in
life’s frantic pace, more urgent matters come up and thoughts of meditation go
out the window. But making time for meditation is a real gain for your health. If
you’re one of those who can never seem to find the time, here are four simple
health-boosting reasons to get into a meditation groove without further delay!
1. Meditation Chemically Boosts
Happiness, Curbs Anxiety and Cuts Pain
Meditation encourages the release of mood-
boosting endorphins into the bloodstream, which in turn increases feelings of well-
being. Those biochemically-induced good feelings spill over into other areas of your
emotional life, helping make regular meditators calmer, more empathetic, slower to
anger and less likely to sweat the small stuff. According to the Journal of
Neuroscience, meditation also delivers powerful pain-relieving chemicals to the
brain – making the practice something of a DIY pain-buster. For many of my
patients, particularly the city-dwellers, a meditation practice can be an especially
helpful way to combat stress and/or anxiety, enabling them to carve out a slice of
serenity in the middle of urban chaos, or where ever they may find themselves.
2. Meditation Lowers Blood Pressure,
Stroke and Heart Disease Risk
When it comes to meditation’s impact on
health, the news is all good, especially when it comes to lowering blood pressure,
stroke and heart disease risk. Even the ultra-conservative minds at the American
Medical Association have come out in favor of meditation, having recently issued a
report stating that “transcendental meditation (TM) may be considered as
an alternative approach to lowering both systolic and diastolic blood pressure in
people with high blood pressure.” When blood pressure is lowered, stroke
and heart attack risk follows suit.
3. Meditation Slows Aging Brain and Keeps
Chromosomes Young
In recent years, a number of studies have
suggested that meditation can help slow aging in the place where we fear it most
– the brain. A recent study by UCLA researchers concluded that
“meditation appeared to help preserve the brain’s gray matter, the
tissue that contains neurons.” Which means, the more gray matter can
retain with help from a meditation practice, the less neurological trouble
you’re likely to have down the road. That should inspire even the most time-
pressed among us to give this incredibly important practice a closer
look.
Still on the fence? Then consider this: another
study out of UC Davis showed that meditation stimulates telomerase activity, which
keeps your chromosomes young and is linked to longer life expectancy.
4. Meditation Helps Sleep Come More
Easily – Or Perks You Up in a Pinch
A racing conscience and body wracked with tension
is not going to drift off to dreamland without a fight. Don’t fight,
don’t medicate – meditate instead. Doing so will quiet the conscience,
relax the body and prepare you for rest. In this soothed state, it will be lot
easier to drift off. Studies show that once snoozing is under way, meditators enjoy
boosted slow-wave sleep patterns, which translates to better sleep and less
insomnia.
On nights when sleep is elusive, try meditating
lying down to help you nod off. Even if you don’t fall asleep right away, you
will be giving your body some of the restorative brain and body benefits of
meditation – so it’s worth doing.
Need a boost during the day? Meditation can help
here too – there’s evidence that meditation may be even better than
napping. When researchers compared the alertness of students who were asked to
sleep, watch television or meditate, guess who came out on top? It was the
meditators, scored 10% higher on the alertness scale than the non-meditators.
yogaesoteric
March 3, 2020