{"id":2122,"date":"2014-11-27T18:49:40","date_gmt":"2014-11-27T23:49:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/illuzone.net\/illu\/?p=2122"},"modified":"2019-05-18T22:21:53","modified_gmt":"2019-05-19T02:21:53","slug":"article-harvard-unveils-mri-study-proving-meditation-literally-rebuilds-the-brains-gray-matter-in-8-weeks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/illuzone.net\/article-harvard-unveils-mri-study-proving-meditation-literally-rebuilds-the-brains-gray-matter-in-8-weeks\/","title":{"rendered":"ARTICLE | Harvard unveils MRI Study Proving Meditation Literally Rebuilds The Brain\u2019s Gray Matter In 8 Weeks"},"content":{"rendered":"

[dropcap]T[\/dropcap]est subjects taking part in an 8-week program of mindfulness meditation showed results that astonished even the most experienced neuroscientists at Harvard University<\/a>. \u00a0The study was led by a Harvard-affiliated team of researchers based at Massachusetts General Hospital, and the team\u2019s MRI scans documented for the very first time in medical history how meditation produced massive changes inside the brain\u2019s gray matter.<\/p>\n

\"1491gipnoz\"<\/a>\u201cAlthough the practice of meditation is associated with a sense of peacefulness and physical relaxation, practitioners have long claimed that meditation also provides cognitive and psychological benefits that persist throughout the day,\u201d says study senior author\u00a0Sara Lazar<\/a>\u00a0of the MGH\u00a0Psychiatric Neuroimaging Research Program<\/a>\u00a0and a\u00a0Harvard Medical School<\/a>\u00a0instructor in psychology. \u201cThis study demonstrates that changes in brain structure may underlie some of these reported improvements and that people are not just feeling better because they are spending time relaxing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Sue McGreevey of MGH writes: \u201cPrevious studies from Lazar\u2019s group and others found structural differences between the brains of experienced meditation practitioners and individuals with no history of meditation, observing thickening of the cerebral cortex in areas associated with attention and emotional integration. But those investigations could not document that those differences were actually produced by meditation.\u201d \u00a0Until now, that is. \u00a0The participants spent an average of 27 minutes per day practicing mindfulness exercises, and this is all it took to stimulate a major increase in gray matter density in the hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with self-awareness, compassion, and introspection. \u00a0\"MeditatingOnRocks\"<\/a>McGreevey adds: \u201cParticipant-reported reductions in stress also were correlated with decreased gray-matter density in the amygdala, which is known to play an important role in anxiety and stress. None of these changes were seen in the control group, indicating that they had not resulted merely from the passage of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is fascinating to see the brain\u2019s plasticity and that, by practicing meditation, we can play an active role in changing the brain and can increase our well-being and quality of life,\u201d says Britta H\u00f6lzel, first author of the paper and a research fellow at MGH and Giessen University in Germany. You can read more about the remarkable study by visiting Harvard.edu<\/a>. \u00a0If this is up your alley then you need to read this: \u201cListen As Sam Harris Explains How To Tame Your Mind (No Religion Required)<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n