Meditation: An Introduction
Introduction
Meditation is a
mind-body practice in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). There are many types of meditation, most of
which originated in ancient religious and spiritual traditions. Generally, a person who is meditating uses
certain techniques, such as a specific posture, focused attention, and an open attitude toward distractions.
Meditation may be practiced for many reasons, such as to increase calmness and physical relaxation, to improve
psychological balance, to cope with illness, or to enhance overall wellness. This Backgrounder provides a
general introduction to meditation and suggests some resources for more information.
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Key Points
- People practice meditation for a number of health-related purposes.
- It is not fully known what changes occur in the body during meditation; whether they influence health; and,
if so, how. Research is under way to find out more about meditation's effects, how it works, and diseases and
conditions for which it may be most helpful.
- Tell your health care providers about any complementary and alternative practices you use. Give them a full
picture of what you do to manage your health. This will help ensure coordinated and safe care.
Overview
The term meditation refers to a group of techniques, such as mantra meditation, relaxation
response, mindfulness meditation, and Zen Buddhist meditation. Most meditative techniques started in
Eastern religious or spiritual traditions. These techniques have been used by many different cultures throughout
the world for thousands of years. Today, many people use meditation outside of its traditional religious or
cultural settings, for health and wellness purposes.
In meditation, a person learns to focus attention. Some forms of meditation instruct the practitioner to become
mindful of thoughts, feelings, and sensations and to observe them in a nonjudgmental way. This practice is believed
to result in a state of greater calmness and physical relaxation, and psychological balance. Practicing meditation
can change how a person relates to the flow of emotions and thoughts in the mind.
Most types of meditation have four elements in common:
- A quiet location. Meditation is usually practiced in a quiet place with as few
distractions as possible. This can be particularly helpful for beginners.
- A specific, comfortable posture. Depending on the type being practiced, meditation can be
done while sitting, lying down, standing, walking, or in other positions.
- A focus of attention. Focusing one's attention is usually a part of meditation. For
example, the meditator may focus on a mantra (a specially chosen word or set of words), an object, or the
sensations of the breath. Some forms of meditation involve paying attention to whatever is the dominant content
of consciousness.
- An open attitude. Having an open attitude during meditation means letting distractions
come and go naturally without judging them. When the attention goes to distracting or wandering thoughts, they
are not suppressed; instead, the meditator gently brings attention back to the focus. In some types of
meditation, the meditator learns to "observe" thoughts and emotions while meditating.
Meditation used as CAM is a type of mind-body medicine. Generally, mind-body medicine focuses on:
- The interactions among the brain/mind, the rest of the body, and behavior.
- The ways in which emotional, mental, social, spiritual, and behavioral factors can directly affect
health.
Uses of Meditation for Health in the United States
A 2007 national Government survey that asked about CAM use in a sample of 23,393 U.S. adults found that 9.4 percent
of respondents (representing more than 20 million people) had used meditation in the past 12 months—compared with
7.6 percent of respondents (representing more than 15 million people) in a similar survey conducted in 2002. The
2007 survey also asked about CAM use in a sample of 9,417 children; 1 percent (representing 725,000 children) had
used meditation in the past 12 months.
People use meditation for various health problems, such as:
- Anxiety
- Pain
- Depression
- Stress
- Insomnia
- Physical or emotional symptoms that may be associated with chronic illnesses (such as heart disease,
HIV/AIDS, and cancer) and their treatment.
Meditation is also used for overall wellness.
Examples of Meditation Practices
Mindfulness meditation and Transcendental Meditation (also known as TM) are
two common forms of meditation. NCCAM-sponsored research projects are studying
both of these types of meditation.
Mindfulness meditation is an essential component of Buddhism. In one common form
of mindfulness meditation, the meditator is taught to bring attention to the sensation of the flow of the breath in
and out of the body. The meditator learns to focus attention on what is being experienced, without reacting to or
judging that experience. This is seen as helping the meditator learn to experience thoughts and emotions in normal
daily life with greater balance and acceptance.
The TM technique is derived from Hindu traditions. It uses a mantra (a word,
sound, or phrase repeated silently) to prevent distracting thoughts from entering the mind. The goal of TM is to
achieve a state of relaxed awareness.
How Meditation Might Work
Practicing meditation has been shown to induce some changes in the body. By learning more about what goes on in
the body during meditation, researchers hope to be able to identify diseases or conditions for which meditation
might be useful.
Some types of meditation might work by affecting the autonomic (involuntary) nervous system. This system regulates
many organs and muscles, controlling functions such as the heartbeat, sweating, breathing, and digestion. It has
two major parts:
- The sympathetic nervous system helps mobilize the body for action. When a person is under
stress, it produces the "fight-or-flight response": the heart rate and breathing rate go up and blood vessels
narrow (restricting the flow of blood).
- The parasympathetic nervous system causes the heart rate and breathing rate to slow down,
the blood vessels to dilate (improving blood flow), and digestive juices to increase.
It is thought that some types of meditation might work by reducing activity in the sympathetic nervous system
and increasing activity in the parasympathetic nervous system.
In one area of research, scientists are using sophisticated tools to determine whether meditation is associated
with significant changes in brain function. A number of researchers believe that these changes account for many of
meditation's effects.
It is also possible that practicing meditation may work by improving the mind's ability to pay attention. Since
attention is involved in performing everyday tasks and regulating mood, meditation might lead to other
benefits.
A 2007 NCCAM-funded review of the scientific literature found some evidence suggesting that meditation is
associated with potentially beneficial health effects. However, the overall evidence was inconclusive. The
reviewers concluded that future research needs to be more rigorous before firm conclusions can be drawn.
Side Effects and Risks
Meditation is considered to be safe for healthy people. There have been rare reports that meditation could cause or
worsen symptoms in people who have certain psychiatric problems, but this question has not been fully researched.
People with physical limitations may not be able to participate in certain meditative practices involving physical
movement. Individuals with existing mental or physical health conditions should speak with their health care
providers prior to starting a meditative practice and make their meditation instructor aware of their
condition.
If You Are Thinking About Using Meditation Practices
- Do not use meditation as a replacement for conventional care or as a reason to postpone seeing a doctor
about a medical problem.
- Ask about the training and experience of the meditation instructor you are considering.
- Look for published research studies on meditation for the health condition in which you are
interested.
- Tell your health care providers about any complementary and alternative practices you use. Give them a full
picture of what you do to manage your health. This will help ensure coordinated and safe care. For tips about
talking with your health care providers about CAM, see NCCAM's Time
to Talk campaign.
NCCAM-Supported Research
- Relieving stress in caregivers for elderly patients with dementia
- Reducing the frequency and intensity of hot flashes in menopausal women
- Relieving symptoms of chronic back pain
- Improving attention-related abilities (alerting, focusing, and prioritizing)
- Relieving asthma symptoms.
References
Sources are drawn from recent reviews on the general topic of meditation in the peer-reviewed medical and
scientific literature in English in the PubMed database, selected evidence-based databases, and Federal
sources.
Some recent NCCAM-supported studies have been investigating meditation for:
- Barnes PM, Bloom B, Nahin R.
Complementary
and alternative medicine use among adults and children: United States, 2007 (PDF).
CDC National Health Statistics Report #12. 2008.
- Bonadonna R.
Meditation's impact on chronic
illness. Holistic Nursing Practice.
2003;17(6):309–319.
- Cardoso R, de Souza E, Camano L, et
al.
Meditation in health: an operational
definition. Brain Research. Brain Research Protocols.
2004;14(1):58–60.
- Caspi O, Burleson KO.
Methodological challenges in meditation
research. Advances in Mind-Body Medicine.
2005;21(1):4–11.
- Davidson RJ, Kabat-Zinn J, Schumacher J, et
al.
Alterations in brain and immune function produced by mindfulness
meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine.
2003;65(4):564–570.
- Davidson RJ, Lutz A.
Buddha's brain: neuroplasticity and
meditation. IEEE Signal Processing.
2007;25(1):171–174.
- Edwards L.
Meditation as medicine: benefits go beyond
relaxation. Advance for Nurse Practitioners.
2003;11(5):49–52.
- Jha AP, Krompinger J, Baime
MJ.
Mindfulness training modifies subsystems of
attention. Cognitive, Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience. 2007;7(2):109–119.
- Lutz A, Slagter HA, Dunne J, et
al.
Attention regulation and monitoring in
meditation. Trends in Cognitive Sciences.
2008:12(4);163–169.
- Manocha R.
Why meditation? Australian Family
Physician. 2000;29(12):1135–1138.
- Meditation. Natural Standard Database Web
site. Accessed on March 24,
2008.
- National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Expanding
Horizons of Health Care: Strategic Plan 2005–2009. Bethesda , MD:
National Center for Complementary and Alternative
Medicine; 2005. NIH publication no. 04–5568.
- National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Mind-Body Medicine: An Overview. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Web site. Accessed on
April 7, 2008.
- Newberg AB,
Iversen J.
The neural basis of the complex mental task of meditation:
neurotransmitter and neurochemical considerations. Medical
Hypotheses. 2003;61(2):282–291.
- Ospina MB, Bond
TK, Karkhaneh M, et al. Meditation Practices for Health: State
of the Research. Evidence Report/Technology Assessment no.
155. Rockville,
MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality; 2007. AHRQ publication no. 07–E010.
- Pettinati PM.
Meditation, yoga, and guided
imagery. Nursing Clinics of North
America. 2001;36(1):47–56.
- Tacon AM.
Meditation as a complementary therapy in
cancer. Family and Community Health.
2003;26(1):64–73.
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