What Meditation Does
The Relaxation Response

Pioneer researcher in the field, Dr Herbert Benson of the Harvard Medical School in his best-selling 1975 book, The Relaxation Response', states that meditation was effective in treating stress and high blood pressure as well as in more generally tuning and toning the immune system. He found, amongst those who regularly practiced the technique, decreases in metabolism, heart and breathing rates and blood pressure accompanied by alpha brainwaves that occur during relaxation and feelings of well-being. His findings noted this occurred across all cultures.

All of these changes affect our 'fight or flight' responses so close to the surface when we are under stress at work or elsewhere in our lives. As humans we are programmed to respond to challenge or danger by going into what is called a 'fight or flight' response which gets us through the crisis. During this crisis time, our bodies produce stress hormones to allow us to lift our response and overcome the danger. But too many stress hormones bustling round the body for too long, medical researchers have found, can lead to health problems like high blood pressure, heart disease, irritable bowel syndrome, ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), impotence, infertility, PMT, rheumatoid arthritis, sleeplessness, the pain of chronic diseases like AIDS and cancer, skin conditions and more. So Dr Benson suggested focusing on a phrase, a breath, an object - in fact almost anything that involves intense focus on one thing while disregarding all else that arises in the mind - for medical benefits, rather than spiritual insights as has been the case in more traditional regard. (For more on stress in the workplace see Meditation At Work)

More recently Dr Benson found the reason why meditative techniques have their effect: they release naturally increased levels of nitric oxide linked to the production of endorphins and other chemicals which produce states of well-being in the body. Nitric oxide is a counter agent to the hormone norepinephrene which constricts blood vessels when we are under stress. Other research shows overall blood flow is decreased while meditating, but increased to certain areas, including the limbic system which generates emotions, memories and regulates heart rate, respiratory rate and metabolism. Meditation, in other words, re-sets the body and mind to work more harmoniously for better health.

So there is a physiological basis to what those who meditate have come to know by experience. Persistent practice of meditation changes the way you think and operate, diminishing the power of destructive emotions and encouraging a greater sense of equanimity in one's life and the ability to ride through all the conflicts and storms of life with a calm anchor within.