Transcendental meditation keeps heart healthy
They made many a heart go aflutter. But the Beatles sure knew how to keep theirs in good shape.
Transcendental meditation, introduced by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and made famous by the Fab Four, is the miracle drug for heart health, say US researchers.
As stress levels shoot up and general health of populations decline, transcendental meditation can calm you down and lower your cardiovascular disease risk, say the researchers from Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield, Iowa, and Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee.
The research team tested the effects of transcendental meditation on 201 African American men and women with average age of 58 years. All the participants had coronary artery disease.The subjects were randomly assigned to either a transcendental meditation programme or a health education one.
After tracking the subjects for five years, the researchers found that the risk of death, myocardial infarction or heart stroke was 43 per cent lower in the transcendental meditation group than the health education one.
The meditation group had lower systolic blood pressure, stress and negative emotions such as depression, anger and hostility after the study period.
“A selected stress reduction approach may be useful in the prevention of atherosclerosis,” said the researchers, Dr Robert Schneider, the lead author of the study, said the technique wasn’t too hard to learn. It involves the use of a chant or sound while sitting with eyes closed to still the mind.
Earlier studies have shown transcendental meditation reduces anxiety, restlessness and even seizures in epileptics. “It’s a straightforward technique for getting deep rest to the mind and body. It helps to reset the body’s own self-repair and homeostatic mechanism,” Schneider told The New York Times.
With lifestyles changing and the workspace becoming more demanding and competitive, stress has become a major part of everyday life. Last year, a study in the medical bible The Lancet said India will carry as many as 60 per cent of all heart patients by 2010.
Luckily, the mantra for a healthier life is just a few deep breaths and a couple of chants away.
