More Research on Meditation
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| Reprinted from New Heaven New Earth |
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| MEDITATION SWITCHES ON DISEASE FIGHTING GENES Family health GuideOriginal Link
Researchers at the Harvard Medical School have found that deep relaxation seems to switch off ‘disease causing’ genes, while switching on genes that actively protect us from disorders such as high blood pressure to pain to infertility and even rheumatoid arthritis. Researchers attribute these changes to a phenomenon they call the ‘Relaxation Effect.’ The researchers compared the genetic profile of individuals who were long-term practitioners of relaxation methods such as yoga and meditation to a control group of individuals who were not relaxation practitioners. In the words of Dr Herbert Benson, who led the research group at the Harvard Medical School, “We found a range of disease fighting genes that were active in the relaxation practitioners but not active in the control group.” Interestingly, in as little as two months after the control group began meditating, their genetic profile changed to resemble those of the relaxation practitioners. In a separate study conducted by Dr Dean Ornish and co-workers, men diagnosed with low-risk prostate cancer were asked to incorporate positive lifestyle changes as a potential treatment for their disease, as they had opted not to undergo conventional treatment. The researchers conducted two prostate biopsies on each individual, one before and one three months after incorporation of changes such as following a plant-based diet, exercise, stress management techniques such as meditation, and participating in a support group. They reported that the biopsy samples collected post-lifestyle change had a different gene expression pattern with various disease-promoting genes switched off, and various protective genes turned on. It seemed that Drs Benson and Ornish had hit upon a treatment that came with huge benefits minus the usual side effects.
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