"Although we've known that meditation can reduce
anxiety, we hadn't identified the specific brain mechanisms involved in
relieving anxiety in healthy individuals,"
For the study, 15 healthy volunteers [TOOO SMALL!!!!! ] with normal levels of everyday anxiety were recruited for the study. These individuals had no previous meditation experience or anxiety disorders. All subjects participated in four 20-minute classes to learn a technique known as mindfulness meditation. In this form of meditation, people are taught to focus on breath and body sensations and to non-judgmentally evaluate distracting thoughts and emotions… Researchers found that meditation reduced anxiety ratings by as much as 39 percent.
For the study, 15 healthy volunteers [TOOO SMALL!!!!! ] with normal levels of everyday anxiety were recruited for the study. These individuals had no previous meditation experience or anxiety disorders. All subjects participated in four 20-minute classes to learn a technique known as mindfulness meditation. In this form of meditation, people are taught to focus on breath and body sensations and to non-judgmentally evaluate distracting thoughts and emotions… Researchers found that meditation reduced anxiety ratings by as much as 39 percent.
The study revealed that meditation-related anxiety relief
is associated with activation of the anterior cingulate cortex and ventromedial
prefrontal cortex, areas of the brain involved with executive-level function.
During meditation, there was more activity in the ventromedial prefrontal
cortex, the area of the brain that controls worrying. In addition, when
activity increased in the anterior cingulate cortex -- the area that governs
thinking and emotion -- anxiety decreased.”
Mindfulness meditation can increase wellbeing and reduce
stress in school children
Mindfulness = a mental training that develops sustained attention that can change the ways people think, act and feel
522 pupils, aged between 12 and
16 years, from 12 secondary schools [took] part in the study. 256 pupils at six
of the schools were taught the Mindfulness in Schools Project's curriculum, a
nine week introduction to mindfulness designed for the classroom." The
other 266 pupils at the other six schools did not receive the mindfulness
lessons, and acted as a control group.
Our mindfulness curriculum aims
to engage even the most cynical of adolescent audience with the basics of
mindfulness. We use striking visuals, film clips and activities to bring it to
life without losing the expertise and integrity of classic mindfulness teaching."
All the pupils were
followed up after a three month period. The follow-up was timed to coincide
with the summer exam period -- which is a potential time of high stress for
young people. The researchers found that those children who participated in the
mindfulness programme reported fewer depressive symptoms, lower stress and
greater wellbeing than the young people in the control group. Encouragingly,
around 80% of the young people said they continued using practices taught in
MiSP's mindfulness curriculum after completing the nine week programme.
Teachers and schools also rated the curriculum as worthwhile and very enjoyable
to learn and teach.
We found that those
young people who took part in the programme had fewer low-grade depressive
symptoms, both immediately after completing the programme and at three-month
follow-up. This is potentially a very important finding, given that low-grade
depressive symptoms can impair a child's performance at school, and are also a
risk factor for developing adolescent and adult depression."
"These
findings are likely to be of great interest to our overstretched schools who
are trying to find simple, cost effective and engaging ways to promote the
resilience of their students -- and of their staff too -- at times when
adolescence is becoming increasingly challenging, staff under considerable
stress, and schools under a good deal of pressure to deliver on all fronts...The
next step is to carry out a randomised controlled trial into the MiSP
curriculum, involving more schools, pupils and longer follow-ups."
