Does Meditation Help Slow Down Our Brain's Aging Process?

Human beings are living longer, but as we age, our brains deteriorate.  Scientists have been trying to understand this process and determine what can be done to reduce mental illness and neurodegenerative diseases due to aging.  Scientists think that meditation may play an important role in brain health.

In a recent study comparing 50 long term meditators and 50 non-meditators, Dr. Luders and her colleagues found that the grey matter, ---the brain tissue that contains neurons---shrank at a slower rate for the meditators than for the non-meditators.  Meditators practiced a variety of types of meditation from weekly to daily and from 10 to 240 minutes at a time in duration.

The chart below shows the results, with the steeper green line depicting non-meditators’ brains and the flatter yellow line depicting the meditators’ brains.

The results of this study are significant, especially given the body of work highlighting changes in the brain due to meditation (see blog post from last year--This Is Your Brain On Meditation).  However, the results of this study are not conclusive.   The researchers were unable to completely factor out variables that may have contributed to the aging rates such as lifestyle and genetics.  More research clearly needs to be conducted to find a clear causal link.

Hot off the Press--Summary of 47 Studies Shows That Even With Regular Exercise, Prolonged Sitting Can Result in Higher Chance of Disease andEarly Death

Researchers from Toronto, Canada conducted a meta-analysis (here's a link to the study) where they analyzed the results of 47 studies that fit their criteria to see whether when controlling for purposeful exercise, sedentary behavior results in higher rates of disease.  They found that sedentary behavior resulted in higher rates of all-cause mortality, cardiovascular disease mortality, cardiovascular disease incidence, cancer mortality, cancer incidence, and type 2 diabetes incidence,  They defined sedentary behavior to be sitting while at the computer, while watching television, in the car, etc.

A Brisk 20 Minute Daily Dog Walk Can Significantly Prolong Your Life

  

Exercising With Your Dog is Great For Your Health and the Well-being of Your Dog

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Dog walking is not only critical for your dog's health but it can also lengthen your life.   In fact, researchers who conducted a large scale European study published on January 14th of this year found that even what they called moderate inactivity--which could be a 20 minute brisk walk with your dog-- could decrease your chances of death by up to 16-30% depending on other factors.

This is Your Brain on Meditation: Meditating Your Way Into Health andWell-Being

Did you know that you actually change the structure of your brain when you meditate regularly? This results in better physical and emotional health and well-being.

According to recent research, when you meditate, you can grow gray matter in some parts of the brain and shrink it in others.  This is known as Neuroplasticity, the idea that your brain changes due to experiences, thoughts and emotions.   Growth in certain areas leads to increased capacity for compassion and increased self-awareness, while shrinking in others reduces stress and impulsive decision-making. Meditation can re-route neural pathways from those that lead to obsessing and worrying to those that allow you to focus on what is going on in the present moment. In fact, with time, you can change your default mode of thinking. Some athletes use meditation techniques to increase focus and “get in the zone.” It’s important to note that the research indicates that you are best off with a regular mindfulness meditation routine.