Posted on 01/10/2022 2:38:40 PM PST by nickcarraway
Extreme meditation retreat, where participants practice for 10 hours daily, leads to significant changes to 220 genes linked to immune system.
Meditating for a few minutes each day may be the first step in helping the body fight off cancer and viruses like COVID-19, a new study reveals. A team from the University of Florida found that meditation and yoga programs, or Inner Engineering practices, dramatically boost the body’s immune system.
Their worked focused on patients practicing these techniques intensely — meditating for over 10 hours a day — for over a week. Meditation retreats have become increasingly popular over the past few years as more people look to take a break from their busy schedule and spend time alone with their thoughts.
While the positive effects of meditation are well documented, far less is known about how it affects biological processes at the molecular level. Now, scientists found spending a week in silent meditation appears to hold genetic benefits that help combat life-threatening diseases.
Researchers add these participants also followed a vegan diet and a regular sleep schedule during the retreat, but those healthy practices did not have the same effect as meditation. Study author Dr. Vijayendran Chandran began practicing meditation for 21 minutes a day after his wife suggested he give it a chance.
“I was just trying to be open-minded. I tried it and it worked really well. My clarity and focus were improved. I just felt great,” Chandran recalls in a university release.
10 hours of meditation activates disease-fighting genes The study involved 106 people embarking on a meditation retreat at the Isha Institute of Inner-Sciences in Tennessee, in 2018. During the tightly controlled retreat, participants remained in silence for eight days, meditated over 10 hours a day, ate only vegan meals, and maintained a healthy amount of sleep each night.
Researchers collected blood samples five to eight weeks beforehand, immediately before and after the retreat, and three months later. They discovered genetic differences between samples taken before and after the intense meditation retreat. Specifically, 220 genes linked to the body’s immune system were more active after participants attended the Inner Engineering meditation retreat. This included 68 genes that have a connection to interferon signaling, which helps the body combat viruses and cancer.
“What we found was that multiple genes related to the immune system were activated — dramatically — when you do Inner Engineering practices,” Dr. Chandran reports. “This is the first time anyone has shown that meditation can boost your interferon signaling. It demonstrates a way to voluntarily influence the immune system without pharmaceuticals.”
Could meditation help boost COVID defenses? Recent studies have also found interferon signaling imbalances in patients with severe cases of COVID-19 and multiple sclerosis (MS). The researchers compared participants’ interferon gene activity with COVID patients and found stark differences. Mediation activated 97 percent of the virus fighting interferon genes, compared to 76 percent in mild COVID patients and 31 percent in severe cases.
Likewise, meditation proved to be more beneficial than traditional interferon treatments for MS patients.
Dr. Chandran notes that, taken together, the findings support using meditation to potentially improve multiple health conditions. Study authors add they need conduct more studies on this and hope to determine if less intense meditation regimens over a longer term might produce similar beneficial immune system effects.
The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
South West News Service writer Tom Campbell contributed to this report.
Ping
meditating for over 10 hours a day
************
Having that much time in a day to meditate must mean they don’t have stressful jobs and probably don’t have to worry about earning a living.
“Meditating Each Day Activates Genes That Fight Off Cancer and Viruses Like COVID-19”
so does daydreaming at least partially activate SOME of the meditation genes?
My kids won’t let me sit on a chair for more than a few minutes at a time.
Good article, thanks.
I’ve found meditation 🧘♂️ very helpful in making me more aware with less anxiety. It helps me think more clearly.
I learned how to do transcendental meditation in the mid-70’s. My grades improved dramatically. I should mention, however, that I quit smoking cannabis. That obviously helped me think more clearly. I took a class to learn TM.
I soured on TM after I found out that Maharishi Mahash Yogi was starting to sell siddhi classes where you would learn to levitate and walk through walls. My source for this info was Time magazine.
In the mid-00’s I learned how to do do mindful meditation from books. I was going through a hard time then, and practicing meditation really helped get me through it. And, it made me a better employee.
I still meditate 1-3 times a day, but only for a few minutes at a time. Even this is helping me. I believe Paul McCartney still practices TM, which I found interesting.
During the tightly controlled retreat, participants remained in silence for eight days, meditated over 10 hours a day, ate only vegan meals, and maintained a healthy amount of sleep each night.
—
I have no doubt a positive mental attitude contributes to one’s health, but eating healthy (not necessarily vegan, but no junk food) and getting a good night’s rest also helps with one’s overall health.
“The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. “
Not yet peer reviewed or replicated.
I believe it, especially if you claim God’s healing power as Praying Medic recommends.
No kidding.
The study involved 106 people embarking on a meditation retreat at the Isha Institute of Inner-Sciences in Tennessee, in 2018. During the tightly controlled retreat, participants remained in silence for eight days, meditated over 10 hours a day, ate only vegan meals, and maintained a healthy amount of sleep each night."
*
How about 10 hours nightly (in bed)
I started with biofeedback in the 80’s which was so beneficial that I...stopped doing it! I also did TM for a couple of years but found 20 minutes 2x daily was hard to fit into life, which is absurd, but there you have it.
I work in a hospital- it’s been pretty intense and I started doing biofeedback again last week. I can feel the difference already. Whew.
“Be still, and know that I am God...”
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.