The Science of Meditation

• Initial Understanding: For decades, researchers have known that meditation offers physical and mental health benefits, such as lowering stress and blood pressure. However, only recently have neuroscientists begun to study how it structurally changes the brain.

• How Meditation Works:

  • Meditation, like other activities, works by rewiring neural circuits.
  • It prunes away less-used connections and strengthens those that are used most often.
  • Most studies focus on “mindfulness meditation,” which involves keeping attention on the present moment.

• Key Findings on Brain Changes:

  • Brain Connectivity: Expert meditators, such as Buddhist monks, show stronger connections between different brain regions, allowing for more synchronized communication.
  • Cortex: They also tend to develop a more “wrinkly” cortex, the brain’s outer layer responsible for advanced mental abilities like abstract thought and introspection.
  • Hippocampus: Several studies confirm that meditation can increase the volume and density of the hippocampus, a brain area crucial for memory.
  • Attention: Meditation counteracts the age-related decay of brain areas responsible for sustained attention.

• Cognitive Benefits:

  • Sharper Mind: Meditating for just 12 to 20 minutes a day for a few weeks can sharpen the mind.
  • Improved Memory and Attention: Meditators often score higher on tests of attention and working memory.
  • Age-Defying Effects: Lifelong meditators in their 50s and 60s can even outperform people in their 20s on visual attention tests.