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August 17, 2010 | 11 hrs of meditation induces structural changes in brain, claims study |
Washington: Just 11 hours of learning a meditation technique provokes positive structural changes in brain connectivity by boosting efficiency in a part that helps a person regulate behaviour in accordance with the goals, according to a study. The technique, called integrative body-mind training (IBMT), has been the focus of intense scrutiny by a team of Chinese researchers led by Yi-Yuan
Tang of Dalian University of Technology in collaboration with University of Oregon psychologist Michael I. Posner. IBMT was adapted from traditional Chinese medicine
in the 1990s in China, where it is practiced by thousands of people. It is now
being taught to undergraduates involved in research on the method at the University
of Oregon. The new research involved 45 UO students (28 males and 17 females);
22 subjects received IBMT while 23 participants were in a control group that received
the same amount of relaxation training. The experiments involved the use of brain-imaging
equipment in the UO's Robert and Beverly Lewis Center for Neuroimaging. A type
of magnetic resonance called diffusion tensor imaging allowed researchers to examine
fibers connecting brain regions before and after training. The changes were strongest
in connections involving the anterior cingulate, a brain area related to the ability
to regulate emotions and behaviour. The changes were observed only in those who
practiced meditation and not in the control group. The changes in connectivity
began after six hours of training and became clear by 11 hours of practice. The
researchers said it is possible the changes resulted from a reorganization of
white-matter tracts or by an increase of myelin that surrounds the connections.
"The importance of our findings relates to the ability to make structural changes
in a brain network related to self regulation. The pathway that has the largest
change due to IBMT is one that previously was shown to relate to individual differences
in the person's ability to regulate conflict," said Posner. The researchers currently
are extending their evaluation to determine if longer exposure to IBMT will produce
positive changes in the size of the anterior cingulate. "We believe this new finding
is of interest to the fields of education, health and neuroscience, as well as
for the general public," said Tang. In their conclusion, the researchers wrote
that the new findings suggest a use of IBMT as a vehicle for understanding how
training influences brain plasticity. The study has been published in the Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences. |
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