By Julia Sarah Smith, General Member
Mindfulness and meditation are practices that have become increasingly popular in recent years, due to the widespread notion that these techniques help to contribute to good mental health and well-being while also helping to decrease the risk for cardiovascular disease. Yet, recent studies are highlighting that the heart is not the only organ that benefits greatly from mindfulness techniques, the brain, the control center of the human body is posed with an incredible advantage in memory, information synthesis and meta-cognitive awareness skills, to name a few of the areas positively impacted by mindfulness.
For many people, the thought of mindfulness practices can be daunting, yet by simply practicing at least three times a week for 10-20 minutes, one can experience the aforementioned benefits. Research has suggested that mindfulness meditation can measurably alter brain function and structure, even if done in shorter sessions, three times a week. Researchers from Harvard University have demonstrated alterations in the brains of meditators after eight weeks of meditating for an average of 30 minutes each day. Specifically, their findings suggested an increase in the concentration of grey matter in the areas of the brain identified with memory, empathy, and sense of self. Grey matter is a type of tissue in the brain and spinal cord that is imperative to create new neural pathways and experience emotional development, this is why grey matter is most prevalent in the brains of those under 18 years old. Grey matter naturally decreases with age, but conditions such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson and Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBIs) can expedite this process.
Alongside increasing grey matter, mindfulness practices also change the amygdala, which is an almond-shaped region within each hemisphere of the brain that evaluates our environmental circumstances and determines whether something is a threat or not. The amygdala is also involved with experiencing negative emotions, such as anxiety, fear, sadness, and aggression. The amygdala is responsible for firing the signals that activate the flight or fight system, and it helps with emotional processing and emotional intelligence, in turn contributing to a higher Emotional Quotient (EQ), and intelligence quotient (IQ), the ability to reason and solve problems.
How to implement mindfulness into your daily life:
● Provide intention to the task you are doing; don't think about what will happen next, simply cherish the moment and give all your energy to what you are presently doing.
● Take “brain breaks”, when you start to feel like you can't focus anymore, get up and go for a short 10-minute walk, to get your blood flowing and re-center your thoughts.
● Take deep breaths more often. Make an effort to notice your breath and control your breath pattern to help ground yourself.
For more information click on the links below:
Harvard: Can Mindfulness Change The Brain?
https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/can-mindfulness-change-your-brain-202105132455
How Mindfulness Affects the Brain
https://www.madeofmillions.com/articles/how-mindfulness-affects-the-brain
Mindfulness and the Brain: What Does Neuro Science Say?
https://positivepsychology.com/mindfulness-brain-research-neuroscience/