Physiological Effects on the Brain from Mindfulness Meditation

Mindfulness meditation is a phrase that has been used in many different languages and said in many different ways that is best described as “paying attention in a particular way; on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally” through Kabat-Zinn’s interpretation. It is deeply rooted in ancient Buddhist culture while still having a major impact in that day and age, spiritually, socially, and scientifically. Such a mental state is known to be achieved in many ways, which includes but is not limited to yoga and sitting meditation. What is primarily required is for the subject consciously to distance oneself from his/her surrounding environment and gradually proceed past the barriers of distraction into one’s true self. It brings upon a controlled mental state that is highly suited to promote self and worldly awareness.

In the recent years, scientists have been increasingly interesting in the physiological and psychological implications of mindfulness meditation that has spurred the onset of various studies. Interestingly, not only might mindfulness meditation practices create psychological changes in the brain, but also could potentially cause physiological changes to brain structure. Two particular studies required students to practice meditation for a month of meditation—about 11 hours of actual meditation—each in order to study the effects on the brain with “diffusion tensor imaging, a kind of MRI imaging technique.” They found that “the study participants had an increase in the number of signaling connections in the brain, called axonal density,” which is a physical and distinguishable altering from the original scans taken prior to the study. This is a highly interesting and important finding because it helps link the already known psychological changes to the physically altered “memory, empathy, stress and sense of self regions of the brain.”

While studies like these have evidence, there is still very much to be learned about the mysterious mechanisms associated with mindfulness meditation and the brain. Even though the psychological phenomena resulting from these practices are commonly known to exist, the apparatus through which it occurs—the brain—is still an enigma; the brain’s mechanisms are still too varied and complicated for scientists to begin to decipher in this “modern” era. 

Chan, Amanda L. "Mindfulness Meditation Linked With Positive Brain Changes, Study Suggests." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 15 June 2012. Web. 29 Apr. 2014.