One of the most common complaints that I get in my office is the brain fog and memory problems. Some of these problems are often noticed by people after times of stress on the body or emotional stress. People forget names and faces of old friends, lose their keys, forget what they had for lunch. Many chalk this up to aging but I've learned from my practice that much of this is reversible and can be temporary. Recently, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the Alzheimer's Prevention Foundation International found that meditation done daily has a profound impact on brain function.
Surprising findings indicate that meditative techniques performed for as little as 12 minutes a day can profoundly impact the signs of early cognitive decline in people. During the study, researchers took before and after SPECT scans (Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography) of the brain. This high-tech scan measures blood flow to the brain and produces a 3-dimensional image of the brain. There was a stark contrast between the before scans and the scans taken after 8 weeks of daily meditative practice. One area of the brain that is responsible for learning and memory. This too is the area that is first affected in patients with Alzheimer's disease, a degenerative brain disease that eventually robs its victims of all memory.
The significance of this study implies that there are techniques that people can start to do early on to reverse brain degeneration. The implications of the research findings can bring hope to many people who have aging parents with Alzheimer's and are fearful of their own brain health in the future. There too, are environmental impacts on the brain's ability to function. Concerns such as mercury or lead or other heavy metals should also be addressed. Heavy metals can alter your ability to deal with stress. A primary concern in our modern world is how to moderate stress and getting out to exercise which should be lifelong lifestyle goals that can have profound impact on physical and mental health in the future.
For those of you who want to learn the simple meditative exercise used in the research study done by University of Pennsylvania researchers, go to the Alzheimer's Prevention Foundation International's website and click on research.
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It's so nice to have you do all of the research for us. It makes our decision making so much easier!! Thanks.
Posted by: MBT Shoes | July 18, 2011 at 01:58 AM