Meditation (alternative medicine)
From open-encyclopedia.com - the free encyclopedia.
- This article should be merged with meditation
Meditation as a form of alternative medicine brings about mental calmness and physical relaxation by suspending the stream of thoughts that normally occupy the mind. Generally performed once or twice a day for approximately 20 minutes at a time, meditation is used to reduce stress, alter hormone levels, and elevate one's mood.
| Meditation | |
| This article is part of the branches of CAM series. | |
| CAM Classifications | |
| NCCAM: | Mind-Body Intervention |
| Modality: | Usually Self-care, but sometimes Group. |
| Culture: | Western/Eastern |
This type of meditation is a special form of meditation in which all religious or mystical aspects have been removed. It is purely a type of mental exercise designed to improve overall health by reducing the global effects of chronic stress.
A survey released in May 2004 by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine focused on who used complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), what was used, and why it was used in the United States by adults age 18 years and over during 2002. According to this recent survey, meditation was the third most commonly used CAM therapy (7.6%) in the United States during 2002 (See CDC Advance Data Report #343 below, table 1 on page 8) when all use of prayer was excluded. Breathing meditation, or deep breathing exercises was the second mostly use form of CAM therapy (11.6%). Consistent with previous studies, this study found that the majority of individuals (i.e., 54.9%) used CAM in conjunction with conventional medicine ( page 6).
Dr. James Austin, a neurophysiologist at the University of Colorado, reported that Zazen or Zen meditation rewires the circuitry of the brain in his landmark book Zen and the Brain. This has been confirmed using sophisticated imaging techniques which examine the electrical activity of the brain.
Dr. Herbert Benson of the Mind-Body Medical Institute, which is affiliated with Harvard and several Boston hospitals, reports that meditation induces a host of biochemical and physical changes in the body collectively referred to as the "relaxation response." The relaxation response includes changes in metabolism, heart rate, respiration, blood pressure, and brain chemistry.
The Urantia Book indicates that relaxation is similarly a result of dynamic-mind meditation, thus its health benefits should be the same. However this has not been confirmed by scientific investigations.
See also
- Meditation
- Breathing Meditation
- Concentration meditation
- Mindfulness meditation
- Transcendental meditation
External links
- 40 meditation practices in four positions
- Free meditation classes online - Meditation Society of Australia
- New York Times Article on the increasing use of meditation in hospitals
- Wildmind on-line meditation teaching and resource
- Instructions for concentration and mindfulness
- Mind Power
- Energy Dynamics
References
- Matthew Flickstein and Bhante Henepola Gunaratana. (1998) Journey to the Center: A Meditation Workbook. Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0-86-171141-6
- Barnes P, Powell-Griner E, McFann K, Nahin R. CDC Advance Data Report #343. Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use Among Adults: United States, 2002. May 27, 2004. Online
- On page 20 this report states: "All material appearing in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission; citation as to source,however, is appreciated."
