Effect of Zen Meditation on serum nitric oxide activity and lipid peroxidation.
Progress in neuro-psychopharmacology & biological psychiatry February 1, 2005 Do-Hoon Kim, Yoo-Sun Moon, Hee-Sung Kim et al.
People who practiced Zen Meditation had higher serum levels of nitric oxide (measured as nitrate+nitrite) and lower levels of malondialdehyde, a marker of oxidative stress, compared with a matched control group that did not practice any stress management technique. The 20 meditators were recruited from a Meditation Center in Seoul, South Korea, and the 20 controls were matched by age and sex. The authors note that a randomized controlled trial is needed to establish a causal relationship between meditation and these biological markers.