Neurophysiological, cognitive-behavioral and neurochemical effects in practitioners of transcendental meditation - A literature review
Amanda Cristina Mosini, Marcelo Saad, Camilla Casaletti Braghetta, Roberta de Medeiros, Mário Fernando Prieto Peres, Frederico Camelo Leão
Revista da Associação Médica Brasileira May 1, 2019 DOI: 10.1590/1806-9282.65.5.706 (opens in new tab) via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractTranscendental Meditation (TM) has positive and significant documentable effects on neurochemistry, neurophysiology, and cognitive-behavioral aspects. Key effects include reduced anxiety and stress, linked to lower cortisol and norepinephrine levels; increased feelings of pleasure and well-being, linked to greater synthesis and release of dopamine and serotonin; and influence on memory recall and possible consolidation. The review examined 21 papers from PubMed, concluding that TM can serve as a model for research on spiritual meditation. Further studies with innovative designs are needed to analyze neural circuitry and clinical impact.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Critical narrative review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Anxiety Meditation |
| Keywords | Transcendental meditation Cognition Neurochemical Pleasure Feeling |
| Citations | 23 |
| Key finding | Transcendental Meditation has positive and significant documentable effects on neurochemistry, neurophysiology, and cognitive-behavioral aspects, including reduced anxiety and stress, increased well-being, and influence on memory. |
Abstract
The term meditation can be used in many different ways, according to the technique to which it refers. Transcendental Meditation (MT) is one of these techniques. TM could serve as a model for research on spiritual meditation, unlike the meditation techniques based on secular knowledge. The purpose of the present study is to conduct a bibliographic review to organize scientific evidence on the effects of TM on neurophysiology, neurochemistry, and cognitive and behavioral aspects of its practitioners. To conduct this critical narrative review of the literature, we searched for scientific papers on the PubMed database of the National Center for Biotechnology Information. The keywords used in the search were Transcendental Meditation, Neuroscience of meditation e Meditation and behavior. We selected 21 papers that analyzed different aspects that could be altered through meditation practice. We concluded that TM has positive and significant documentable neurochemical, neurophysiological, and cognitive-behavioral effects. Among the main effects are the reduction of anxiety and stress (due to the reduction of cortisol and norepinephrine levels), increase of the feeling of pleasure and well-being (due to the increase of the synthesis and release of dopamine and serotonin), and influence on memory recall and possible consolidation. Further studies are needed using creative and innovative methodological designs that analyze different neural circuitry and verify the clinical impact on practitioners.