Sleep-Based Brain Age Is Reduced in Advanced Inner Engineering Meditators.
Jayme C Banks, Sepideh Hariri, Kestutis Kveraga, An Ouyang, Kaileigh Gallagher, Syed A Quadri, Ryan A Tesh, Preeti Upadhyay Reed, Robert J Thomas, M Brandon Westover, Haoqi Sun, Balachundhar Subramaniam
Mindfulness January 1, 2025 DOI: 10.1007/s12671-025-02583-y (opens in new tab) via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractLong-term meditators had a brain age index 5.9 years younger than their chronological age, compared to a difference of -0.24 years in healthy controls and 10.5 years older in people with dementia. The study used overnight electroencephalography to estimate brain age from sleep brain activity in 34 meditators attending a retreat, alongside several comparison groups. The results suggest that advanced meditation may be associated with enhanced brain health and slower brain aging.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Prospective cohort study Preregistered Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 34 |
| Population | Meditators attending the Samyama Sadhana retreat |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Brain health Electroencephalography Sleep Wearable device |
| Key finding | Long-term meditators exhibit a brain age index 5.9 years younger than their chronological age, indicating lower brain age relative to matched control groups. |
Abstract
We aimed to quantify the effects of advanced meditation on brain electrical activity during sleep. This investigation addresses the need for objective neurophysiological measures of meditation's potential impact on brain aging and health. This study was a single-site, prospective cohort study (conducted August 25, 2021, through September 26, 2021) of meditators attending the "Samyama Sadhana" retreat (September 1-5, 2021). Two healthy comparison groups and four comparison groups with varying degrees of age-related brain pathology are included. Using overnight electroencephalography, physiological measures of brain age were derived and subtracted from chronological age, measuring the deviation of apparent brain age from chronological age. Thirty-four participants completed the study (average age = 38 years; 36% female). Estimated brain age index after adjustment by matching: meditators (n = 34), - 5.9 years (SE = 0.94 years, t-test p < 0.001); Dreem healthy controls (n = 1077), - 0.24 (0.61, p < 0.001); Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) healthy controls (n = 112), 0.55 (0.92, p < 0.05); MGH "no dementia" (n = 7618), 2.4 (0.094, reference cohort for t-test); MGH "symptomatic" (n = 697), 2.0 (0.33, p > 0.05); MGH "mild cognitive impairment (MCI)"(n = 205), 8.8 (2.8, p < 0.05); and MGH "dementia" (n = 153), 10.5 (2.8, p < 0.01). Long-term meditators exhibit lower brain age relative to matched control groups. This study suggests that advanced meditation enhances brain health. This study was not preregistered. The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12671-025-02583-y.