Advanced Meditation Alters Resting-State Brain Network Connectivity Correlating With Improved Mindfulness.
Ramana V. Vishnubhotla, Rupa Radhakrishnan, Kestas Kveraga, Rachael Deardorff, Chithra Ram, Dhanashri Pawale, Yu-Chien Wu, Janelle Renschler, Balachundhar Subramaniam, Senthilkumar Sadhasivam
Frontiers in Psychology January 1, 2021 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.745344 (opens in new tab) via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractAn intensive 8-day Samyama meditation program increased resting-state functional connectivity between the salience network and the default mode network in 13 meditators compared to 4 controls. Increased connectivity within the salience network correlated with improvements in self-reported mindfulness scores. During focused breathing, meditators showed lower intra-network connectivity in specific networks. The findings suggest that Samyama, an intensive silent meditation program, favorably alters brain network connectivity and is associated with enhanced mindfulness.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 13 |
| Population | Samyama program participants (meditators) and controls |
| Intervention | Samyama meditation program |
| Duration | 8-day residential meditation program |
| Topics | Default mode network Meditation |
| Keywords | Isha yoga Samyama Brain networks FMRI |
| Registration | NCT04366544 |
| Key finding | Meditators showed significantly increased network connectivity between the salience network and default mode network after the Samyama program. |
Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of an intensive 8-day Samyama meditation program on the brain functional connectivity using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI). Methods: Thirteen Samyama program participants (meditators) and 4 controls underwent fMRI brain scans before and after the 8-day residential meditation program. Subjects underwent fMRI with a blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) contrast at rest and during focused breathing. Changes in network connectivity before and after Samyama program were evaluated. In addition, validated psychological metrics were correlated with changes in functional connectivity. Results: Meditators showed significantly increased network connectivity between the salience network (SN) and default mode network (DMN) after the Samyama program (p < 0.01). Increased connectivity within the SN correlated with an improvement in self-reported mindfulness scores (p < 0.01). Conclusion: Samyama, an intensive silent meditation program, favorably increased the resting-state functional connectivity between the salience and default mode networks. During focused breath watching, meditators had lower intra-network connectivity in specific networks. Furthermore, increased intra-network connectivity correlated with improved self-reported mindfulness after Samyama. Clinical Trials Registration: [https://clinicaltrials.gov], Identifier: [NCT04366544]. Registered on 4/17/2020.