Activation of the orbitofrontal cortex by both meditation and exercise: A near-infrared spectroscopy study.
Shun Miyashiro, Yurika Yamada, Toshizumi Muta, Haruyuki Ishikawa, Tetsuri Abe, Masashi Hori, Kotaro Oka, Fusako Koshikawa, Etsuro Ito
PLoS One February 23, 2021 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0247685 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental within-participant study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 17 |
| Population | Young adults aged 20-24 years (11 men, 6 women) |
| Interventions | Meditation Anaerobic exercise |
| Measures | 2-back test, Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), Fast-Fourier transform (FFT) analysis |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Prefrontal cortex Humans Spectroscopy, near-infrared Exercise Brain mapping Attention Female Young adult |
| Key findings | The authors suggest that meditation and exercise activate the same brain region, the orbitofrontal cortex, which they link to emotional reactions and motivation and to mental refreshment. A significant difference in correlation coefficients between the OFC and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex appeared in the meditation-versus-exercise comparison, and signal source analysis indicated waves spreading from the right and left OFC edges toward the center. |
Abstract
In some types of meditation, such as mindfulness and Zen, breathing is the focus of attention, whereas during an excessive, short-period of anaerobic exercise, the muscles become the focus of attention. Thus, during both efforts, one's attention is focused on a certain feature of the body. Both meditation and exercise generally provide mental refreshment to humans. We hypothesized that the same brain regions are activated by both efforts in humans. To examine this hypothesis, we engaged participants in 3 tasks: meditation, exercise, and a control task. After each task, the participants underwent a 2-back test to concentrate their thoughts, while changes in their blood hemoglobin levels were simultaneously monitored using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). Seventeen participants (20-24 years of age; 11 men, 6 women) were enrolled. We applied a fast-Fourier transform (FFT) analysis to the NIRS wave data and calculated the correlation coefficients of the FFT data between (1) meditation and control, (2) exercise and control, and (3) meditation and exercise, at the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), brain areas that are generally involved in mental refreshment. A significant difference in the correlation coefficients between the OFC and DLPFC was detected in the meditation and exercise analysis, and signal source analysis confirmed that the NIRS waves spread from the right and left OFC edges (i.e., right and left temples) toward the center. Our results suggest that both meditation and exercise activate the OFC, which is involved in emotional reactions and motivation behavior, resulting in mental refreshment.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Cancer patients (clinical intervention study) | 2003 | Mixed methods: scale development, correlational, quasi-experimental, laboratory, experience-sampling, and clinical intervention study | |
| Loving-kindness meditation increases social connectedness. | 2008 | Controlled laboratory experiment | |
| Mindfulness and mind-wandering: Finding convergence through opposing constructs. | 2012 | Two studies: correlational study and experimental study | |
| Mental Training Enhances Attentional Stability: Neural and Behavioral Evidence | 2009 | Experimental study | |
| Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population. Incarcerated population | 2006 | Quasi-experimental with treatment-as-usual control condition |
Citations in the library
Cited by 5
- Mindfulness improves the mental health of infertile women: A systematic review. Journal of public health research July 1, 2023
- Reduced Age-Related Gray Matter Loss in the Orbitofrontal Cortex in Long-Term Meditators Brain Sciences December 6, 2023
- Alpha-Theta Correlations during the Different States of the Brain for a Designed Cognitive Task International Journal of Electrical and Electronics Research June 30, 2023
- Effects of an online mindfulness-based intervention on brain haemodynamics: a pilot randomized controlled trial using functional near-infrared spectroscopy. Cerebral Cortex August 1, 2024
- Neural correlates of breath work, mental imagery of yoga postures, and meditation in yoga practitioners: a functional near-infrared spectroscopy study Frontiers in Neuroscience March 21, 2024
Cites 16
- Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Psychosomatic Medicine July 1, 2003
- Mindfulness starts with the body: somatosensory attention and top-down modulation of cortical alpha rhythms in mindfulness meditation Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2013
- Effects of oxytocin administration on spirituality and emotional responses to meditation Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience June 17, 2016
- A novel role of oxytocin: Oxytocin-induced well-being in humans Biophysics and Physicobiology 2019
- Oxytocin Release during the Meditation of Altruism and Appreciation (Arigato-Zen) International Journal of Neurology Research 2018
and 11 more in the library