Effects of Different Types of Meditation on Diastolic Blood Pressure
A. Panbilnathan
Epidemiology International March 31, 2022 DOI: 10.24321/2455.7048.202203 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 60 |
| Population | Male college students aged 18-24 years in colleges in and around Tiruvannamalai District, Tamil Nadu, India |
| Interventions | Transcendental meditation Heart rhythm meditation |
| Duration | Twelve weeks of training |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Twelve weeks of transcendental meditation or heart rhythm meditation produced significant changes in diastolic blood pressure in male college students, with significant differences among the two meditation groups and a control group and between the two meditation types. The authors do not report which meditation was more effective or give blood pressure values. |
Abstract
Background: The study was intended to find out the effects of different types of meditations namely transcendental meditation and heart rhythm meditation on diastolic blood pressure among male college students. Methodology: Sixty male students studying bachelor’s degree in colleges in and around Tiruvannamalai District, Tamil Nadu, India were randomly selected as subjects to achieve the purpose of this study. The age of subjects ranged between 18 and 24 years, height and weight ranged from 158 to 171 cm and 56 to 69 kg respectively. The selected sixty subjects were divided into three groups of twenty subjects each at random. Group I (transcendental meditation), Group II (heart rhythm meditation) and Group III (control). Prior to and immediately after the training programme, all the subjects of three groups were tested on the selected dependent variable. ANCOVA (analysis of covariance) was used to analyse the collected data to find out the effects of different types of meditations on diastolic blood pressure. Whenever the obtained ‘F’ ratio for the adjusted post-test mean was found to be significant, Scheffe’s test was applied as post hoc test to determine the paired mean differences, if any. The 0.05 level of confidence was fixed to test the level of significance which was considered as an appropriate. Results &
Conclusion: There was a significant differences exist among transcendental meditation group, heart rhythm meditation group and control group on selected physiological variable namely diastolic blood pressure. There was significant change on selected physiological variable namely diastolic blood pressure due to transcendental meditation and heart rhythm meditation after twelve weeks of training period. Significant differences were found between transcendental meditation group and heart rhythm meditation group on selected physiological variable namely diastolic blood pressure after twelve weeks of training period.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation Healthy employees in a work environment | 2003 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 41 |
| Prevention of relapse/recurrence in major depression by mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2000 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 145 |
| Open hearts build lives: Positive emotions, induced through loving-kindness meditation, build consequential personal resources. Working adults | 2008 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 139 |
| Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Undergraduate Chinese students | 2007 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 40 |
| Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Depression: Replication and Exploration of Differential Relapse Prevention Effects. Recovered recurrently depressed patients | 2004 | Randomized controlled trial | n = 73 |