Catecholamine levels in practitioners of the transcendental meditation technique.
J R Infante, M Torres-Avisbal, P Pinel, J A Vallejo, F Peran, F Gonzalez, P Contreras, C Pacheco, A Roldan, J M Latre
Physiology & Behavior January 2001 DOI: 10.1016/s0031-9384(00)00386-3 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cross-sectional study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 35 |
| Population | 19 regular practitioners of transcendental meditation or Sidhi-TM and 16 healthy controls who had not previously used any relaxation technique |
| Interventions | Transcendental meditation Sidhi-TM technique |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Morning and evening norepinephrine and morning epinephrine levels were significantly lower in transcendental meditation practitioners than in controls, while evening epinephrine and dopamine levels did not differ. The practitioners also showed no significant morning-to-evening variation in catecholamine levels, which the authors interpret as a lack of daily hormonal rhythm and suggest that regular meditation affects the sympathetic-adrenal medulla system. |
Abstract
With the aim of evaluating the sympathetic-adrenal medulla system in subjects practicing transcendental meditation (TM), their plasma catecholamine levels were determined at two different times of day. The study group consisted of 19 subjects who regularly practice either TM or Sidhi-TM technique, with a control group made up of 16 healthy subjects who had not previously used any relaxation technique. Catecholamine plasma levels were determined by high performance liquid chromatography, at 0900 and 2000 h. Morning and evening norepinephrine (NE) levels and morning epinephrine (E) levels were significantly lower in the TM group than in the control subjects (morning NE levels, pg/ml, mean+/-S.E.: TM group 136.6+/-13.0, control 236.8+/-21.0, P=.0001; evening NE levels: TM group 119.7+/-10.8, control 175.6+/-17.4, P=.009; morning E levels, pg/ml: TM group 140.2+/-10.6, control 196.7+/-23.8, P=.019). No differences were recorded for evening E levels and dopamine (DA) levels. No significant differences were found for catecholamine levels measured at different times of day in the TM group, demonstrating a lack of daily hormonal rhythm. Anxiety levels were similar in both groups. Based on the results obtained, it can be considered that the regular practice of TM has a significant effect on the sympathetic-adrenal medulla system. A low hormonal response to daily stress caused by sympathetic tone regulation through regular TM could explain our results, as well as the physiological and other effects related to the field of health described in those who practice meditation.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construct Validity of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in Meditating and Nonmeditating Samples Experienced meditators and nonmeditating comparison groups | 2008 | Cross-sectional study | |
| Neural Correlates of Dispositional Mindfulness During Affect Labeling Adult participants | 2007 | Observational cross-sectional | n = 27 |
| Assessing mindfulness in children and adolescents: Development and validation of the Child and Adolescent Mindfulness Measure (CAMM). School-aged children and adolescents | 2011 | Cross-sectional validation study | n = 1,413 |
| Mindfulness and self-compassion as predictors of psychological wellbeing in long-term meditators and matched nonmeditators Experienced meditators and demographically matched nonmeditators | 2012 | Cross-sectional study | n = 152 |
| Mechanisms of Action in the Inverse Relationship Between Mindfulness and Psychological Distress Undergraduates | 2008 | Cross-sectional, correlational |
Citations in the library
Cited by 43
- Coupling of respiration and attention via the locus coeruleus: Effects of meditation and pranayama Psychophysiology April 22, 2018
- Change in Brainstem Gray Matter Concentration Following a Mindfulness-Based Intervention is Correlated with Improvement in Psychological Well-Being Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2014
- Prevention and Treatment of Cardiovascular Disease in Adolescents and Adults through the Transcendental Meditation® Program: A Research Review Update Current Hypertension Reviews October 1, 2012
- A Yoga and Compassion Meditation Program Reduces Stress in Familial Caregivers of Alzheimer's Disease Patients Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2013
- The neuroscientific study of spiritual practices Frontiers in Psychology March 18, 2014
and 38 more in the library
Cites 12
- Stress Reduction and Preventing Hypertension: Preliminary Support for a Psychoneuroendocrine Mechanism The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine June 1, 1995
- Treating and Preventing Alcohol, Nicotine, and Drug Abuse Through Transcendental Meditation: Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly October 26, 1994
- Short-Term Longitudinal Effects of the Transcendental Meditation Technique on EEG Power and Coherence International Journal of Neuroscience 1981
- Autonomic Stability and Transcendental Meditation Psychosomatic Medicine July 1, 1973
- ACTH and beta-endorphin in transcendental meditation. Physiology & Behavior June 1, 1998
and 7 more in the library