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Not only does meditation improve our behavior, making us more humane, and also enhance our creativity, but it also can make us more intelligent. As evidenced by two studies: Personality and Individual Differences and Perceptual and Motor Skills, cited in Meditation 24-7 in their article “What are the benefits of meditation?”   The studies involved university students who regularly practiced meditation who saw significant increase in intelligence over a two-year period, compared to control subjects. Imagine a world filled with more intelligent people! 

Boost your IQ 

Siegfried Othmer, former president of the neurofeedback division of the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, conducted neurofeedback research on this topic. The results showed that participants who meditated showed an average gain in IQ of 23 percent. One of the reasons is that deep meditation slows down brain activity. With slower brainwaves, the brain increases its ability to reorganize itself.  https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/elearning/meditation-boost-your-memory-and-iq/ 

Siegfried Othmer, former president of the neurofeedback division of the Association for Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback, conducted neurofeedback research on participants using brainwave training (a specific form of meditation). Those who meditated showed an average gain in IQ of 23 percent. -- Atlas Test Prep.com   http://atlastestprep.com/?p=6391 

Personality and Individual Differences, 12:1105-1116, 1991, cited on Meditation 24-7 https://www.meditation24-7.com/wildserenity/meditation/page39/page39.html 

* This, and the below science, are provided courtesy of "NEW 2nd EDITION; The Gospel of Science: Mind Blowing New Science on Ancient Truths to Heal Our Stress, Lives, and Planet" [A secular book of science, the "Gospel" in the title is from Greek origin, meaning "good news," ie "the good news of science."]

A Meditation 24/7 article “What are the benefits of meditation?”  cited research showing meditation can enable us to become more creative thinkers as well, as shown by a study published in the Journal of Creative Behavior, and Dissertation Abstracts International. Using the Torrance Test of Creative Thinking to measure figural and verbal creativity in a control group and in a group that subsequently learned meditation, the researchers found that 5 months later when tested the meditation group scored significantly higher on figural originality and flexibility and on verbal fluency. Imagine, in a world exploding in possibility with technological advances happening at blinding speed—what a new generation of youth with increased creativity, flexibility, and enhanced communication skills could create—is very literally beyond anything we could imagine.

What Are the Benefits of Meditation? -- Interesting Trends in Research; Journal of Creative Behavior, 13: 169-190, 1979, and Dissertations Abstracts International, 38: 3372-3373, 1978 https://www.meditation24-7.com/wildserenity/meditation/page39/page39.html 

Sue McGreevey reported on in a Harvard Gazette article from January 2011 titled “Eight Weeks to a Better Brain,” research at Massachusetts General Hospital finding the density of gray matter increased in regions associated with learning and memory (hippocampus), compassion, and self-awareness, and shrinkage in the amygdala part of the brain governing fear and stress, resulting in lower stress levels. A study cited in a 2015 Forbes article revealed that meditation ‘shrank the fear, stress, anxiety part of the brain.  

McGreevey, Sue; Eight Weeks to a Better Brain, Harvard Gazette, January 21, 2011 http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2011/01/eight-weeks-to-a-better-brain/ 

7 Ways Meditation Can Actually Change The Brain, by Alice G. Walton, Senior Contributor Healthcare, Forbes, Feb 9, 2015, https://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2015/02/09/7-ways-meditation-can-actually-change-the-brain/?sh=56a52bfd1465

Meditation increases the size of gray matter. In a study published December 2010, on ScienceDirect.com, titled “Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density” by Britta K.Hölzel, James Carmody, Mark Vangel, Christina Congleton, Sita M.Yerramsetti, Tim Gard, and Sara W. Lazara,  density in gray matter increased in the mindfulness group over the control group, in various areas of the brain including those associated with learning, memory and emotional regulation.

Hölzel ,Britta K.; Carmody, James; Vangel, Mark, Congleton, Christina; Yerramsetti, Sita M.; Gard, Tim; and Lazara, Sara W.; Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density, Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, Vol. 191, Issue 1, 30 January, 2011, pages 36 to 43, published on ScienceDirect, 10 November, 2010 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S092549271000288X?via%3Dihub 

A Harvard Health Publishing’s article “Mindfulness meditation practice changes the brain,” cited research showing meditators’ computing or processing neurons had higher concentrations, and they were able to regulate their emotions, taking in information while being less judgmental. Their brains had increased concentration of neurons associated with introspection, empathy, and the ability to acknowledge the viewpoints of others—in other words becoming more open-minded. Imagine for a moment, meditation being integrated into public education worldwide, and in 12 years having a new generation of more “open-minded” people.

In the journals: Mindfulness meditation practice changes the brain, Harvard Health Publications, http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Womens_Health_Watch/2011/April/mindfulness-meditation-practice-changes-the-brain

Some schools worldwide are beginning to teach mindfulness meditation to students. A March 15, 2013 article in ScienceDaily, “Mindfulness at school reduces (likelihood of) depression-related symptoms in adolescents”  by KU Leuven, found benefits students got from meditation were still enjoyed even 6 months after the study.

Leuven, KU; Mindfulness at school reduces (likelihood of) depression-related symptoms in adolescents; ScienceDaily; March 15, 2013  https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130315095916.htm 

In February 2014 an article by Timothy Eden, was published by HuffingtonPost, titled “Meditation: Are Scientists Missing the Point?”   This article cited a Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) report on a meta-analysis showing that meditation is as effective as medication in treating people dealing with depression and anxiety disorders. It went on to cite evidence that meditation offers multitudinous physical health benefits, pointing out that meditation is recommended by the American Heart Association for preventing stroke and heart disease. 

Eden, Timothy (contributor), Meditation: Are Scientists Missing the Point?, HuffingtonPost, February 28, 2014 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/timothy-eden/meditation-are-scientists_b_4874377.html 

IMPROVE PHYSICAL, MENTAL HEALTH, AND QUALITY OF LIFE IN ADOLESCENTS ...

Study protocol for You.Mind!: boosting first-line mental health care for YOUngsters suffering from chronic conditions with mindfulness: a randomised staggered within-subjects design 

-- BMJ; To cite: Kock M, Van Hoecke E, Raes F, et al.  Study protocol for You.Mind!: boosting first-line mental health care for YOUngsters suffering from chronic conditions with mindfulness: a randomised staggered within-subjects design. BMJ Open 2021;11:e042648. doi:10.1136/ ABSTRACT 

Introduction Adolescents with chronic conditions often experience high levels of stress, anxiety and depression, and reduced quality of life. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been found to improve emotional distress in clinical and non-clinical populations and are a promising technique to support adolescents with chronic conditions in managing their symptoms and ultimately enhance their quality of life.

Mindfulness-based interventions for adolescent health 

aDivision of Adolescent/Young Adult Medicine and bAdolescent Substance Use and Addiction Program, Division of Developmental Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA  Correspondence to Jessica Lin, MD, Adolescent Medicine Fellow, Division of Adolescent/Young Adult Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. Tel: +1 617 355 7181; e-mail: Jessica.Lin2@childrens.harvard.edu 

Curr Opin Pediatr 2019, 31:469–475 DOI:10.1097/MOP.0000000000000760 

Summary 

Although research in adolescents remains limited, mindfulness holds promise in the treatment of a range of health conditions in adolescents. 

CONCLUSION 

The application of mindfulness has been growing rapidly in the context of modern medical practice. Along with findings from studies in adults, the early research on the effectiveness of mindfulness in adolescents suggests that mindfulness can provide health benefits for a variety of adolescent health concerns. Structured 8-week mindfulness programs adapted for adolescents using principles from adultMBIs likeMBSR orMBCT are feasible and can improve physical health, mental health, and quality of life [52]. MBIs delivered through telehealth or Internet/app-based platforms represent promising alternatives to in-person MBIs. 

Harvard Health Publishing’s Caroline Schatz article mentioned above, also reported meditation’s ability to bolster immune function and to end binge eating in practitioners. Other studies found mindful meditation reduced common colds by half, and Qigong (chi kung), a Chinese form of meditation, profoundly reduced respiratory infections in athletes. An October 2014 article published on power20method.com,  “Meditation & Exercise May Reduce Colds & Flu,” cited a University of Wisconsin-Madison Medical School’s Department of Family Medicine study involving a meditating group, an exercising group, and a control group. They found that the group practicing exercise did miss half as many days from work as the non-exercising control group—however, the group practicing meditation only missed half as many days as the exercising group did. 

Meditation & Exercise May Reduce Colds & Flu, Power 20, October 7, 2014 https://power20method.com/meditation-exercise-may-reduce-colds-flu/ 

"60 to 90% of health issues are best prevented or treated by Mind Body (Meditation, Yoga, Tai Chi, Qigong)."

-- Dr. Herbert Benson, Harvard. Author of "The Relaxation Response"

A 20 year Kaiser Permenente study found that 70% of illnesses sending people to their doctors were caused by stress. Dr. David Sobel at Kaiser reported that number could go as high as 85%.

Our nation (USA) spends nearly $3.5 trillion each year, according to a February 2018 Reuters’ article by Yasmeen Abutaleb “U.S. Healthcare Spending to Climb 5.3% in 2018” .  The Reuter’s article went on to explain that by 2026 current trends show health spending will reach $5.7 trillion, if things do not change—and they can so easily change by simply educating every school child in mind-body meditation.

Abutaleb, Yasmeen; U.S. Healthcare Spending to Climb 5.3% in 2018, agency; Reuters Health News, Feb. 14, 2018 https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-healthcare-spending-idUSKCN1FY2ZD 

A February 2003 article in the New York Times by Daniel Goleman titled “Finding Happiness: Cajole Your Brain to Lean to the Left,”   cited research by Dr. Richard Davidson, the director of the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin, using functional M.R.I. and advanced EEG analysis, which found that the most active brain circuitry during emotional distress—depression, anger, and anxiety—were the amygdala and right frontal cortex areas. 

Stressed-out workers who served as test subjects were taught how to practice mindfulness meditation. Researchers saw their brain activity shift more to the left frontal cortex, which Dr. Davidson believed inhibited the anxiety messages from the amygdala that power unsettling emotions. These workers experienced boosted immune system function in the form of higher levels of flu antibodies in their blood following a flu shot, as compared to workers who did not meditate. Also, Dr. Davidson cited other research showing that those who learned meditation, who did contract the flu, experienced less severe flu symptoms.  Europe PMC published an abstract from Psychosomatic Medicine, 49: 493-507, reporting a study on insurance statistics for over 2,000 people practicing meditation over a 5-year period, which showed these meditators had less than half the hospitalization than did the other groups with comparable age, gender, profession, and insurance terms. Meditators had less incidents of illness in 17 major categories, including 87% less hospitalization for heart disease and 55% less for cancer. In a Meditation 24/7 article (see footnote link), are a list of even more benefits.  

Goleman, Daniel; BEHAVIOR; Finding Happiness: Cajole Your Brain to Lean to the Left; The New York Times, February 4, 2003 http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/04/health/behavior-finding-happiness-cajole-your-brain-to-lean-to-the-left.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm 

Psychosomatic Medicine, 49: 493-507

Meditation 24-7, What are the benefits of meditation? http://www.meditation24-7.com/wildserenity/meditation/page39/page39.html 

Research on meditation shows human consciousness may be a highly evolved pharmacy or nanotechnology that can powerfully impact our cellular biology. In March 2007, an article by Miranda Hitti on WebMD cited a UCLA study on Tai Chi titled “Tai Chi May Boost Immune System,” finding that a Tai Chi group boosted their immune system’s response to nearly twice that of a control group. 

Hitti, Miranda; Tai Chi May Boost Immune System, WebMD, March 29, 2007 https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/shingles/news/20070329/tai-chi-may-boost-immune-system 

The Mayo Clinic’s website, in an article titled “Meditation: A simple, fast way to reduce stress”   by the Mayo Clinic Staff, cited research showing that meditation can wipe away daily stress. This is hugely important because stress wreaks havoc by saturating the body with stress hormones. On the Dr. Oz Show’s website, Dr. Natasha Turner, naturopathic physician and author of The Supercharged Hormone Diet,   explained on DoctorOz.com, that when we experience constant increases in stress hormone levels it hurts our health—causing us to eat more and crave more, become depressed more, lose bone density and muscle mass, and essentially become older than we are.   

 Meditation: A simple, fast way to reduce stress, Mayo Clinic Staff https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/meditation/in-depth/meditation/art-20045858 

Turner, Dr. Natasha; Reset Your Hormones to Beat Belly Fat, Dr. Oz Show website, 11/09/2012, http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/reset-your-hormones-beat-belly-fat?page=2

I mentioned meditation can actually have a healing effect on our DNA. Research has shown that meditation fundamentally changes our physical body’s basic building block–the genes within our DNA structure. Dr. Herbert Benson (author of “The Relaxation Response;” “Beyond the Relaxation Response;” and “Relaxation Revolution”), a pioneer in mind-body research at Harvard, said that research indicates that meditation may turn certain genes on and off, including genes involved with controlling how the body handles free radicals, cell death, and inflammation processes. An April 2011 article by Harvard Health Publications titled “Relaxation response affects gene activity”   reported on how ‘relaxation response’ [meditative] techniques can turn certain genes on or off. 

Relaxation response affects gene activity, from Harvard’s Stress Management Special Health Report, Harvard Health Publications, April 2011 http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/relaxation-response-affects-gene-activity 

Research reported in the International Journal of Neuroscience 16: 53-58, 1982, published on PubMed.gov, titled “The effects of the transcendental meditation and TM-Sidhi program on the aging process” by RK Wallace; M. Dillbeck; E. Jacobe; and B. Harrington;   showed long-term meditators’ biological age indicators were 12 years younger than people’s normal mean biological age indicators. 

Wallace, RK; Dillbeck, M.; Jacobe, E.; and Harrington, B.; The effects of the transcendental meditation and TM-Sidhi program on the aging process” by  International Journal of Neuroscience, 16: 53-58, 1982, PubMed.gov https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6763007 

The Harvard Medical School Guide to Tai Chi, by Peter Wayne, Ph.D., in a section on ‘cognitive function, neuroplasticity, and dementia’ , reported on a large trial finding that after 1 year a Tai Chi group showed greater improvements in cognitive performance than a group assigned to a stretching toning program, and fewer of the Tai Chi group progressed to dementia. This book reported that Tai Chi reduced symptoms in those with arthritis and fibromyalgia over control groups, and helped reduce stress, anxiety and depression, and reduced ADHD symptoms in teens and children, who showed better results with Tai Chi than in a typical gym class where symptoms worsened.  

The Harvard Medical School Guide to Tai Chi also covers research showing that Tai Chi can improve bone density. It also reported studies showing Tai Chi improved quality of life, self-esteem, and function (including aerobic capacity, muscular strength, and flexibility) for those dealing with breast cancer while those in a control group getting supportive therapy declined in these areas.  

Again and again you find something special and unique about mind-body meditative exercise like Tai Chi over standard physical exercise. There is something about that meditative mind state that Tai Chi requires. A December 12, 2018 study—published on European Review of Aging and Physical Activity at eurapa.biomedcentral.com, titled “Effects of Tai Chi Yunshou exercise on community-based stroke patients: a cluster randomized controlled trial,”  done by Guanli Xie, Ting Rao, Lili Lin, Zhengkun Lin, Tianshen Xiao, Ming’ge Yang, Ying Xu, Jinmei Fan, Shufang Lin, Jinsong Wu, Xiaodong Feng, Li Li, Jing Tao, & Lidian Chen—found that the Tai Chi therapy outperformed balance rehabilitation training in several categories. 

-- Harvard Medical School Guide to Tai Chi, by Dr. Peter Wayne

Harvard Women’s Health Watch published an article on Harvard Health Publishing in August 2019, titled “Health Benefits of Tai Chi”  which referred to the mindfulness meditation of Tai Chi as "medication in motion" for all the myriad health benefits it offers. 

The Health Benefits of Tai Chi, Harvard Women’s Health Watch, Harvard Health Publishing, Harvard Medical School, August 20, 2019 http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Womens_Health_Watch/2009/May/The-health-benefits-of-tai-chi 

Other research on Tai Chi Meditation techniques has shown that people dealing with type 2 diabetes, heart disease, COPD, chronic pain, and other chronic health issues can benefit from Tai Chi, and that these techniques are powerful stress management tools that can actually repair damaged DNA. Find details on more Tai Chi Meditation benefits in a September 2012 article by Patrick B. Massey, M.D., Ph.D., titled “Practicing Tai Chi May Promote a Longer Life,” published by the Daily Herald. 

Massey, M.D., Ph.D, Patrick B. (medical director for complementary and alternative medicine for the Alexian Brothers Health System. His website is www.alt-med.org); Practicing Tai Chi May Promote a Longer Life, Daily Herald, September 24, 2012 https://www.dailyherald.com/article/20120917/entlife/709179983/ 

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In February 2015, Forbes published an article by Alice G. Walton (Senior Contributor, Healthcare), titled “7 Ways Meditation Can Actually Change the Brain,”   citing research on physical brain changes including increased volume in gray matter size, lessened activity in the self-centered activity in the brain, and heightened integration of thought among different brain regions. 

Walton, Alice G. (Senior Contributor, Healthcare); 7 Ways Meditation Can Actually Change the Brain, Forbes, February 9, 2015, http://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2015/02/09/7-ways-meditation-can-actually-change-the-brain/

Research also showed that meditation can enhance students’ ability to absorb and retain information, to the point of being able to predict which students were more likely to pass quizzes, by knowing which students were in the meditation group in this study. A study by Michael D. Mrazek (Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara); Michael S. Franklin; Darwa Tarchin Phillips; Benjamin Baird; and Jonathon W. Schooler, titled “Mindfulness Training Improves Working Memory Capacity and GRE Performance While Reducing Mind Wandering,” published on Journals.sagepub.com in May 2013 , reported that training in mindfulness reduced distracting thoughts and the wandering mind, and also improved GRE reading-comprehension scores and the capacity of working memory.  

Mrazek, Michael D.; Franklin, Michael S.; Phillips, Darwa Tarchin; Baird, Benjamin; Schooler, Jonathon W.; Mindfulness Training Improves Working Memory Capacity and GRE Performance While Reducing Mind Wandering, Sage Journals, Journal of Psychological Science, May 10, 2013 http://pss.sagepub.com/content/early/2013/03/27/0956797612459659.abstract 

Another study of April 9, 2013 titled “Meditating before lecture leads to better grades,” from researchers at George Mason University and the University of Illinois, written by Tara Laskowski and published on ScienceDaily, involved college students. Some of them were instructed in meditation before listening to a lecture, while a control group did not meditate before the lecture. A quiz was given to both groups after the lecture, and those who meditated did better on the quiz than those who didn’t. 

Laskowski, Tara; Meditating before lecture leads to better grades, Science Daily; April 9, 2013, https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130409131811.htm

Meditation 24-7  reported on a study detailed in The Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 6: 198-248, 1991, which studied self-actualization, the ability to realize more of one’s inner potential expressed in all areas of life. A meta-analysis of 42 independent studies revealed that meditators enjoyed much greater self-actualization in their lives over those practicing other forms of relaxation. This is a profoundly important finding.

Meditation24-7; What are the benefits of meditation? http://www.meditation24-7.com/page39/page39.html 

The Mental Health Community’s web report in 2012 titled “10 Telling Studies Done on Student Meditation”   offered summaries of those studies’ findings, which included dramatic improvements in math and English proficiency for meditating over non-meditating students; 50% reduction in ADHD symptoms; improved alertness and reduction in academic stress and self-doubt; reduced anti-social behavior and substance abuse; reduced absenteeism; increased happiness and self-esteem; actual changes in brain fibers in areas regulating emotions and behavior; and increased creativity and intelligence levels. 

10 Telling Studies Done on Student Meditation, Mental Health Community, March 27, 2012

Mind–Body Therapy for Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, 

MDPI JOURNAL,    Academic Editor: Hilary McClafferty    Received: 30 November 2016; Accepted: 18 April 2017; Published: 25 April 2017 5. 

Conclusions 

Potential benefits and mechanism of action of mind–body therapies have been evidenced through research and continue to be explored. Compared to pharmacological treatment, mind–body therapies have little to no unwanted side effects. There is little cost compared to clinical therapy since the only cost is for training or sessions that are typically conducted in groups. Activities such as yoga or Tai Chi can be practiced at home or school ... Mind–body training for parents has an added benefit to children’s ADHD symptoms. Parents who practice mindfulness with parenting techniques report better outcomes in ADHD symptoms of their children [48]. 

An October 2019 Irish Times’ article, “Mental Training Can Change Brain Activity,”   pointed out that what Buddhist Meditation practitioners have been claiming for 100s of years—that meditation changes the brain structure and function—is now being validated by new science. Research cited in their article showed that “gamma wave” brain activity was enhanced in both newly trained meditators and long-term ones, but the gamma activity in the long-term meditators brains was more powerful than had ever been recorded in a healthy person.

Mental training can change brain activity, The Irish Times, October 20, 2019 https://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/mental-training-can-change-brain-activity-1.407317 

As you’ve seen above in the Irish Times article, and in other brain research, science is learning that meditation enhances gamma wave thinking. While meditation tends to produce an “alpha state,” where the brain waves hover in the alpha wavelengths, the overall effect of meditation is that it enhances gamma wave thinking when engaged in problem solving. Gamma wave thinking involves considering ideas or concepts in different regions of the mind simultaneously, in other words promoting multidimensional thinking, creative thinking where you can see an issue from many angles at the same time. 

This is the opposite of narrow linear thinking, gamma wave thinking is from where the “aha” moments come, when disparate facts suddenly gel in the dawning of insight. Narrow thinking is more prevalent when we are under stress and anxiety. We get tunnel vision.  

A paper published by the National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine, “Changing the Brain with meditation: What’s Sleep Got to do With it?” revealed that long term meditators experienced more gamma brain waves, compared to people who did not meditate.   Effective brain operation, joy, and compassion have been associated with Gamma Waves. 

Earlier chapters cited research showing that meditation shrinks the fear/stress part of the brain, expands the empathy/compassion parts of the brain. Gamma wave thinking enables meditators to consider different points of view, resulting in our becoming more creative and open minded. This opens up a whole new science, a technology of learning how to foster creativity and out of the box thinking in millions of people. Later we’ll explore the science of creativity, where creativity may come from, and the models some of the greatest creative minds in human history followed which sound a great deal like the modern concept of meditation, or alpha wave thinking. 

National Institute for the Clinical Application of Behavioral Medicine, Changing the Brain with Meditation: What’s Sleep Got to do With it? https://www.nicabm.com/changing-the-brain-with-meditation-whats-sleep-got-to-do-with-it/ 

According to an April 8, 2011 article in Harvard Health Publications, “Mindfulness meditation improves connections in the brain” by Carolyn Schatz; science is finding that mindfulness meditation helps with many physical and psychological problems: high blood pressure, chronic pain, psoriasis, sleep trouble, anxiety, and depression, to name a few. In February 2014 an article by Timothy Eden, was published by HuffingtonPost, titled “Meditation: Are Scientists Missing the Point?”   This article cited a Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) report on a meta-analysis showing that meditation is as effective as medication in treating people dealing with depression and anxiety disorders. It went on to cite evidence that meditation offers multitudinous physical health benefits, pointing out that meditation is recommended by the American Heart Association for preventing stroke and heart disease.  Harvard Health Publishing’s Caroline Schatz article mentioned above, also reported meditation’s ability to bolster immune function and to end binge eating in practitioners. 

Schatz, Caroline (former editor, Harvard Women’s Health Watch); Mindfulness meditation improves connections in the brain, Harvard Health Publishing, Harvard Medical School, October 29, 2015 http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/mindfulness-meditation-improves-connections-in-the-brain-201104082253 

Eden, Timothy (contributor), Meditation: Are Scientists Missing the Point?, HuffingtonPost, February 28, 2014 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/timothy-eden/meditation-are-scientists_b_4874377.html 

A January 2007 Wall Street Journal article by Sharon Begley, titled “How Thinking Can Change the Brain—Dalai Lama Helps Scientists Show the Power of the Mind to Sculpt Our Gray Matter,” cited a study being done on meditation, involving Eastern monks who’d meditated their entire lives and novices who were new to meditation. The meditators’ brain activity was scanned to see if meditation affected it. What they found was stunning. Not only did the “empathy” center of the brain activate more for meditators when they saw images of people suffering, but the “action” part of the brain also was activated—revealing that meditation made people not only more likely to empathize with those in suffering, but to be moved to action to help stop the source of that pain for others. 

Begley, Sharon; How Thinking Can Change the Brain, Dalai Lama Helps Scientists Show the Power of the Mind To Sculpt Our Gray Matter, Wall Street Journal, January 19, 2007 http://online.wsj.com/article/SB116915058061980596.html 

Meditation has a multidimensional elegance to it. Research now reveals meditation can also enable us to handle the stress of such constant tectonic shifts in our core beliefs and understanding. A study published in the National Center for Complimentary and Integrative Health website in December of 2004, titled “Transcendental Meditation Helps Young Adults Cope With Stress,” found college students in their test group, trained in meditation, were better at coping and felt less emotional distress.  Research shows change, good or bad, is stressful. But meditation helps us relax into such bone-jarring changes and surf them in healthful ways.  

Transcendental Meditation Helps Young Adults Cope With Stress, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), December 14, 2009 http://nccam.nih.gov/research/results/spotlight/051410.htm 

In 2013, UCLA's Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology and the University of North Carolina released a study, written by Mark Wheeler and published by UCLA Newsroom, titled “Be happy: Your Genes may thank you for it—But different types of happiness have different effects, UCLA study shows,”   finding that our DNA responds very differently to different kinds of happiness—responding very healthfully in several ways to altruistic selfless pleasure, while responding negatively to selfish-gratification type pleasure, more inflammation and lower immune function.

Wheeler, Mark; Be happy: Your genes may thank you for it But different types of happiness have different effects, UCLA study shows; UCLA Newsroom, July 29, 2013  http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/don-t-worry-be-happy-247644 

In 1976 the Journal of Psychology (4: 206-218, 1976) published a study, cited on Meditation24-7.com, showing that after one month, meditators developed a more strongly defined self-concept and came to perceive their “actual self” as significantly closer to their “ideal self,” while the non-meditating control groups saw no similar changes. 

Meditation 24-7 http://www.meditation24-7.com/wildserenity/meditation/page39/page39.html 

Do Mindfulness Interventions Improve Obesity Rates in Children and Adolescents: A Review of the Evidence  

Terrah Keck-Kester 1, Lina Huerta-Saenz 2, Ryan Spotts 1, Laura Duda 1, Nazia Raja-Khan 3,  Department of Pediatrics, Division of Academic General Pediatrics, Penn State, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetes, Penn State, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA; 3Department of Medicine, Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolism, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, Pa, USA Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy downloaded from https://www.dovepress.com/ on 19-Mar-2022 

Conclusion 

Mindfulness intervention studies in children are in their infancy, although they show promise. There have been a few studies that have shown positive results regarding stabilizing or decreasing BMI, but they are limited mostly to MBSR, Mindful Eating, and certain kinds of yoga. Other studies have shown more promise treating the psychologic and physiologic comorbidities associated with obesity, such as improvements in kinematics, decreasing rates of anxiety and depression, and improving blood cholesterol and glucose levels. Treating these comorbidities is integral to overall health and wellbeing of children with obesity. For this reason, mindfulness interventions are a reasonable addition to a holistic treatment plan of children with obesity. 

A small preliminary study has shown that men who have learned these practices are successful upon parole 94% of the time. Other prison activities—such as education, religious and self-help programs—have a recidivism rate (the rate inmates return to prison for new crimes or parole violations) of 70% to 80%. One would think these numbers would deserve greater scrutiny. Perhaps a University of California sponsored study. 

[Excerpt from "An End to Crime, Qi Gong in Corrections" by James K. Hecker, T'ai Chi Chih Teacher] 

The U.S. spent $205 billion on law enforcement [in 2019], amounting to $123 billion spent on policing and $82 billion on corrections.

Policing and Corrections Spending, MoneyGeek.com

https://www.moneygeek.com/living/state-policing-corrections-spending/

The U.S. spends $81 billion a year on mass incarceration, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics [in 2017]. In 2017, the Prison Policy Initiative estimated the actual cost on state and federal governments and impacted families is roughly $182 billion [every year].

PBS News Hour, "The U.S. spends billions to lock people up, but very little to help them once they're released"

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/the-u-s-spends-billions-to-lock-people-up-but-very-little-to-help-them-once-theyre-released

New study shows Transcendental Meditation reduces teacher burnout and improves resilience -- Peer-Reviewed Publication CENTER FOR WELLNESS AND ACHIEVEMENT IN EDUCATION

Teachers who participated in a meditation-based teacher development program utilizing the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique for four months, had significant improvements in emotional exhaustion (the leading factor in burnout), resilience, perceived stress, fatigue, and depression according to a new randomized controlled trial published today in Frontiers in Education.

* GTP NOTE: The essence of Public Education starts in two places; Students' Minds/Brains, and in Teachers' Inspiration/Enthusiasm.  Mind Body Education for Public School Students and Public Educators goes to the very core of what creates high level Public Education. Prisons who have seen profound improvements in their populations, not only taught inmates meditation, but staff, and prison guards. If the entire environment changes in prisons, it can in schools.

This concept was supported by a famous meditation study in Washington D.C. by J.S. Hagelin, M.V. Rainforth, D.W. Orme-Johnson, K.L. Cavanaugh, C.N. Alexander, S.F. Shatkin, J.L. Davies, A.O. Hughes, and E. Ross, published at the Institute of Science, Technology & Public Policy site in 1999,   and in Social Indicators Research journal. It is worth mentioning the esteemed credentials of the lead researcher on this historic project: John Hagelin, Ph.D., a renowned quantum physicist, science and public policy expert. Dr. Hagelin conducted pioneering research at CERN (the European Center for Particle Physics) and at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center—and was responsible for the development of a highly successful grand unified field theory based on the superstring—a theory that was featured in a cover story of Discover magazine. 

This historic study on meditators affecting society, conducted from June to July in 1993, found that when a certain small percentage of the city’s population included trained meditators, the HRA (homicides, rapes, and assaults) crime rates decreased significantly by 23% at the highest point of infusion of meditators. What was interesting was that there was a correlation in line charts showing that as the number of meditators being brought into the city increased, the crime rates correspondingly dropped. Weather and other factors were taken into account, and the statistical odds of this happening by chance were calculated to be less than 2 in 1 billion. 

Other meditation research entitled “Transcendental Meditation Program and Crime Rate Change in a Sample of Forty-Eight Cities” by M.C. Dillbeck, G. Landrith, and D.W. Orme-Johnson, cited at NCJRS (National Crime and Justice Reference Service) from the Journal of Crime and Justice 4: 25–45, 1981,   stated that in cities where 1% of the population were instructed and trained in meditation programs, crime rates decreased the following year, in contrast to matched control cities, and the trend remained in the subsequent 5 years. 

Hagelin, J.S.; Rainforth, M.V.; Orme-Johnson, D.W.; Cavanaugh, K. L.; Alexander, C.N.; Shatkin, S.F.; Davies, J.L; Hughes, A.O.; and Ross, E.; Effects of Group Practice of the Transcendental Meditation Program on Preventing Violent Crime in Washington, DC: Results of the National Demonstration Project –June-July 1993, Institute of Science, Technology & Public Policy, 1999 http://istpp.org/crime_prevention/ 

Dillbeck, M C; Landrith, G; Orme-Johnson, D W;  Transcendental Meditation Program and Crime Rate Change in a Sample of Forty-Eight Cities (From Journal of Criminal Justice, Volume 4, P 25-45, 1981, Sloan T Letman, ed.), National Criminal Justice Reference Service, 1981, https://www.ncjrs.gov/App/Publications/abstract.aspx?ID=85219