Prevention of cardiovascular complications through TM1. Brief summaryMeditation Helps Reduced Hardened Arteries - StudyThe American Heart Association journal Stroke published, in March 2000, the first controlled study suggesting that TM by itself can reduce atherosclerosis - and risk of heartattack and stroke - without changes in diet and exercise.Amparo Castillo-Richmond M.D. and Robert Schneider M.D. of MUM College of Maharishi Vedic Medicine, in conjunction with researchers at UCLA and Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles, found that the reduction of deposits on arterial walls of TM subjects during the study was more than twice that of those in the health education group, comparable to changes found previously only through a combination of intensive medication and lifestyle change programs. The decrease of approximately 0.1 mm in the TM group has been associated with about an 11% decrease in risk of heart attack and 7-15% decrease in risk of stroke. Since coronary heart disease is the number cause of death for all Americans, particularly African Americans, this inexpensive and non-obtrusive alternative to traditional treatments is of great societal interest.
2. More extensive reportTranscendental Vessels - Repeating Soothing Sounds During Meditation Apparently Thinned Thickened Artery Walls
Relaxing and reducing stress through transcendental meditation may reduce artery blockage and the risk of a heart attack and stroke.By Krista Mart March 2 2000 (This is an excerpt) Relaxing and reducing stress through transcendental meditation may reduce artery blockage and the risk of heart attack and stroke, according to the results of a study released in the current issue of the American Heart Association's journal Stroke. The study compared two groups of 30 African-American men and women, who were at risk for cardiovascular disease o one who performed transcendental meditation and another who did not. Those who meditated did so twice a day for 20 minutes each time. The comparison group, received diet and exercise education, but did not meditate. Both groups were similar in age, blood pressure levels and medication dosages. The study found, through the use of an ultrasound, that the meditation group had a significant reduction in the thickness of the arterial wall compared to group who only underwent education. Arterial wall thickness helps to determine coronary atherosclerosis, or a hardening of the arteries, and is a predictor of heart attack and stroke. The thicker the wall, the narrower the opening in the artery to allow the blood to flow. Researchers enrolled African Americans in the study, which was published in a peer-reviewed journal, because they are at the greatest risk for cardiovascular disease. "Based on our positive findings in this high-risk group, we can assume that a group at less risk can also benefit from it," says Dr. Amparo Castillo-Richmond, lead author of the study and assistant professor of Medicine at Maharishi University of Medicine College of Vedic Medicine in Fairfield, Iowa.
AdjunctNot a Drug ReplacementThe reductions found in the meditation group were comparable to those achieved by cholesterol- lowering medications and intensive lifestyle modification programs, the researchers say.
"We expect to use this treatment as an adjunct to current pharmacological "The distinct state of "restful alertness" gained during the transcendental meditation technique may be triggering self-repair homeostatic mechanisms in the body, which lead to the regression of atherosclerosis, says Robert Schneider, M.D., second author of the study and director of the Maharishi Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention. "The TM program could have vast implications for the current management of cardiovascular disease." Source: ABC news ReferenceAmparo Castillo-Richmond, MD; Robert H. Schneider, MD; Charles N. Alexander, PhD et al."Effects of Stress Reduction on Carotid Atherosclerosis in Hypertensive African Americans". Stroke. 2000;31:568 A scientific summary of the original scientific article is available at: The Journal of American Heart Association Swedish Physicians for Transcendental Meditation |