http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. (Medical Xpress)—Practicing a little Zen before class can lead to better grades, according to a new experimental study by George Mason University professor Robert Youmans and University of Illinois doctoral student Jared Ramsburg. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-meditating-grades.html Psychology & Psychiatry Tue, 09 Apr 2013 11:18:23 EST news284725011 Why does training in mindfulness meditation help patients manage chronic pain and depression? In a newly published neurophysiological review, Brown University scientists propose that mindfulness practitioners gain enhanced control over sensory cortical alpha rhythms that help regulate how the brain processes and filters sensations, including pain, and memories such as depressive cognitions. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-neural-basis-benefits-meditation.html Psychology & Psychiatry Wed, 13 Feb 2013 09:50:01 EST news279971154 When De'Anthony Thomas returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown in the 2013 Fiesta Bowl, says University of Oregon researcher Frank Diaz, Thomas put Ducks fans into a heightened zone of engagement for watching the game, not unlike what was experienced by music students who were first exposed to a brief session of mindfulness meditation before hearing an opera passage. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-mindfulness-meditation-heightens-musical-engagement.html Psychology & Psychiatry Wed, 30 Jan 2013 13:29:50 EST news278774981 People suffering from chronic inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and asthma—in which psychological stress plays a major role—may benefit from mindfulness meditation techniques, according to a study by University of Wisconsin-Madison neuroscientists with the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds at the Waisman Center. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-mindfulness-meditation-relieve-chronic-inflammation.html Immunology Wed, 16 Jan 2013 16:47:59 EST news277577269 (Medical Xpress)—Meditation can change the way a person experiences pain, according to a new study by UW–Madison neuroscientists. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-meditation-expertise-pain.html Neuroscience Fri, 16 Nov 2012 06:16:10 EST news272268964 A simple form of mindful meditation can help breast cancer survivors stave off the symptoms of depression, new research suggests. But the potential benefits don't stop there. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-10-simple-meditation-shown-decrease-symptoms.html Psychology & Psychiatry Sun, 07 Oct 2012 18:50:01 EST news268839761 Many elderly people spend their last years alone. Spouses pass and children scatter. But being lonely is much more than a silent house and a lack of companionship. Over time, loneliness not only takes a toll on the psyche but can have a serious physical impact as well. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-mindfulness-meditation-loneliness-benefits-immune.html Psychology & Psychiatry Tue, 14 Aug 2012 15:34:35 EST news264177241 For older adults, loneliness is a major risk factor for health problems — such as cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer's — and death. Attempts to diminish loneliness with social networking programs like creating community centers to encourage new relationships have not been effective. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-07-mindfulness-meditation-loneliness-older-adults.html Psychology & Psychiatry Tue, 24 Jul 2012 12:45:58 EST news262352748 Scientists studying the Chinese mindfulness meditation known as integrative body-mind training (IBMT) say they've confirmed and expanded their findings on changes in structural efficiency of white matter in the brain that can be related to positive behavioral changes in subjects practicing the technique regularly for a month. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-chinese-meditation-ibmt-prompts-positive.html Neuroscience Mon, 11 Jun 2012 15:00:01 EST news258645102 (Medical Xpress) -- People who practice mindfulness meditation learn to accept their feelings, emotions, and states of mind without judging or resisting them. They simply live in the moment. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-05-long-term-meditation-brain.html Psychology & Psychiatry Thu, 24 May 2012 08:21:40 EST news257066494 In times of stress, we're often encouraged to pause for a moment and simply be in the 'now.' This kind of mindfulness, an essential part of Buddhist and Indian Yoga traditions, has entered the mainstream as people try to find ways to combat stress and improve their quality of life. And research suggests that mindfulness meditation can have benefits for health and performance, including improved immune function, reduced blood pressure, and enhanced cognitive function. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-dont-happy-ndash-mindfulness-meditation.html Psychology & Psychiatry Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:04:16 EST news239292211 For most of his life, 24-year-old Steven Bringas so feared humiliating himself if he spoke that only an emergency would get him to enter a store. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-08-stanford-vanquishes-social-anxieties-drugs.html Psychology & Psychiatry Fri, 19 Aug 2011 11:20:01 EST news232967949 (Medical Xpress) -- Dr. Beverly Thorn, chair of The University of Alabama's psychology department, is seeking volunteers for a key study into how "mindfulness meditation" can help manage chronic pain from headaches. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-ua-psychology-professor-relief-chronic.html Psychology & Psychiatry Tue, 10 May 2011 08:30:01 EST news224234105 The positive effects of mindfulness meditation on pain and working memory may result from an improved ability to regulate a crucial brain wave called the alpha rhythm. This rhythm is thought to "turn down the volume" on distracting information, which suggests that a key value of meditation may be helping the brain deal with an often-overstimulating world. Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology report that modulation of the alpha rhythm in response to attention-directing cues was faster and significantly more enhanced among study participants who completed an eight-week mindfulness meditation program than in a control group. The report will appear in the journal Brain Research Bulletin and has been released online. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-04-meditation-brain-volume-distractions.html Neuroscience Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:56:17 EST news222609361 If a friend or relative won $100 and then offered you a few dollars, would you accept this windfall? The logical answer would seem to be, sure, why not? "But human decision making does not always appear rational," said Read Montague, professor of physics at Virginia Tech and director of the Human Neuroimaging Laboratory at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-04-functional-mri-mindfulness-meditation-decision-making.html Neuroscience Wed, 20 Apr 2011 11:05:10 EST news222516288