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Zen Meditation May Help Patients Control Pain
[Posted 2/02/09] Researchers at the University of Montreal in Canada investigated the easing of pain when patients practice Zen meditation. Previous studies had found that patients who experienced chronic pain could be helped by meditative techniques, but the reason for the reduction in pain was not fully understood.
The current study was published in the January 2009 Psychosomatic Medicine. The researchers found that long–term Zen meditators were less affected by pain and attributed this to their controlled breathing techniques and mindful attitude (attention to one’s inner environment and the non–judgmental flow of thoughts). These findings provide further evidence of the positive potential for a mind–body approach to controlling pain.
"These results indicated that Zen meditators have lower pain sensitivity and experience analgesic effects during mindful states. Results may reflect cognitive/self–regulatory skills related to the concept of mindfulness and/or altered respiratory patterns," concluded the study’s authors, Joshua A. Grant and Pierre Rainville.
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