How To Meditate – Learn With Guided Meditation

This blog about the scientific benefits of Prayer and Meditation has nothing to do with religion; it is all about physiology, about Health and Well-being. Many people mistakenly believe that prayer and meditation are associated with religious activities. Of course, they can be and sometimes are; however, meditation and prayer are not the exclusive provinces of religion.   Many people who have no religious affiliation are devoted to meditation and prayer on a daily basis. There are several reputable scientific studies that provide solid information about the physical and psychological health benefits of meditation and prayer. In this blog are some of what the scientific experts have to say on the topic. Since OneWorld focuses on health and well-being, we think it is beneficial to provide you (our readers) with this information.  “When you meditate or pray, the activity of your brain moves from the right frontal cortex (where stress lives) to the calm left frontal cortex. The resultantfeeling of relaxation slows down your breathing. When you breathe 6 breaths a minute, your breath becomes aligned with rhythms in the heart, and this is good for cardiovascular health. Some mental benefits include greater creativity, decreased anxiety and depression, improved learning and memory, and increased happiness and emotional stability.” The article below lists several studies conducted by various health and scientific organizations that highlight the many benefits of meditation and prayer that have nothing to do with religious practices.   We invite you to read an article published in the Huffington Post titled: “Why People Who Pray Are Healthier Than Those Who Don’t” – Richard Schiffman If you want to achieve maximum health, here are a few things that you should do: exercise regularly, eat nutritious and minimally processed foods, drop those extra pounds — and pray. That’s right, regular prayer and meditation has been shown in numerous scientific studies to be an importantfactor in living longer and staying healthy. Prayer is the most widespread alternative therapy in America today. Over 85 percent of people confronting a major illness pray, according to a . That is far higher than taking herbs or pursuing other nontraditional healing modalities. And increasingly the evidence is that prayer works. “It doesn’t matter if you pray for yourself or for others, pray to heal an illness or for peace in the world, or simply sit in silence and quiet the mind — the effects appear to be the same. A wide variety of spiritual practices have been shown to help alleviate the stress levels, which are one of the major risk factors for disease. They also are powerful ways to maintain a positive outlook and successfully weather the trials which come to all of us in life.” The relationship between prayer and health has been the subject of scores of double-blind studies over the past four decades. Dr. Herbert Benson, a cardiovascular specialist at Harvard Medical School andboth groups. He also found that prayer and meditation of dopamine, which is associated with states of well being and joy.” “A reported in the Journal of Gerontology of 4,000 senior citizens in Durham, NC, found that people who prayed or meditated coped better with illness and lived longer than those who did not. But the question remains: By what physiological mechanisms does prayer impact our health? Herbert Benson’s most recent research suggests that long term daily spiritual practices help to that trigger inflammation and prompt cell death. That the mind can effect the expression of our genes is exciting evidence for how prayer may influence the functioning of the body at the most fundamental level.” We offer the following links to get more information on this topic and invite you to share this blog with others. OneWorld, Inc also invites you to visit our YouTube channel at:  to see video clips as well as full length videos that represent our three areas of focus: health literacy,education (at-every-level) and civic engagement. Also, feel free to follow us on Twitter and on Facebook: We appreciate getting facebook “likes.” Our web is at: 1.   – 2    3.  – foodmatters.tv/articles-1/7-health-benefits-of-meditation ‎4. Distinctions Between Prayer, Meditation, and Contemplation – by Sri Gary Olsen – This entry was posted on Thursday, July 10th, 2014 at 2:54 am and is filed under , , , . You can follow any responses to this entry through the feed. You can , or from your own site.