Scientists from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) have discovered that meditation reduces pain not just through the placebo effect but by actually altering how the brain perceives pain.
The study
was published in Biological Psychiatry.
Meditation, a practice
where individuals observe their thoughts and emotions without judgment,
has roots in Buddhist and Hindu traditions but is increasingly studied
for its health benefits.
In this study, researchers aimed to
understand how meditation influences pain perception.
They recruited 115
healthy participants, dividing them into four groups: one group
practiced meditation, another did sham meditation (deep breathing), a
third used a placebo cream, and a fourth listened to an audiobook as a
control.
Participants were exposed to painful heat on their legs, with brain activity scanned via MRI before and after the procedure....<<<Read More>>>...