Benefits of meditation

Meditation is the method of choice for one’s spiritual evolution but this is not the benefit discussed in this article. Rather the focus is on meditation immediate benefits for your mind and body. These benefits are easier to quantify by science.

There is not only anecdotal but also scientific evidence that meditation has a beneficial effect on both mind and body in a synergistic way: your mindset influences the body and at the same time your body, the host of your mind, helps your mind go further on its quest for evolution. Is this true? Keep on reading ...
Meditation benefits your mind by:

• Increasing your awareness in every moment, as opposite of living your life on autopilot, hence everyday seems to last longer and be more filled with noticeable experiences.
• Increasing your focus and concentration which in turn, like a magnifying glass, helps resolve problems at hand faster and more profound.
• Raising your threshold of tolerance to stress inducing events therefore you become calmer, happier and more tolerant.
• Increasing your intelligence. During the process of meditation, new synapses (neural connections) are formed. There are an average 100 billions neurons in anyone’s brain. What differentiates us from an IQ standpoint though, is the number of neural connections. As simple as this.

From a physiological perspective, your body benefits as well. This is easier to demonstrate by science. Measurable markers of meditation positive effects on one’s body include:

• Reduced blood lactate and Cortisol, known markers of stress, depression and anxiety.
• Reduced blood pressure.
• Increased number of longevity and youthfulness hormones as Human Growth Hormone (HGH) and Dehydroepiandrosterone  (DHEA). Meditation is subsequently a less expensive and natural alternative to provide our bodies with these essential hormones.
• Increased number of wellbeing and happiness related hormones: Serotonin and Melatonin. It is common knowledge that happier people live longer.

There are simple ways to include meditation in your daily routine without impact on your schedule. Most of us spend a lot of time in the gym taking care of our bodies. And this is perfectly all right.
Shouldn’t we spend just a fraction of this time though to keep our mind in shape?. Well, meditation does just that.