GENIUS FORUMS

There's no evidence that meditation eases health problems, according to an exhaustive review of the accumulated data by Canadian researchers.

[...]

They analyzed 813 studies focused on the impact of meditation on various conditions, including high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and substance abuse.

http://www.forbes.com/health/feeds/hsco ... 06262.html

Guru adherents swindle millions of dollars from naive Westerners for courses on "meditation". A country where rats are considered "holy" and are worshipped in rat temples cannot boast of presenting deep thought for human salvation. When Indian religion and philosophy cannot do better than ignore the human misery and desperation of millions of their people, there is no reason to seek depth and understanding in their primitive superstitions.

Absence of evidence does not prove evidence of absence.

TFA wrote:However, the report authors said it isn't possible to draw any firm conclusions about the effects of meditation on health, because the existing studies are characterized by poor methodologies and other problems.

...

Bond added that the new report doesn't prove that meditation has no therapeutic value, but it can inform medical practitioners that the "evidence is inconclusive regarding its effectiveness."

I was never under the impression that the main purpose of meditation was to improve physical health (although that could be a possible side benefit).

To improve health, it's hard to beat a regular exercise program.

DHodges wrote: To improve health, it's hard to beat a regular exercise program.

Ha, that's just hearsay. Pure fantasy. Crap. I'd like to see some evidence of that. Oh wait, this isn't the reincarnation 9/11 crop circle conspiracy God thread, is it. Nevermind.

DHodges wrote:To improve health, it's hard to beat a regular exercise program.

Some meditations, like those used in kundalini yoga for example, involve some heavy duty exercise and is supposed to be done regularly. Obviously this isn't a concrete example of beating a regular exercise program, but it does meet it because it is one.

As far as exercise, I guess that a big key is to find what works for the individual. Part of that is finding out what the individual is willing to do on a regular basis.

Also, all the article said was that these Canadians couldn't find sufficient evidence to scientifically support the claims. It doesn't say that meditation does not ease health problems.

Here's an article from the opposing position that is also a review of published research studies. This reviewed 181 studies, and seems to have a heavy focus on studies from India.

Since the Forbes article was a reprint of an article on an article reviewing other articles, I don't see where the 813 studies were from. I also place less validity on 4th-hand information. If I'm going to consider the information in a peer-reviewed journal article, I would rather see the article myself than rely on the interpretation of a reporter that looked at the article.

It's not hard to see that meditation, conventionally held to be 'stilling the mind', would ease health problems dramatically. Many health problems are created by an agitated mind.

For instance, stressed people often inflict mild injuries on themselves, like drinking or eating too much, or not keeping fit and trim, as they believe it atones somehow for making mistakes, or shields them from punishment.

So a type of meditation that is quietly thoughtful can prevent a lot of ill-health.

Kelly Jones wrote:It's not hard to see that meditation, conventionally held to be 'stilling the mind', would ease health problems dramatically. Many health problems are created by an agitated mind.

For instance, stressed people often inflict mild injuries on themselves, like drinking or eating too much, or not keeping fit and trim, as they believe it atones somehow for making mistakes, or shields them from punishment.

So a type of meditation that is quietly thoughtful can prevent a lot of ill-health.

Apart from the fact that 'stilling the mind' and being 'quietly thoughtful' are contradictory terms, I agree.

Well, it's relative. An agitated person might feel a stilling effect comes from quietly thinking. The troubled waters of their mind would be stilled.

It would bring the frayed and buzzing consciousness into a single-pointed focus.