Activities such as Tai Chi, yoga, and meditation are best known for their ability to cause the pleasant feelings which lower the stress level, but is there something more? While these activities also known as Mind-body interventions (MBI) represent a great way to relax, the new study shows that their benefits go far beyond. Relaxing the Mind And Body is not just about improving the mental state but it can also lead to physical changes on the molecular level.
What did the study show?
A recent study conducted by the scientists from Coventry University showed that relaxation of mind and body can reverse molecular reactions inside the DNA that are causing diseases and depression.
"Lead investigator Ivana Buric, from the Brain, Belief, and Behaviour Lab in Coventry University's Centre for Psychology, Behaviour, and Achievement said how millions of people who are practicing yoga and meditation are not aware of the fact that it is actually at a molecular level where benefits of these activities actually begin and that they can change their DNA. She continues to suggest that yoga and meditation are leaving 'molecular signature in our cells' changing the way our DNA is expressed," Science Daily reports.
The study that included 846 participants over the course of 11 years revealed that changes are happening in the body on a molecular level as a result of Mind-body interventions (MBI).
The study also revealed how these changes affect our overall health.
How does the stress affect us?
Not many people know what is actually going on in their bodies when exposed to a stressful event. Simply put, the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) increases the production of the nuclear factor kappa B molecule (NF-kB). Our bodies react to stress in a way that this molecule produces the protein called cytokine that is fighting the stress by causing inflammation at the cellular level.
So if we are constantly exposed to stress we put ourselves at higher risk of diseases such as depression and even cancer.
Reversing the process
The purpose of this study was to prove how activities such as yoga, meditation, and tai chi are reducing the risk of those diseases by decreasing the production of NF-kB and related cytokines, thus reversing the inflammation process.
Previous studies about Mind-body interventions showed how these exercises can have overarching effects on mind and body. For example, they can keep the brain young. Not only that but they also can lower the age of our brain for 7 years.
