Influence of Mindfulness Practice on Cortisol and Sleep in Long-Term and Short-Term Meditators

Abstract

Background: There is growing scientific interest in assessing the biological correlates of non-pharmacological interventions such as mindfulness. Examinations of the beneficial effects of mindfulness on hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenocortical system activity (HPA SA) and sleep are sparse. The aim of the present study was to explore the impact of long- and short-term meditation experience on HPA SA and sleep. Method: There were 20 participants, 9 of whom had long-term experience in meditation (mean = 264 months) and 11 novices. Novices underwent an 8-week course in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), and cortisol samples were taken in the lab at the beginning and end of the course. To assess the cortisol awakening response, 4 morning cortisol samples were collected. Sleep and mindfulness were assessed by self-rating questionnaires. Results: Among participants with long-term meditation experience, morning cortisol decreased with length of experience. For novices, after an 8-week introductory MBSR course, morning cortisol levels had decreased, while both sleep and self-attribution of mindfulness significantly improved. Cortisol levels did not, however, change between the beginning and end of individual MBSR sessions. Conclusions: The pattern of results lends support to the view that MBSR/meditation has a favorable influence both on biomarkers of stress regulation, such as cortisol secretion, and on sleep.

Meditation as an Adjunct to the Management of Multiple Sclerosis

“…Given that cortisol plays a key role in stress modulation, the results suggest that the beneficial effects of meditation may operate partly through this mechanism [51]. Additionally, meditation has been shown to be associated with activation of the prefrontal cortex and the anterior cingulated cortex, which are areas of the brain associated with concentration as well as altering EEG tracings in many medical conditions [14].…”

“…Given that stress has been shown to be implicated in relapses in MS [46, 49] and that meditation has been shown to relieve biological markers of stress [14, 51] it is reasonable to hypothesise that meditation may have a direct impact on MS disease course through its effect of modulating the stress response, although this has not yet been studied in detail.…”

A workplace intervention improves sleep: results from the randomized controlled Work, Family, and Health Study

“…[21][22][23] Most workplace stress interventions focus on individual coping behavior, such as yoga 24 or mindfulness practices. 25,26 Few workplace studies have attempted to reduce employee stress and improve sleep by changing the structure of work. 27,28 "Impoverished" environments, such as workplaces where employees lack social support and/or have limited control over their time, are associated with a range of negative health outcomes.…”

Relationship between Meditation and Waking Salivary Cortisol Secretion among Long-Term MBSR Instructors

“…To our knowledge, only one study has examined the impact of long-term meditation practices on stress reduction, in long-term meditators, which detected a protective relationship between cortisol, and duration of meditation experience [22]. The examination of long-term meditators provides a unique opportunity to investigate the virtually unexplored areas of meditation, such as its potential role in disease prevention via its impact on chronic stress reduction.…”