DailyGood

For the last 27 years, DailyGood newsletters have offered a daily email that inspires you to respond to life with creativity and kindness. To join a community of 148,430 subscribers, subscribe here.

Jul 4, 2009

"Some people think that meditation takes time away from physical accomplishment. Taken to extremes, of course, that's true. Most people, however, find that meditation creates more time than it takes." --Peter McWilliams

How to Build a Bigger Brain

People have many strategies for building bigger muscles and stronger bones. But what can one do to build a bigger brain? Meditate. That's the finding from a group of researchers at UCLA who used high-resolution MRI's to scan the brains of people who meditate. Research has already confirmed the beneficial aspects of meditation. In addition to having better focus and control over their emotions, many people who meditate regularly have reduced levels of stress and bolstered immune systems. But less was known about the link between meditation and brain structure. These latest findings showed that certain regions of the brain of long-term meditators were significantly larger -- namely, regions known for regulating emotions. Subjects of the study practiced various forms of meditation, and most had meditated for many years at a rate of 10 to 90 minutes per day.