As people discover the benefits of meditation, its popularity increases.

Meditation is a habitual process of training the mind to focus and redirect thoughts.

It can be used to increase awareness of yourself and your surroundings. Many people think of it as a way to reduce stress and build concentration.

People also use the practice to develop other beneficial habits and feelings, such as a positive mood and outlook, self-discipline, healthy sleep patterns, and even a greater tolerance for pain.

This article details 12 health benefits of meditation.

1. Reduce stress.

Stress reduction is one of the most common reasons people start meditating.

A study that included more than 3,500 adults showed that meditation actually helps reduce stress.

Normally, mental and physical stress cause increased levels of the stress hormone cortisol. This produces many of the harmful effects of stress, such as the release of chemicals called cytokines that cause inflammation.

These effects can disrupt sleep, increase depression and anxiety, increase blood pressure, and contribute to fatigue and clouded thinking.

In an eight-week study, a style of meditation called “guided meditation” reduced the inflammatory response caused by stress.

Another study in almost 1,300 adults showed that meditation can reduce stress. Notably, this effect was strongest in individuals with the highest levels of stress.

Research has shown that meditation can also improve symptoms of stress-related conditions, including irritable bowel syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder, and fibromyalgia.

Summary: Many styles of meditation can help reduce stress. Meditation can also reduce symptoms in people with medical conditions caused by stress.

Learn more about “the healthy lifestyle” in our article: 5 Habits for a Healthier Life .

2. Control anxiety.

Less stress translates to less anxiety.

For example, one study of eight weeks of guided meditation helped participants reduce anxiety.

It also reduced symptoms of anxiety disorders, such as phobias, social anxiety, paranoid thoughts, obsessive-compulsive behaviors, and panic attacks.

Another study followed 18 volunteers three years after they completed an eight-week meditation program. Most of the volunteers had continued to practice regular meditation and maintained low levels of anxiety over the long term.

A larger study in 2,466 participants also showed that a variety of different meditation strategies can reduce anxiety levels.

For example, yoga has been shown to help people reduce anxiety. This is probably due to the benefits of meditative practice and physical activity.

Meditation can also help manage work-related anxiety in high-pressure work environments. One study found that a meditation program reduced anxiety in a group of nurses.

Summary: Regular meditation helps reduce anxiety and anxiety-related mental health problems such as social anxiety, phobias, and obsessive-compulsive behaviors.

Learn more about “anxiety control” in our article: 18 Healthy Foods to Control Anxiety Attacks .

3. Improve emotional health.

Some forms of meditation can also lead to a better self-image and a more positive outlook on life.

Two guided meditation studies found reduced levels of depression in more than 4,600 adults.

One study followed 18 volunteers as they practiced meditation for three years. The study found that the participants experienced long-term decreases in depression.

Inflammatory chemicals called cytokines, which are released in response to stress, can affect mood, leading to depression. A review of several studies suggests that meditation can reduce depression by decreasing these inflammatory chemicals.

Another controlled study compared electrical activity between the brains of people who practiced guided meditation and the brains of others who did not.

Those who meditated showed measurable changes in activity in areas related to positive thinking and optimism.

Summary: Some forms of meditation can improve depression and create a more positive outlook on life. Research shows that keeping an ongoing meditation habit can help maintain these benefits long-term. 

4. Increases self-awareness.

Some forms of meditation can help you develop a stronger understanding of yourself, helping you grow into your best self.

For example, self-inquiry meditation explicitly aims to help you develop a greater understanding of yourself and how you relate to those around you.

Other forms of meditation teach you to recognize thoughts that can be harmful or self-destructive. The idea is that as you become more aware of your thought habits, you can steer into more constructive patterns.

A study of 21 women battling breast cancer found that when they participated in a tai chi program, their self-esteem improved more than those who received social support sessions.

In another study, 40 older men and women who took a guided meditation program experienced reduced feelings of loneliness, compared to a control group who had been placed on a waiting list for the program.

Also, experience in meditation can lead to more creative problem solving.

Summary: Self-inquiry and related styles of meditation can help you “know yourself”. This can be a starting point to make other positive changes.

5. Increases the scope of attention.

Focused attention meditation is like a weight training workout for your attention span. Helps increase the strength and stamina of your attention.

For example, one study examined the effects of an eight-week meditation course on mindfulness meditation and found that it improved participants’ ability to refocus and sustain their attention.

A similar study showed that human resource workers who regularly practiced mindfulness meditation stayed focused on a task longer.

These workers also remembered details of their tasks better than their peers who did not practice meditation.

Moreover, one review concluded that meditation can even reverse patterns in the brain that contribute to wandering mind, worry, and inattention.

Even meditating for a short period can be beneficial. One study found that practicing meditation for four days may be enough to increase attention span.

Summary: Various types of meditation can improve the ability to refocus and sustain attention. Just four days of meditation can have a positive effect.

6. It can reduce age-related memory loss.

Improvements in focus and clarity of thought can help keep your mind young.

Kirtan Kriya is a method of meditation that combines a mantra or chant with repetitive finger movement to focus thoughts. Such a method improved the ability of participants to perform memory tasks in multiple age-related memory loss studies.

Additionally, a review of 12 studies found that multiple meditation styles increased attention, memory, and mental quickness in older volunteers.

In addition to fighting normal age-related memory loss, meditation can at least partially improve memory in dementia patients. It can also help manage stress and improve coping in those who care for family members with dementia.

Summary: The enhanced focus that can be gained through regular meditation can increase memory and mental clarity. These benefits may help combat age-related memory loss and dementia .

7. It can generate kindness

Some types of meditation can particularly increase positive feelings and actions towards yourself and others.

Metta, a type of meditation also known as loving-kindness meditation, begins with developing kind thoughts and feelings toward yourself.

Through practice, people learn to extend this kindness and forgiveness externally, first to friends, then to acquaintances, and finally to enemies.

Twenty-two studies on this form of meditation have shown its ability to increase people’s compassion for themselves and others.

A study of 100 adults randomly assigned to a program that included loving-kindness meditation found that these benefits were dose-dependent.

In other words, the more effort they put into Metta meditation, the more positive feelings they experienced.

Another group of studies showed that the positive feelings that people develop through Metta meditation can improve social anxiety, reduce marital conflict, and help with anger management.

These benefits also seem to accrue over time with the practice of loving-kindness meditation.

Summary: Metta, or loving-kindness meditation, is a practice for developing positive feelings, first toward yourself, then toward others, and lastly toward your enemies. Metta increases positivity, empathy and compassionate behavior towards others.

8. It can help fight addictions.

The mental discipline you can develop through meditation can help you break dependencies by increasing your self-control and awareness of triggers for addictive behaviors.

Research has shown that meditation can help people learn to redirect their attention, increase their willpower, control their emotions and impulses, and increase their understanding of the causes behind addictive behaviors.

A study that taught 19 recovering alcoholics how to meditate found that participants who received the training improved control of their compulsions and stress related to their compulsions.

Meditation can also help control food cravings. A review of 14 studies found guided meditation helped participants reduce levels of emotional and eating compulsions.

Summary: Meditation develops mental discipline and willpower and can help avoid unwanted impulse triggers. This can help with addiction recovery, weight loss, and redirecting other unwanted habits.

Learn more about “food addiction” in our article: 8 symptoms of food addiction .

9. Improves sleep.

Almost half of the population have insomnia problems at some point.

One study compared two meditation programs based on guided meditation by randomly assigning participants to one of the two groups. One group practiced meditation, while the other did not.

Participants who meditated fell asleep sooner and stayed asleep longer than those who did not meditate.

Becoming proficient in meditation can help you control or redirect the racing or “runaway” thoughts that often lead to insomnia.

In addition, it can help relax your body, releasing tension and putting you in a peaceful state where you are more likely to fall asleep.

Summary: A variety of meditation techniques can help you relax and control “runaway” thoughts that can interfere with sleep. This can shorten the time it takes to fall asleep and increase the quality of sleep.

Learn more about “the importance of sleep” in our article: How many hours of sleep do you need?

10. Helps control pain.

Your perception of pain is connected to your mood, and it can rise under stressful conditions.

For example, one study used functional MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) techniques to observe brain activity as participants experienced a painful stimulus. Some participants had gone through four days of mindfulness meditation training, while others had not.

The patients who meditated showed increased activity in brain centers known to control pain. They also reported less sensitivity to pain.

A larger study examined the effects of habitual meditation in 3,500 participants. Meditation was found to be associated with a decrease in intermittent or chronic pain complaints.

An additional study of meditation in terminally ill patients found that meditation can help alleviate chronic pain until the last moments of life.

In each of these scenarios, meditators and non-meditators experienced the same causes of pain, but meditators showed a greater ability to cope with pain and even experienced a reduced sensation of pain.

Abstract: Meditation can decrease the perception of pain in the brain. This can help treat chronic pain when used as a supplement to medical care or physical therapy.

11. It can lower blood pressure.

Meditation can also improve physical health by reducing the strain on the heart.

Over time, high blood pressure makes the heart work harder to pump blood, which can lead to poor heart function.

High blood pressure also contributes to atherosclerosis, or the narrowing of the arteries, which can lead to heart attacks and strokes.

A study of 996 volunteers found that when they meditated by concentrating on a “silent mantra” — a repeated, non-vocalized word — lowered blood pressure by about five points, on average.

This was most effective among older volunteers and those who had higher blood pressure levels before the study.

One review concluded that various types of meditation produced similar improvements in blood pressure.

In part, meditation appears to control blood pressure by relaxing nerve signals that coordinate heart function, blood vessel tension, and the “fight-or-flight” response that increases alertness in stressful situations.

Summary: Blood pressure decreases not only during meditation, but also over time as people meditate. This can reduce stress on the heart and arteries, helping to prevent heart disease.

Learn more about “lowering blood pressure” in our article: 15 Natural Ways to Lower Blood Pressure .

12. You can meditate anywhere.

People practice many different forms of meditation, most of which do not require specialized equipment or space. You can practice with just a few minutes a day.

If you want to start meditating, try to choose a form of meditation based on what you want to get out of it.

There are two main styles of meditation:

• Focused Attention Meditation: Concentrate your attention on a single object, thought, sound, or visualization. It emphasizes freeing your mind on focus and distraction. Meditation can focus on the breath, a mantra, or a calming sound.
• Open Monitoring Meditation: Promotes increased awareness of all aspects of your environment, thought formation, and sense of self. It can include becoming aware of thoughts, feelings, or impulses that you normally try to suppress.

To find out which styles you like best, there are many sites on the web that explain in detail each type of meditation that exists. It’s a great way to try different styles and find one that suits you best.

If your normal work and home environments do not allow for consistent quiet time, consider participating in a class. This can also improve your chances of success by attending a supportive community.

Alternatively, consider setting your alarm a few minutes earlier to take advantage of quiet time in the morning. This can help you develop a consistent habit and give you a positive start to the day.

Summary: If you are interested in incorporating meditation into your routine, try a few different styles and consider guided meditation exercises to start with one that suits you.

In conclusion.

Meditation is something we can all do to improve mental and emotional health.

You can do it anywhere, without special equipment or memberships.

Alternatively, meditation courses and support groups are widely available.

There are a wide variety of styles too, each with different strengths and benefits.

Trying a meditation style that suits your goals is a great way to improve your quality of life, even if you only have a few minutes a day to do it.