For Immediate Release
Contact: Jennifer Ellis at Jennifer@EFTUniverse.com
A new study has proposed a standardized way of using brain wave measurements to track psychological improvement and meditative states. Most studies measure changes in psychological conditions like anxiety, depression and stress using standardized questionnaires filled out by participants.
However, psychological stress, and the relaxation that accompanies meditation, can also be measured using EEG (electroencephalogram) readouts of brain wave activity. While questionnaires reflect peoples’ subjective experience, brain wave activity as measured by the EEG offers an objective way to measure information flows in neural circuits.
The EEG readouts of stressed people, for instance, show a greater intensity of a fast brain wave called beta 2, and a corresponding reduction in other frequencies. Slower alpha waves appear as people calm down, and meditation training using EEG typically guides participants into generating alpha waves. The waves most dominant during sleep, theta and delta, are even slower than alpha, and also increase as people calm down.
The field of neurofeedback uses this information to show people how to relax. Electrodes are placed on the surface of the scalp, participants see their brain waves in real time, and then practice exercises or mental states that produce the waves characteristic of serenity.
However, because of the great variety of neurofeedback devices, and lack of common standards, neurofeedback has gained only a limited foothold in primary care despite hundreds of studies demonstrating its effectiveness. Typically, each study uses unique criteria for interpreting its results, making it difficult to generalize the benefits of neurofeedback as demonstrated by its extensive scientific literature.
For this reason, a research team led by Dawson Church of the National Institute for Integrative Healthcare (NIIH.org) looked for a standardized EEG pattern that could measure the reduction of psychological distress and the depth of meditation. They examined the brain wave readouts of 117 people attending a four-day guided meditation workshop.
After the training, participants were able to acquire and sustain a stable alpha brain state more quickly. The intensity of their beta 2 brainwaves, the signature wave of stress, diminished greatly. At the same time, their intensity of delta, a wave associated with the deepest levels of relaxation, increased. The amount of time it took them to enter meditation diminished significantly.
These changes in brain waves were associated with significant increases in subjective wellbeing. Happiness increased while anxiety and depression decreased. These results were maintained on 6-month follow-up. The study showed that these subjective moods correlated with objective biological measures such as brain waves.
The NIIH study found that the ratio of beta 2 to delta brain waves was a common measure of relaxation and the depth of meditation. The research team recommended that this be used as a standard for future research. Such a standard would overcome one of the primary obstacles to having neurofeedback adopted in primary care.
A common standard for EEG research could accelerate the development of neurofeedback-based therapies that reduce stress, as well as providing a yardstick for measuring the effectiveness of meditative practices.
Full text of study: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.928123/full
Church biography: DawsonChurch.com
NIIH website: NIIH.org
