What if I told you something you can do in less than 25 minutes…for free…in the privacy of your own home…would protect you against COVID-19, multiple sclerosis (MS), and even CANCER?
I’m quite serious.
A new study, published in one of the most prestigious scientific journals in the world, shows that people who undertake THIS ancient practice gain long-lasting protection, on the cellular level, against some of the most feared diseases and viruses of our time.
Let me explain…
Change your cells in just EIGHT DAYS!
Of course, the research I’m talking about today involves the ancient practice of mindfulness meditation.
It’s been around for thousands of years. Now, modern researchers are beginning to understand its profound effect on not just our psyche…but also on our physical health, cells, and genes!
In fact, this new line of research began after a neuroscientist named Dr. Vijayendran Chandran, with the University of Florida College of Medicine, began practicing mindfulness meditation for just 21 minutes a day. He found that his clarity and focus improved dramatically. And he wanted to see how the practice could affect people on a cellular, or even genetic, level.
So, he organized a study and invited 106 volunteers to participate in an eight-day meditation retreat at the Isha Institute of Inner-Sciences in Tennessee. The results were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The volunteers meditated for more than 10 hours a day and remained silent for the rest of the day. They also consumed vegan meals and obtained regular amounts of sleep each night.
To gauge the effect of meditation on gene expression, Chandran and his team took blood samples from the volunteers at four different times during the study:
- Five to eight weeks before the retreat
- Immediately before the retreat
- Immediately after the retreat
- Three months after the retreat
It turns out, the volunteers exhibited powerful changes in gene expression after the intense meditation retreat.
Specifically, 220 genes involved in regulating the immune system became MORE ACTIVE after participants completed the retreat. And 68 of those genes have a role in signaling interferon, a natural substance your body makes to fight off viruses and diseases—including cancer.
(In fact, man-made interferon injections are given to patients to treat everything from lymphoma and melanoma to hepatitis and MS.)
According to Dr. Chandran, “This is the first time anyone has shown that meditation can boost your interferon signaling. It demonstrates a way to voluntarily influence the immune system without pharmaceuticals.”
(Note: As I mentioned, the volunteers also followed a vegan diet. But, not surprising to me, that diet did not appear to have the same benefits as meditation.)
Even more applications on the horizon
Overall, Chandran and his team found that meditation activated 97 percent of the genes associated with interferon—which is truly remarkable. That result can be comparable to what MS patients experience when given interferon injections.
Finally, let’s look at how to make mindfulness mediation a part of your daily routine. It’s simpler than you may think:
- Sit in a comfortable position with your eyes closed. Take in a few deep breaths.
- Think of what you want for your life. Is it health? Peace? Love? Hold onto that thought.
- Repeat to yourself silently, “May I be healthy (or happy, or peaceful, etc.).” If your mind wanders, gently bring it back to your wish for yourself.
- Picture someone you care about. Repeat the same phrase for that person, while holding his or her image in your mind.
- Now, picture someone you don’t have any feelings about or connection to—maybe a person who was in front of you in line—and direct the wish to him or her.
- Think of someone you don’t have positive feelings toward—like a difficult in-law or peer—and direct the wish toward him or her.
- Now, direct the wish toward the whole world: “May everyone, everywhere, be happy (or healthy, or peaceful, etc.).”
- Slowly open your eyes and return to your day, keeping this expansive feeling of benevolence with you, in all that you do.
For more details on how to incorporate powerful, immune-boosting meditation into your daily life, please see my book with Don McCown New World Mindfulness.