Science behind meditation: 5 things you probably didn't know

There's so much about meditation that the scientists have not yet been able to explore it fully.

An approach that has been practiced for thousands of years, meditation is an exercise that makes you able to control your mind, thoughts and feelings. There are different techniques of meditation and if done regularly, it benefits you a lot more than you could ever imagine. Here, we have gathered 5 amazing scientific facts about meditation, that will enhance your interest to practice this ancient exercise.

1. Stress Reduction: Meditation is an excellent way of reducing stress and anxiety. When your brain releases too much cortisol (stress hormone), it boosts the production of cytokines (a chemical that promotes inflammation). Several scientific researches have found that regular practice of meditation restricts cytokines production and reduces stress, anxiety and depression. Also, meditation cuts down the volume of brain tissues that are connected with worries and increases the connection between amygdala and prefrontal cortex in your brain; both of which result in helping your brain to recover from stress more quickly.
2. Improves Attention: If you can't focus on your works for more than a minute, then meditation can be the most effective way to solve this problem. Several researches have shown that mindful meditation improves your consciousness and forms your brain in such a way that ultimately results in sharpening your focus, attention and concentration. So, if you have an exam tomorrow and can't focus on your studies just do 30 minutes meditation and see the result.
3. Boosts Memory: Meditation has a lot of positive effects on your brain and several studies have found that, it boosts your memory as well as your ability to learn new informations. According to many neuroscientists, regular practice of meditation improves cortical density and grey matter in your brain, both of which are highly associated with your memory.
4. Improves Physical Health: Many scientific researches have found that meditation has a lot of positive effects on your physical health. The brain controls all the activities in your body and as meditation improves your brain functions, it ultimately boosts your overall physical health. It protects you from some neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease. If practiced on a regular basis, meditation reduces your blood pressure, boosts your cardiovascular health and protects you from several heart diseases, decreases pain, reduces inflammation and most importantly, improves your overall immune system.
5. Improves Creativity: Meditation clears out all the unnecessary thoughts in your brain and makes you open to new ideas. Several studies have shown that people, who practice meditation on a regular basis, are more creative than people who don't practice meditation.

So, it's very much important for everyone to practice meditation, at least for 10 minutes everyday.