1979/12/01 by Michael J. Cooper, M Aygen · 3 citations
Medicine · Psychology · #Adrenergic #Cholesterol #Dietary Effects on Health #Endocrinology #Internal medicine #Medicine #Meditation #Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions #Pharmacology and Obesity Treatment #Psychology #Relaxation (psychology) #Relaxation Therapy #Serum cholesterol #Total cholesterol #Transcendental meditation
paper · doi:10.1080/0097840x.1979.10545991
openalex publication_date 1979/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
Chronic sympathetic nervous system overactivity has been implicated as a factor capable of elevating and maintaining high serum cholesterol levels independent of dietary measures. We conducted a controlled trial to determine the effect of a relaxation technique. Transcendental Meditation, on serum cholesterol levels in hypercholesterolemic subjects. Serum cholesterol levels were measured at beginning and end of an 11-month period in 12 hypercholesterolemic subjects who regularly practiced meditation. Eleven hypercholesterolemic controls who did not practice the technique were similarly followed up for 13 months. Paired comparisons showed a significant (p less than 0.005) reduction in fasting serum cholesterol levels of those subjects who practiced meditation. These results suggest that the regular practice of a relaxation technique may contribute, most likely through a reduction in adrenergic activity, to the amelioration of hypercholesterolemia in certain subjects.