New research findings demonstrate that meditative training can improve performance on tasks that require you to pay close attention. So those who learn and study can add another tool to their arsenal - meditation - to help their concentration.

Our sensory system is constantly bombarded with inputs, but owing to the brain’s finite processing power, we are forced to pay attention to only a tiny proportion of these inputs at any given time. In a new study, researchers at the University of Wisconsin report that intensive training in meditation can alter the way in which the brain allocates attentional resources to important stimuli, allowing people to improve their performance on a demanding visual task..

Importantly, the research subjects did not meditate during the testing. So, these results indicate that intensive mental training can produce lasting and significant improvements in the efficient distribution of attentional resources among competing stimuli, even when individuals are not actively using the techniques they have learned.

Mindfulness meditation teaches us how to mindfully disengage from distressing or anxious moods and negative thoughts. If you would like to learn more about this ancient technique and learn to actively participate in your health and well being while changing your body’s reaction to stress, please call or email me.