Could this impact ADD, addiction and more?
Relaxing your muscles and meditating may actually grow your brain in areas to make you mentally healthier
A new piece of research shows that the part of the brain linked with attention deficit disorder, depression, schizophrenia, addiction and even dementia, can be improved by meditation combined with muscle relaxation. This is beyond the basic meditation that is believed to reduce stress and lower blood pressure. Study participants were cued by a coach on physical relasation and mental imagery while listening to music.
Volunteers who did IBMT (integrative body-mind training) for as little as eleven hours over four weeks showed increased myelin (the sheaths that cover critical brain cells) as well as more dense axons (part of the brain cells)---both positive. Those changes tend to make people feel better emotionally and may improve or even prevent mental disorders.
Here's an 'English' version of the study from Science Daily: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/06/120613183813.htm
To read the actual study, search 'Mechanisms of white matter changes induced by meditation' and you'll get more detail.
