The effects of mind-body training on stress reduction, positive affect, and plasma catecholamines

This study was designed to assess the association between stress, positive affect and catecholamine levels in meditation and control groups. The meditation group consisted of 67 subjects who regularly engaged in mind-body training of "Brain-Wave Vibration" and the control group consisted of 57 healthy subjects. Plasma catecholamine (norepinephrine (NE), epinephrine (E), and dopamine (DA)) levels were measured, and a modified form of the Stress Response Inventory (SRI-MF) and the Positive Affect and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS) were administered. The meditation group showed higher scores on positive affect (p = .019) and lower scores on stress (p < .001) compared with the control group. Plasma DA levels were also higher in the meditation (p = .031) than in the control group. The control group demonstrated a negative correlation between stress and positive affects (r= -.408, p =.002), whereas this correlation was not observed in the meditation group. The control group showed positive correlations between somatization and NE/E (r =.267, p =.045) and DA/E (r=.271, p =.042) ratios, whereas these correlations did not emerge in the meditation group. In conclusion, these results suggest that meditation as mind-body training is associated with lower stress, higher positive affect and higher plasma DA levels when comparing the meditation group with the control group. Thus, mind-body training may influence stress, positive affect and the sympathetic nervous system including DA activity. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.This work was supported by Cognitive Neuroscience Program of the Korean Ministry of Science and Technology (M10644020003-08N4402-00310).Holzman C, 2009, AM J EPIDEMIOL, V170, P1014, DOI 10.1093/aje/kwp218Figueredo VM, 2009, AM J MED, V122, P704, DOI 10.1016/j.amjmed.2009.05.001Glannon W, 2009, BIOETHICS, V23, P321, DOI 10.1111/j.1467-8519.2009.01727.xSears S, 2009, J CLIN PSYCHOL, V65, P561, DOI 10.1002/jclp.20543Bissette G, 2009, J ALZHEIMERS DIS, V18, P371, DOI 10.3233/JAD-2009-1171Chida Y, 2008, PSYCHOL BULL, V134, P829, DOI 10.1037/a0013342Fredrickson BL, 2008, J PERS SOC PSYCHOL, V95, P1045, DOI 10.1037/a0013262Matsunaga M, 2008, BRAIN BEHAV IMMUN, V22, P408, DOI 10.1016/j.bbi.2007.09.008Folkman S, 2008, ANXIETY STRESS COPIN, V21, P3, DOI 10.1080/10615800701740457Tang YY, 2007, P NATL ACAD SCI USA, V104, P17152LeBlanc J, 2007, PHYSIOL BEHAV, V91, P208, DOI 10.1016/j.physbeh.2007.02.011Lee SH, 2007, J PSYCHOSOM RES, V62, P189, DOI 10.1016/j.jpsychores.2006.09.009Grepmair L, 2007, PSYCHOTHER PSYCHOSOM, V76, P332, DOI 10.1159/000107560Mitchell RLC, 2007, NEUROPSYCHOLOGIA, V45, P617, DOI 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2006.06.030Jain S, 2007, ANN BEHAV MED, V33, P11Meissner WW, 2006, B MENNINGER CLIN, V70, P295Sabban EL, 2006, CELL MOL NEUROBIOL, V26, P845, DOI 10.1007/s10571-006-9069-1Burgdorf J, 2006, NEUROSCI BIOBEHAV R, V30, P173, DOI 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2005.06.001CHOI S, 2006, J KOREAN NEUROPSYCHI, V45, P541Wachholtz AB, 2005, J BEHAV MED, V28, P369, DOI 10.1007/s10865-005-9008-5Chesney MA, 2005, INT J BEHAV MED, V12, P50CARSON JW, 2005, J HOLISTIC NURSING, V23, P287KJAER TW, 2002, BRAIN RES COGN BRAIN, V13, P255Nakao M, 2001, BEHAV MED, V26, P169Koh KB, 2001, PSYCHOSOM MED, V63, P668Infante JR, 2001, PHYSIOL BEHAV, V72, P141Fava GA, 2000, PSYCHOTHER PSYCHOSOM, V69, P184Koolhaas JM, 1999, NEUROSCI BIOBEHAV R, V23, P925MILLER JJ, 1995, GEN HOSP PSYCHIAT, V17, P192KRAHENBUHL GS, 1978, AVIAT SPACE ENVIR MD, V49, P1107