Improving Prefrontal Oxygenation and Cardiac Autonomic Activity Following Meditation: A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) Study.

Practicing the mind sound resonance technique (MSRT), a meditative relaxation approach, improved oxygenation in the right prefrontal cortex and altered heart rate variability—increasing low-frequency and decreasing high-frequency components—compared to baseline in college students aged 19–30. Fifty volunteers (30 women, 20 men) were split into MSRT and supine rest groups. MSRT also showed a significant difference from supine rest in the standard deviation of normal-to-normal intervals of heart rate variability. Self-reported mindfulness and anxiety were measured before and after. The evidence suggests MSRT may help develop anxiety-related coping skills by promoting prefrontal cortex oxygenation and modulating heart rate variability.

Study at a glance

Abstract

The empirical evidence explicitly demonstrates that meditation practice enhances both brain functions and mental well-being. A meditative relaxation approach called the mind sound resonance technique (MSRT) has shown promising effects on children, adolescents, and people with psychological illnesses. This study aimed to investigate the effects of MSRT practice on brain hemodynamics, heart rate variability (HRV), mindfulness, and anxiety levels in college students. Fifty volunteers in all genders (females, n = 30; males, n = 20) aged between 19 and 30 years were chosen from an educational institute and allocated into two groups, i.e., MSRT (n = 25) and supine rest (SR; n = 25). Enrolled participants were measured cerebral hemodynamics and HRV before, during, and after the MSRT or SR practice. The self-reported assessments including state anxiety and mindfulness were assessed before and after the intervention. The results demonstrated that practicing MSRT significantly improved oxygenation (p < 0.05) in the right prefrontal cortex (PFC) and increased low-frequency (LF) (p < 0.05) and decreased high-frequency (HF) (p < 0.05) component of HRV when compared to the baseline. The between-group analysis showed a significant difference between MSRT and SR in the standard deviation of the normal-to-normal (SDNN) (p < 0.05) component of HRV. These crumbs of evidence imply that MSRT sessions may foster the development of anxiety-related coping skills by elevating mindfulness, promoting PFC oxygenation, and modulating HRV in MSRT practitioners.