Buddha was one of the major advocates of meditation, arriving around 500 B.C. As his injunction to spend time focused away from the material world gained traction and spread to different cultures, meditation blossomed around the world.

Meditation arrived slowly in the west and particularly late in the United States. It was only in the 1960s when the first clinical research into meditation’s benefits emerged. But other important research discovered that the practice has a host of health benefits beyond spiritual enrichment.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, part of the National Institutes of Health, monitors natural products like minerals, vitamins, probiotics, herbs and other botanicals, dietary supplements, and amino acids. It also studies mind and body practices like massage therapy, acupuncture, chiropractors, tai chi, yoga, qigong, meditation and other relaxation techniques.

Whether traditional medicine supports a particular treatment or medicine usually relies on whether studies have proven their effectiveness. Often, a treatment that was skeptically greeted by traditional medicine may be embraced down the road when scientific support for its claims emerges.

Regarding meditation, researchers discovered that stress, anxiety and depression, three key mental health issues, were reduced by meditation. In the “deep rest” state of meditation, a lot of stress is diminished, allowing clear thinking to emerge. This enhances learning ability, reduces irritability and moodiness, helps concentration, and enhances creativity.