Mind-Body Methods & Heart Health

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, ranking above cancer and stroke. Additionally, hypertension, commonly referred to as "high blood pressure," is the 13th leading cause of death in the U.S. It is therefore important for all health and fitness professionals to be informed about the methods available to support heart health.

Mind-Body Approaches to Stress and Cardiovascular Health
There is evidence that lifestyle modification programs incorporating mind-body methods can play a significant role in the treatment of cardiovascular disease, reducing risk factors such as body weight and total cholesterol.

The groundbreaking research of Herbert Benson, MD, on the effect of meditation on blood pressure was described in his landmark book, The Relaxation Response. Benson described a relaxation response that could offset the effects of the fight-or-flight response to stress, which is associated with increased heart rate and blood pressure, among other changes. Click to learn how Chinese medicine treats Diabets.

The relaxation response is the opposite of the fight-or-flight response, resulting in decreases in heart rate and respiration, blood pressure (if already elevated) and the metabolic rate. Benson and Klipper describe four basic components that help elicit the relaxation response:

a quiet environment
a mental device—a sound, word, phrase or prayer repeated silently or aloud, or a fixed gaze at an object
a passive attitude—not worrying about how well one is performing the technique, and simply putting aside distracting thoughts to return to one’s focus
a comfortable position
Benson’s work is a cornerstone in the foundation of mind-body medicine, relevant to all who use mind-body disciplines to promote health and wellness, with particular significance for cardiovascular health. Recent research by Dusek et al. suggests that the relaxation response can change the expression of genes that are normally associated with the damaging effects of stress, essentially "turning off" genes associated with disease!

Benson notes several mind-body methods that can elicit the relaxation response, including meditation, yoga, tai chi, repetitive prayer, breathing exercises, biofeedback, progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery and qigong.