Neurobiological Changes from Mindfulness and Meditation: Systematic Review
How does mindfulness meditation change the brain?
Mindfulness meditation produces measurable structural and functional changes in the brain, including increased cortical thickness in regions involved in emotional regulation and sensory processing. A systematic review published in Biomedicines synthesizes evidence from 9 studies showing that mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) enhances brain regions related to emotional processing, improves psychological outcomes like anxiety and depression, and employs unique mechanisms for pain reduction distinct from placebo effects.