Meditation has been well researched and shown to be good for us in all sorts of ways. A recent Globe and Mail article talks of a study which showed that mindfulness meditation had a strong effect on the immune system.
Using a meditation group, an exercise group and a control group (that did nothing different), the researchers wanted to see which group would fare better during a month in the middle of flu season. Both exercise and meditation lowered the number of people getting sick by 25%, but meditation had a few extra benefits. Those that meditated and got the flu had the least symptoms and those in the meditation group missed the least work days. That is pretty convincing for the power of meditation!
Meditation is one of the simplest things you will ever learn, but it will challenge you for the rest of your life. If you are interested in learning to meditate (and get a pumped up immune system!) Sugar Ridge has several great programs for over this winter for you to try:
Yoga & Meditation Weekend Retreat
December 26 – 28
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Retreat
January 4 – 9, 2015
Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction 8-Week Program
January 20 – March 10, 2015