SUBJECT: New study on TM & cardiovascular disease

Please find below a release that is being issued today by Maharishi University of Management, Iowa, USA, about a new study by Dr Ken Walton and others on the effectiveness of TM in the treatment of cardiovascular disease - paper published today in the scientific journal Behavioral Medicine.

Ken Walton is being interviewed on US radio's "The Deborah Ray Show" today, Thursday, 15 May, at 10:06 A.M. EST.(USA) - 4 PM UK time. You can listen to the interview live over the Internet at www.healthytalkradio.com. The interview may also be listed the following week in the archives section and then you can listen to it anytime.

Public Affairs · Fairfield, Iowa 52557 · Ph. 641-470-1314 · kchawkin@mum.edu · http://www.mum.edu

Embargo: Contact: Ken Chawkin
May 15, 2003 Ph. (641) 470-1314

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Evidence for the effectiveness of alternative approaches to cardiovascular disease is bolstered by a study published today in Behavioral Medicine. The review article shows that there is now a significant body of peer-reviewed research on the benefits of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique for cardiovascular disease.

The research is part two of a series of three articles. The first article in the series reviewed evidence showing that social and psychological stresses exacerbate cardiovascular disease. The current review article draws together recent research demonstrating the positive effects of TM on a wide array of risk factors and shows how this technique can halt or even reverse negative changes in the body that cause the disease and that can lead to death.

According to study coauthor, Ken Walton, of the federally funded Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention in Fairfield, Iowa, psychosocial stress (as opposed to stress caused by trauma or deprivation) is associated with conditions such as low socioeconomic status (low levels of education, occupation, and income) and adverse life events such as loss of a loved one, divorce, job loss, work pressures, or social isolation.

These conditions can lead to inappropriate or maladaptive responses such as anger, hostility, and depression. A psychosocial approach attempting to alleviate cardiovascular disease would need to address psychological as well as social behaviors. The study demonstrates the potential effectiveness of TM on both aspects.

When people feel stressed, it means the usual coping mechanisms and social support aren’t enough to deal with the challenges or hassles they are experiencing. Under these conditions, the body’s normal responses become distorted in ways that can cause damage. These include neuroendocrine imbalances such as hyperactivity of the sympathetic nervous system. Distortions of this sort increase risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease, like hypertension, high cholesterol, and obesity. Under chronic stress, these physiological mechanisms may lead to manifest cardiovascular disease in the form of, for example, atherosclerosis and ischemia. The research shows that not only is TM useful for addressing the nontraditional risk factor of psychosocial stress, it’s also beneficial for tackling these traditional cardiovascular disease risk factors and for treating diagnosed cardiovascular disease cases. It also thereby lowers the probability of a fatal heart attack or stroke.

The study located all controlled research in the last 15 years that examined the effects of TM on a variety of factors related to cardiovascular disease, including traditional risk factors such as high blood pressure, lipids and cholesterol, and substance abuse. It also located research that examined the ability of TM to change indicators of stress such as neuroticism and low self-concept. And it looked at studies on the ability of TM to change physiological indicators of stress, such as skin resistance, respiratory and heart rates, and urinary indicators of chronic stress. Finally, the study located research on the effects of the TM program on the incidence of cardiovascular disease and death.

Thirty studies were found to meet the criteria for inclusion. The outcomes of all but one of the reviewed studies support the ability of the TM program to positively affect the symptoms and progression of cardiovascular disease. The most promising research may be the clinical trials showing reductions in atherosclerosis in middle aged and older individuals.

Much of the ongoing research on Transcendental Meditation and cardiovascular disease is being conducted by the Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention, which was founded four years ago with the assistance of a grant of nearly $8 million from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, a component of the National Institutes of Health. This Center is the research arm of the College of Maharishi Vedic Medicine, located on the campus of Maharishi University of Management in Fairfield and Vedic City, Iowa.

The federally funded Center for Natural Medicine and Prevention is the only research center in the country specializing in natural preventive medicine for minorities. The Center focuses on heart disease and other chronic disorders in high-risk, minority, aging populations. It collaborates with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, the University of Iowa College of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine, Howard University School of Medicine, and Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science.

"This study pulls together evidence that supports our follow-up research to clarify the mechanics of the beneficial, holistic effects of Transcendental Meditation," Dr. Walton said. "Also the study should help legitimize this approach so it can be implemented on a large scale to reduce cardiovascular disease, its risk factors, its enormous economic costs, and the general misery index that cardiovascular disease exacerbates."

The third and final paper in this series, expected in Behavioral Medicine later this year, covers public policy issues surrounding the use of the TM program. It focuses in part on medical education, comparing this approach to health with modern medicine, on the TM program itself, and on community-wide application of the program so that it can be implemented on a large scale.

Full text of the study, titled "Psychosocial Stress and Cardiovascular Disease Part 2: Effectiveness of the Transcendental Meditation Technique in Treatment and Prevention," is available on request.

Behavioral Medicine. http://www.heldref.org/html/body_bmed.html. A research database of Transcendental Meditation is available at www.mum.edu/tm_research/welcome.

Maharishi University of Management, Fairfield, Iowa, offers a wide range of undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the sciences, arts and humanities. It was founded in 1971 (as Maharishi International University) by world-renowned Vedic scholar Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, who introduced the Transcendental Meditation program nearly 50 years ago to develop total brain functioning and to create world peace.

The University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the North Central Association www.ncahigherlearningcommission.org 30 North LaSalle Street, Chicago, IL 60602, (312) 263-0456.

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