JAMA neuro: Effects of 18 months of meditation training on brain volume and perfusion in the elderly region

There are no randomised lifestyle-based clinical trials that directly target psychoemotional risk factors
for dementia.
The recently emerged meditation practice is a promising mental exercise that can promote brain health and reduce the risk
of dementia.
This study aimed to explore the effects of
meditation training on brain integrity in older adults.

Age-Well is a randomized, controlled dominance trial in which adults with cognitive impairment aged 65 years and older living in communities in France were recruited
between November 24, 2016 and March 5, 2018.
Participants were randomly assigned (1:1:1) to (1) 18 months of meditation-based training, (2) structurally matched non-native (English) training, or (3) no intervention arm
.
Interventions for meditation and non-native language training consisted of 2 hours of group lessons per week, 20 minutes or more per day at home, and 1 day of intensive practice
.
Primary outcomes included volume and perfusion
of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and insula.
Primary secondary outcomes included brain-wide composite scores and component scores
that captured cognitive, social, and self-regulatory abilities.

Of the 137 participants (mean [SD] age, 69.
4 [3.
8] years; 83 [60.
6%] women; 54 [39.
4%] men) were assigned to meditation (n = 45), non-native language training (n = 46), or no intervention (n = 46).

ACC in the meditation group and the intervention-free or non-native language training group (0.
01 [98.
75% CI, -0.
02 to 0.
05]; P = .
36) or insula (0.
01 [98.
75% CI, -0.
02 to 0.
03]; P = .
58) there was no difference
in volume change.
The difference in perfusion change in ACC between meditation and no intervention was not statistically significant (0.
02 [98.
75% CI, -0.
01 to 0.
05]; P = .
06), the difference in perfusion change in insula leaves was not statistically significant compared to non-native language training (0.
02 [98.
75% CI, -0.
01 to 0.
05]; P = .
09）
。 Meditation outperformed non-native language training on the 18-month global composite score that covered attention regulation, social-mood, and self-cognition (Cohen d, 0.
52 [95% CI, 0.
19-0.
85]; P = .
002）
。

The results confirm the viability of meditation and non-native language training in older adults, with high adherence and low
attrition rates.
The findings also showed that the positive behavioral effects of meditation were not reflected in the volume of the target brain area, nor was
there a significant perfusion.

References:

Effect of an 18-Month Meditation Training on Regional Brain Volume and Perfusion in Older Adults: The Age-Well Randomized Clinical Trial .
JAMA Neurol.
Published online October 10, 2022.
doi:10.
1001/jamaneurol.
2022.
3185