Conscious Choice: Your Brain on Pain

October 2006 | Whole Health

Your Brain on Pain

By Elizabeth Barker

Everyday ouches—a stubbed toe, a papercut—may cause less distress to your brain if you meditate regularly, according to a new study in the journal NeuroReport. To test transcendental meditation’s effects on the brain’s response to sudden pain, researchers compared 12 healthy 30-year TM practitioners with 12 others of similar health who had received only an introductory TM lecture. Upon having their fingers immersed in hot water for 30 seconds, all participants generally reported the same level of discomfort. But brain scans of the long-term meditators showed up to 50 percent less activity in some brain regions in response to the pain.

“Prior research indicates that transcendental meditation creates a more balanced outlook and greater equanimity in reacting to stress,” explains lead study author David Orme-Johnson, Ph.D. “This study suggests that this is not just attitudinal, but a fundamental change in how the brain functions.”

Catch the Buzz

Need some pep in your step? Reaching for a sugary energy drink might actually cause you to crash, suggests a new study from the journal Human Psychopharmacology. The day after sleeping only five hours, 10 healthy study participants were given either an energy drink (with 42 grams of sugar and 30 mg of caffeine) or a sugar-free, caffeine-free drink. During a 90-minute test taken shortly after downing their drinks, those who’d consumed the caffeine/sugar combo became significantly sleepier and less capable.

For a better energy boost, skip the sugar and go for protein. “Two brain chemicals that produce feelings of alertness (dopamine and norepinephrine) appear to be increased by the consumption of protein-rich foods,” says Pasadena-based dietitian Lorraine K. Gray, RD. “So to avoid the sluggish, sleepy feeling, try eating nuts, low-fat milk, yogurt or lean meats at snack times.”

Keys to ZZZs

Popping a pill may seem like the solution to insomnia, but new research has found cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) offers an easier path to dreamland. For a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, scientists from Norway’s University of Bergen assigned 46 insomniac adults to six weeks of treatment with the sleeping pill Imovane (similar to Lunesta), CBT sessions or a placebo. While the CBT group reduced their tossing and turning by 50 percent, those who took Imovane saw their total wake time fall by only 16 percent (just 12 percentage points higher than the placebo group).

The keys to more ZZZs are sticking to a regular sleep schedule and avoiding lying in bed while awake, according to study author Borge Sivertsen, PsyD. The study’s CBT sessions taught participants how to perform relaxation techniques, set up a sleep-promoting bedroom and deal with those nagging emotional issues that interfere with a good night’s rest.

Elizabeth Barker is a freelance writer living in Echo Park.

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