Changes in Heart Rate Variability During Heartfulness Meditation: A Power Spectral Analysis Including the Residual Spectrum
Background: Meditation refers to a group of practices commonly proposed to treat stress-related conditions and improve overall wellness. In particular, meditation might exert beneficial actions on heart rate variability (HRV) by acting on autonomic tone with an increase in the vagal activity. The ef...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2019-05-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fcvm.2019.00062/full |
| _version_ | 1818299762197135360 |
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| author | Anne Léonard Serge Clément Cheng-Deng Kuo Cheng-Deng Kuo Mario Manto Mario Manto Mario Manto |
| author_facet | Anne Léonard Serge Clément Cheng-Deng Kuo Cheng-Deng Kuo Mario Manto Mario Manto Mario Manto |
| author_sort | Anne Léonard |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background: Meditation refers to a group of practices commonly proposed to treat stress-related conditions and improve overall wellness. In particular, meditation might exert beneficial actions on heart rate variability (HRV) by acting on autonomic tone with an increase in the vagal activity. The effects of heartfulness meditation (HM) on HRV remain poorly defined.Methods: We investigated the effects of HM on HRV in a group of 26 healthy subjects. Subjects were regularly practicing this form of meditation on a daily basis. We assessed the HRV and residual HRV (rHRV) at rest and during meditation. We also used as control a period of respiratory rhythm imposed by an auditory signal, with the imposed breathing rhythm being identical to the spontaneous rhythm recorded during meditation.Results: During deep meditation period, the standard deviation of RR intervals (SDRR), coefficient of variation of RR intervals (CVRR), and total power (TP) were decreased while the low-frequency power (LFP), normalized LFP (nLFP), and normalized residual LFP (nrLFP) were increased as compared with those at rest, suggesting that the global vagal modulation was suppressed while the baroreflex was increased during deep medication. At the end of meditation, the LFP, residual LFP (rLFP), nLFP, nrLFP, low-/high-frequency power ratio (LHR), and residual LHR (rLHR) were increased while the residual very low-frequency power (rVLFP), normalized high-frequency power (nHFP), and normalized residual HFP (nrHFP) were decreased, as compared with those during paced breathing, suggesting that the vagal modulation was decreased while the sympathetic modulation was increased by deep meditation. During paced breathing period, the SDRR, CVRR, TP, LFP, rLFP, nLFP, nrLFP, LHR, and rLHR were decreased while nHFP and nrHFP were increased as compared with at rest, suggesting that paced breathing could suppress the sympathetic modulation and enhance the vagal modulation.Conclusion: HM can induce a suppression of global vagal modulation and increased the sympathetic modulation and baroreflex. In addition, paced breathing can suppress the sympathetic modulation and enhance the vagal modulation. Unlike studies using other types of meditation, we did not identify evidence of increased vagal tone during HM. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-13T04:56:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-134e70172ab14e57bcea5ea19d5a49e6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2297-055X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T04:56:22Z |
| publishDate | 2019-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-134e70172ab14e57bcea5ea19d5a49e62022-12-21T23:58:53ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine2297-055X2019-05-01610.3389/fcvm.2019.00062452558Changes in Heart Rate Variability During Heartfulness Meditation: A Power Spectral Analysis Including the Residual SpectrumAnne Léonard0Serge Clément1Cheng-Deng Kuo2Cheng-Deng Kuo3Mario Manto4Mario Manto5Mario Manto6HELB Ilya Prigogine, Brussels, BelgiumHELB Ilya Prigogine, Brussels, BelgiumDivision of Chest Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Changhua Christian Hospital, Changhua City, TaiwanDepartment of Medical Research, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, TaiwanHELB Ilya Prigogine, Brussels, BelgiumService de Neurologie, ULB CHU-Charleroi, Charleroi, BelgiumService des Neurosciences, University of Mons, Mons, BelgiumBackground: Meditation refers to a group of practices commonly proposed to treat stress-related conditions and improve overall wellness. In particular, meditation might exert beneficial actions on heart rate variability (HRV) by acting on autonomic tone with an increase in the vagal activity. The effects of heartfulness meditation (HM) on HRV remain poorly defined.Methods: We investigated the effects of HM on HRV in a group of 26 healthy subjects. Subjects were regularly practicing this form of meditation on a daily basis. We assessed the HRV and residual HRV (rHRV) at rest and during meditation. We also used as control a period of respiratory rhythm imposed by an auditory signal, with the imposed breathing rhythm being identical to the spontaneous rhythm recorded during meditation.Results: During deep meditation period, the standard deviation of RR intervals (SDRR), coefficient of variation of RR intervals (CVRR), and total power (TP) were decreased while the low-frequency power (LFP), normalized LFP (nLFP), and normalized residual LFP (nrLFP) were increased as compared with those at rest, suggesting that the global vagal modulation was suppressed while the baroreflex was increased during deep medication. At the end of meditation, the LFP, residual LFP (rLFP), nLFP, nrLFP, low-/high-frequency power ratio (LHR), and residual LHR (rLHR) were increased while the residual very low-frequency power (rVLFP), normalized high-frequency power (nHFP), and normalized residual HFP (nrHFP) were decreased, as compared with those during paced breathing, suggesting that the vagal modulation was decreased while the sympathetic modulation was increased by deep meditation. During paced breathing period, the SDRR, CVRR, TP, LFP, rLFP, nLFP, nrLFP, LHR, and rLHR were decreased while nHFP and nrHFP were increased as compared with at rest, suggesting that paced breathing could suppress the sympathetic modulation and enhance the vagal modulation.Conclusion: HM can induce a suppression of global vagal modulation and increased the sympathetic modulation and baroreflex. In addition, paced breathing can suppress the sympathetic modulation and enhance the vagal modulation. Unlike studies using other types of meditation, we did not identify evidence of increased vagal tone during HM.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fcvm.2019.00062/fullmeditationheartfulnessheart rate variabilitypower spectrumresidual spectrumvagal |
| spellingShingle | Anne Léonard Serge Clément Cheng-Deng Kuo Cheng-Deng Kuo Mario Manto Mario Manto Mario Manto Changes in Heart Rate Variability During Heartfulness Meditation: A Power Spectral Analysis Including the Residual Spectrum Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine meditation heartfulness heart rate variability power spectrum residual spectrum vagal |
| title | Changes in Heart Rate Variability During Heartfulness Meditation: A Power Spectral Analysis Including the Residual Spectrum |
| title_full | Changes in Heart Rate Variability During Heartfulness Meditation: A Power Spectral Analysis Including the Residual Spectrum |
| title_fullStr | Changes in Heart Rate Variability During Heartfulness Meditation: A Power Spectral Analysis Including the Residual Spectrum |
| title_full_unstemmed | Changes in Heart Rate Variability During Heartfulness Meditation: A Power Spectral Analysis Including the Residual Spectrum |
| title_short | Changes in Heart Rate Variability During Heartfulness Meditation: A Power Spectral Analysis Including the Residual Spectrum |
| title_sort | changes in heart rate variability during heartfulness meditation a power spectral analysis including the residual spectrum |
| topic | meditation heartfulness heart rate variability power spectrum residual spectrum vagal |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fcvm.2019.00062/full |
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