title: Zen meditation, Length of Telomeres, and the Role of Experiential Avoidance and Compassion.
abstract: Mindfulness refers to an awareness that emerges by intentionally focusing on the present experience in a nonjudgmental or evaluative manner. Evidence regarding its efficacy has been increasing exponentially, and recent research suggests that the practice of meditation is associated with longer leukocyte telomere length. However, the psychological mechanisms underlying this potential relationship are unknown. We examined the telomere lengths of a group of 20 Zen meditation experts and another 20 healthy matched comparison participants who had not previously meditated. We also measured multiple psychological variables related to meditation practice. Genomic DNA was extracted for telomere measurement using a Life Length proprietary program. High-throughput quantitative fluorescence in situ hybridization (HT-Q-FISH) was used to measure the telomere length distribution and the median telomere length (MTL). The meditators group had a longer MTL (p= 0.005) and a lower percentage of short telomeres in individual cells (p= 0.007) than those in the comparison group. To determine which of the psychological variables contributed more to telomere maintenance, two regression analyses were conducted. In the first model, which applied to the MTL, the following three factors were significant: age, absence of experiential avoidance, and Common Humanity subscale of the Self Compassion Scale. Similarly, in the model that examined the percentage of short telomeres, the same factors were significant: age, absence of experiential avoidance, and Common Humanity subscale of the Self Compassion Scale. Although limited by a small sample size, these results suggest that the absence of experiential avoidance of negative emotions and thoughts is integral to the connection between meditation and telomeres.
authors.affiliation: Miguel Servet University Hospital, University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain ; Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud. Red de Investigación en Atención Primaria (REDIAPP), Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Alda
authors.affiliation: Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud. Red de Investigación en Atención Primaria (REDIAPP), Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Puebla-Guedea
authors.affiliation: Centro Rodero: Clinica de Neurociencias, Santander, Spain.
authors.forename: Baltasar
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rodero
authors.affiliation: University Federal of Sao Paulo (UNIFESP), Sao Paulo, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marcelo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Demarzo
authors.affiliation: Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud. Red de Investigación en Atención Primaria (REDIAPP), Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Jesus
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Montero-Marin
authors.affiliation: Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud. Red de Investigación en Atención Primaria (REDIAPP), Zaragoza, Spain ; Institut Universitari d'Investigació en Ciències de la Salut, Palma de Mallorca, Illes Balears Red de Actividades Preventivas y Promoción de la Salud en Atención Primaria (RediAPP), Universitat de les Illes Balears, Illes Balears, Spain.
authors.forename: Miquel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Roca
authors.affiliation: Miguel Servet University Hospital, University of Zaragoza, Zaragoza, Spain ; Instituto Aragonés de Ciencias de la Salud. Red de Investigación en Atención Primaria (REDIAPP), Zaragoza, Spain ; Miguel Servet University Hospital, Avda Isabel La Catolica 1, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Garcia-Campayo
keywords: Compassion; Experiential avoidance; Mindfulness; Telomere length