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New study: a safe, effective non-pharmaceutical treatment for ADD and ADHD
January 30, 2009
10:30 PM EST (Updated: January 31, 2009 12:57 PM EST)
views: 142 | comments: 14
New Study: Transcendental Meditation Technique
Reduces ADHD
Symptoms
|
JANUARY 30, 2009
|
Students practice the TM technique
for 10 minutes twice a day
Student anxiety decreased 53 percent
after 3 months
Attention and problem solving
improved during the study
Sarina J. Grosswald, Ed.D, lead
researcher of the study
 
Fred Travis, Ph.D.,
coauthor of the study
|
Transcendental Meditation Technique
Reduces ADHD Symptoms
The Transcendental Meditation® technique may be
an effective and safe non-pharmaceutical aid for treating attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD) according to a promising new study published
last month in the peer-reviewed online journal Current Issues in Education
.
The study was conducted in a private K-12
school for children with language-based learning disabilities. Participation was
restricted to 10 students, ages 11-14, who had pre-existing diagnoses of
ADHD. About half of the students were on medication. The students practiced
the TM technique at school in a group for 10 minutes, morning and afternoon.
After three months, researchers found over
50 percent reduction in stress and anxiety, and improvements in ADHD
symptoms.
“The effect was much greater than we
expected,” said Sarina J. Grosswald, Ed.D., a George Washington University-trained
cognitive learning
specialist, M.U.M. adjunct
faculty, and lead researcher on the study. “The children also
showed improvements in attention, working memory, organization, and behavior
regulation.”
Dr. Grosswald said that after the in-school
meditation routine began, “teachers said they were able to teach more, and
students were able to learn more because they were less stressed and
anxious.”
Other research shows ADHD children have
slower brain development
and a reduced ability to cope with stress. “This results in impaired executive functioning,
causing difficulty with skills such as analyzing, problem solving, and
focus,” said Dr. Grosswald. “By reducing stress through the practice of the
TM technique, executive functioning improves – reducing the symptoms of
ADHD.”
“The results were quite remarkable,” said
Daryl Schoenbach, mother of one of the students. “The twice daily meditations
smoothed things out, gave her perspective, and enabled her to be in greater
control of her own life when things started falling apart. It took some time,
but it gradually changed the way she handled crises and enabled her to feel
confident that she could take on greater challenges.”
There is growing concern about the health
risks and side effects associated with ADHD medications and the
Transcendental Meditation technique can provide a safer alternative for parents and their children.
Dr. Fred Travis, Director of the Center
for Brain, Consciousness
and Cognition at M.U.M. also coauthored this study, which was
funded by the Abramson Family Foundation and the Institute for Community
Enrichment.
Click here to view an
interview with participating students
Click here to view PBS Feature on the TM technique and ADHD The Transcendental Meditation technique must be learned personally from a certified teacher of the Transcendental Meditation program. The technique cannot be learned from a book, video or audio tape. For more information on how to learn the Transcendental Meditation technique in the U.S. and Canada, call toll free: 1-888-LEARN TM (1-888-532-7686). |
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