MeditationBLISSNCT05455814
Brain Health With Inner Engineering Meditation
A study of Meditation and Brain; Agenesis, run by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
This study will explore whether a 21-minute meditation practice called Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya leads to changes in brain health and explore how it affects cognitive and physiological function. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 20 to 65 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Meditation, Brain; Agenesis
- Could I receive a placebo?
- Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
- How many people
- 77 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 6 Jan 2023to 17 Dec 2025
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 20 to 65 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Individuals between the ages of 20-65 years.
- Subjects will be required to be able to understand study instructions and provide informed consent.
- Currently residing in Massachusetts.
Who cannot join
- Non-English Speaking. (Justification: Meditation and cognitive assessment instruments are not validated in a sufficient range of languages, and the research team lacks polylingual capabilities or the financial resources to hire interpreters for the duration of all proposed assessments.)
- Practicing meditation regularly for the past 6 months (3 or more times per week of practice regularly for the past 6 month).
- History of psychiatric illness such as severe anxiety, severe depression, Schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.
- History of any form of cognitive decline or neurological conditions such as dementia, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, brain tumors, brain surgery.
- Current use of cognition enhancing drugs
- Current management for chronic pain.
Show all 14Show fewer
- History (within the last 5 years) of stroke/aneurysm.
- Active history (within the last 5 years) of alcohol or drug abuse (> 10 drinks per week).
- Current pregnancy or planning to become pregnant in the next 6 months.
- Currently enrolled in another interventional study that could impact the primary outcome, as determined by the PI.
- Educational attainment below high school level or equivalent.
- Significant visual impairment.
- Women of childbearing potential will be included as the intervention and the procedures in the study have minimal risks. There will be no enrollment exclusions based on sex, racial or ethnic factors.
- If a woman becomes pregnant during the course of the study and is willing to stay as a subject, MRI will not be conducted.
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Centre
Boston, Massachusetts, 02115
About this study
Official title: Brain Health With Inner Engineering- Longitudinal Study of Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya Meditation (BLISS)
This study will explore whether a 21-minute meditation practice called Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya leads to changes in brain health and explore how it affects cognitive and physiological function.
Read the detailed description
Meditation has been linked to improved brain health and lower brain age. Brain age has been successfully estimated from structural MRI and more recently, EEG Sleep data using Brain Age Index (BAI) derived by machine learning algorithms. Patients with significant neurological or psychiatric disease exhibit a mean excess BAI of about 4 years. Higher BAI is a predictor of mortality. Long term meditation has been associated with lower Brain Age in MRI studies. However, the EEG sleep measure of Brain Age has not been reported in meditators.
This project aims to quantify the progressive impact of meditation on brain age. If established objectively, meditation-based interventions could offer safe, affordable and accessible solutions to promote younger and healthier brains and will have invaluable health and financial implications.
The goal of this project is twofold:
- In alignment with the recent NCCIH emphasis, we propose this study to combine neuroimaging with other non-neural modalities to delineate the impact of meditation on brain health and overall physiology and to identify objective neural biomarkers to assess meditation-based interventions which could be further used in clinical applications.
- It is estimated that by 2050, an unprecedented 18% of the world's population will be above 65 years of age. According to the National Institute on Aging (NIA), aging is the most significant risk factor of many chronic conditions including age-related neurodegenerative diseases, which severely impact the quality of life, healthcare and social costs. The total healthcare cost of Alzheimer's disease in 2020 was estimated at $305 billion and expected to rise to $1 trillion soon. NIA's 5 year strategy highlights the crucial need to better understand the aging brain and develop interventions to address age-related neurological conditions.
The study intervention is a multi-component 21-minute meditation called Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya. It is taught at the Inner Engineering program offered by non-profit Isha Foundation as online as well as in-person formats. It incorporates a combination of different breathing patterns and meditative components. The intervention training provides precise, step by step and easy to follow instructions on how to perform this practice. Performed in a seated posture, this is a simple, safe and accessible intervention that requires no previous experience of meditation. The intervention selected for this study was shown to significantly reduce perceived stress, enhance self-reported general well-being, improve positive emotions, mindfulness, sleep, engagement, relationships and may promote enhanced Heart Rate Variability and Sympathovagal balance. The control group will be selected to be age, gender and education level matched with the intervention group and will be asked to continue their daily routine.
- Conditions
- Meditation, Brain; Agenesis
- Being tested
- Shambhavi Madamudra Kriya
- Keywords
- Functional MRI, EEG, Structural MRI, Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya, Mindfulness
- Medical subject headings
- Anencephaly
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Shambhavi Madamudra KriyaBehavioural
The intervention is taught at the Inner Engineering program offered by non-profit Isha Foundation as online as well as in-person formats. It incorporates a combination of different breathing patterns and meditative components. The intervention training provides precise, step by step and easy to follow instructions on how to perform this practice. Performed in a seated posture, this is a simple, safe and accessible intervention that requires no previous experience of meditation. The intervention selected for this study was shown to significantly reduce perceived stress, enhance self-reported general well-being, improve positive emotions, mindfulness, sleep, engagement, relationships, and may promote enhanced Heart Rate Variability and Sympathovagal balance.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Wellness and Meditation-Based Intervention | Experimental | Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya: a multi-component 21-minute meditation that incorporates a combination of different breathing patterns and meditative components. Receives: Behavioral: Shambhavi Madamudra Kriya |
| Control | No intervention | Control Group: selected to be age, gender and education level matched with the intervention group and will be asked to continue their daily routine while completing surveys at each timepoint. |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Change in Frontal Midline Theta Power after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice
Frontal Midline Theta Power is obtained from an average of 8 electrodes (Fpc, Fc, Cz, Pz, Oz, F7, F8, P7, P8) around the midline in a standard EEG cap and has been proposed as a correlate of meditation success in previous studies.
Increased value suggests increased control over the brain's default mode network, suggesting more successful meditation experience.
Measured: Measured at Baseline and 6 months
Change in Gamma Slope Index (GSI) after 6 Months of Daily Meditation
GSI is an indicator of the Excitation-Inhibition (E-I) balance in the brain and is computed from the power spectral density slope of oscillatory activity in the brain, taking the low-gamma (40-60Hz) band slope of the Power Spectral Density, and is steeper (more negative) when the E-I balance is tipped towards more inhibition.
A higher negative value suggests shift of the brain's excitation/inhibition balance toward more inhibition, indicating a calmer brain.
Measured: Measured at Baseline and 6 months
Secondary outcomes (3)
Change in Brain cortical thickness after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice
Brain cortical thickness (mm) will be assessed using MRI. Cortical thickness is the width of gray matter in the human cortex. Group-wise comparisons will be made between the intervention group (meditation) and control (no meditation).
A positive difference between the intervention (meditation) and control (no meditation) groups indicates greater cortical thickness in the intervention group.
Measured: Measured at Baseline and 6 Months
Changes in Brain regional volume after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice
Brain regional volume (mm^3) will be assessed using MRI. Brain regional volume is the volume of brain matter. Group-wise comparisons will be made between the intervention group (meditation) and control (no meditation).
A positive difference between the intervention (meditation) and control (no meditation) groups indicates greater brain volume in the intervention (meditation) group.
Measured: Measured at Baseline and 6 Months
Change in Brain Connectivity after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice
fMRI is an indirect measure of brain activity based on blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signals. Based on BOLD signals, functional connectivity will be assessed. Functional connectivity between two regions will be assessed for both the intervention and control group. A t-statistics value will be calculated based on the differences in signal intensities between the two groups.
A more positive t-statistic indicates greater brain connectivity in the intervention group (meditation) compared to the control (no meditation).
Measured: Measured at Baseline and 6 Months
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted13 Jul 2022
- Study start6 Jan 2023
- Primary completion16 Dec 2025
- Study completion17 Dec 2025
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (15)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for MeditationStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Health services research
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Factorial
- Model description
- This is a prospective cohort study with 40 intervention and 40 matched controls to be followed up for 6 months. Both cohorts will be recruited from meditation-Naïve healthy individuals. The intervention group will learn a 21 minute meditation to practice daily. Various outcomes related to brain health and brain age will be collected over a period of 6 months.
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 77 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Balachundhar Subramaniam, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Investigators
- Balachundar Subramaniam, MD, MPH, Principal investigator, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05455814
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 2022P000296
- Acronym
- BLISS
- Status last verified
- May 2026
- First submitted
- 15 Jun 2022
- Last updated
- 14 May 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
Publications
Yordanova J, Kolev V, Mauro F, Nicolardi V, Simione L, Calabrese L, Malinowski P, Raffone A. Common and distinct lateralised patterns of neural coupling during focused attention, open monitoring and loving kindness meditation. Sci Rep. 2020 May 4;10(1):7430. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-64324-6.
PubMed 32366919Fox KC, Dixon ML, Nijeboer S, Girn M, Floman JL, Lifshitz M, Ellamil M, Sedlmeier P, Christoff K. Functional neuroanatomy of meditation: A review and meta-analysis of 78 functional neuroimaging investigations. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2016 Jun;65:208-28. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.03.021. Epub 2016 Mar 28.
PubMed 27032724Luders E, Cherbuin N, Gaser C. Estimating brain age using high-resolution pattern recognition: Younger brains in long-term meditation practitioners. Neuroimage. 2016 Jul 1;134:508-513. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.04.007. Epub 2016 Apr 11.
PubMed 27079530Paixao L, Sikka P, Sun H, Jain A, Hogan J, Thomas R, Westover MB. Excess brain age in the sleep electroencephalogram predicts reduced life expectancy. Neurobiol Aging. 2020 Apr;88:150-155. doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2019.12.015. Epub 2019 Dec 23.
PubMed 31932049Peterson CT, Bauer SM, Chopra D, Mills PJ, Maturi RK. Effects of Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya, a Multicomponent Breath-Based Yogic Practice ( Pranayama), on Perceived Stress and General Well-Being. J Evid Based Complementary Altern Med. 2017 Oct;22(4):788-797. doi: 10.1177/2156587217730934. Epub 2017 Sep 22.
PubMed 29228793Muralikrishnan K, Balakrishnan B, Balasubramanian K, Visnegarawla F. Measurement of the effect of Isha Yoga on cardiac autonomic nervous system using short-term heart rate variability. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2012 Apr;3(2):91-6. doi: 10.4103/0975-9476.96528.
PubMed 22707866Brandmeyer T, Delorme A. Reduced mind wandering in experienced meditators and associated EEG correlates. Exp Brain Res. 2018 Sep;236(9):2519-2528. doi: 10.1007/s00221-016-4811-5. Epub 2016 Nov 4.
PubMed 27815577Gao R, Peterson EJ, Voytek B. Inferring synaptic excitation/inhibition balance from field potentials. Neuroimage. 2017 Sep;158:70-78. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.06.078. Epub 2017 Jul 1.
PubMed 28676297Orekhova EV, Stroganova TA, Schneiderman JF, Lundstrom S, Riaz B, Sarovic D, Sysoeva OV, Brant G, Gillberg C, Hadjikhani N. Neural gain control measured through cortical gamma oscillations is associated with sensory sensitivity. Hum Brain Mapp. 2019 Apr 1;40(5):1583-1593. doi: 10.1002/hbm.24469. Epub 2018 Dec 13.
PubMed 30549144Kinnunen H, Rantanen A, Kentta T, Koskimaki H. Feasible assessment of recovery and cardiovascular health: accuracy of nocturnal HR and HRV assessed via ring PPG in comparison to medical grade ECG. Physiol Meas. 2020 May 7;41(4):04NT01. doi: 10.1088/1361-6579/ab840a.
PubMed 32217820Altini M, Kinnunen H. The Promise of Sleep: A Multi-Sensor Approach for Accurate Sleep Stage Detection Using the Oura Ring. Sensors (Basel). 2021 Jun 23;21(13):4302. doi: 10.3390/s21134302.
PubMed 34201861Wong W. Economic burden of Alzheimer disease and managed care considerations. Am J Manag Care. 2020 Aug;26(8 Suppl):S177-S183. doi: 10.37765/ajmc.2020.88482.
PubMed 32840331Brandmeyer T, Delorme A. Closed-Loop Frontal Midlinetheta Neurofeedback: A Novel Approach for Training Focused-Attention Meditation. Front Hum Neurosci. 2020 Jun 30;14:246. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2020.00246. eCollection 2020.
PubMed 32714171Bruining H, Hardstone R, Juarez-Martinez EL, Sprengers J, Avramiea AE, Simpraga S, Houtman SJ, Poil SS, Dallares E, Palva S, Oranje B, Matias Palva J, Mansvelder HD, Linkenkaer-Hansen K. Measurement of excitation-inhibition ratio in autism spectrum disorder using critical brain dynamics. Sci Rep. 2020 Jun 8;10(1):9195. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-65500-4.
PubMed 32513931Arnal PJ, Thorey V, Debellemaniere E, Ballard ME, Bou Hernandez A, Guillot A, Jourde H, Harris M, Guillard M, Van Beers P, Chennaoui M, Sauvet F. The Dreem Headband compared to polysomnography for electroencephalographic signal acquisition and sleep staging. Sleep. 2020 Nov 12;43(11):zsaa097. doi: 10.1093/sleep/zsaa097.
PubMed 32433768
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 14 May 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Brain Health With Inner Engineering- Longitudinal Study of Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya Meditation (BLISS)
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05455814
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- BLISS / 2022P000296
- Conditions
- Meditation, Brain; Agenesis
- Keywords
- Functional MRI, EEG, Structural MRI, Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya, Mindfulness
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 77 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical CenterUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 6 Jan 2023 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 16 Dec 2025 (actual)
- Study completion
- 17 Dec 2025 (actual)
- First posted
- 13 Jul 2022 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
This study will explore whether a 21-minute meditation practice called Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya leads to changes in brain health and explore how it affects cognitive and physiological function.
Detailed description
Meditation has been linked to improved brain health and lower brain age. Brain age has been successfully estimated from structural MRI and more recently, EEG Sleep data using Brain Age Index (BAI) derived by machine learning algorithms. Patients with significant neurological or psychiatric disease exhibit a mean excess BAI of about 4 years. Higher BAI is a predictor of mortality. Long term meditation has been associated with lower Brain Age in MRI studies. However, the EEG sleep measure of Brain Age has not been reported in meditators.
This project aims to quantify the progressive impact of meditation on brain age. If established objectively, meditation-based interventions could offer safe, affordable and accessible solutions to promote younger and healthier brains and will have invaluable health and financial implications.
The goal of this project is twofold:
- In alignment with the recent NCCIH emphasis, we propose this study to combine neuroimaging with other non-neural modalities to delineate the impact of meditation on brain health and overall physiology and to identify objective neural biomarkers to assess meditation-based interventions which could be further used in clinical applications.
- It is estimated that by 2050, an unprecedented 18% of the world's population will be above 65 years of age. According to the National Institute on Aging (NIA), aging is the most significant risk factor of many chronic conditions including age-related neurodegenerative diseases, which severely impact the quality of life, healthcare and social costs. The total healthcare cost of Alzheimer's disease in 2020 was estimated at $305 billion and expected to rise to $1 trillion soon. NIA's 5 year strategy highlights the crucial need to better understand the aging brain and develop interventions to address age-related neurological conditions.
The study intervention is a multi-component 21-minute meditation called Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya. It is taught at the Inner Engineering program offered by non-profit Isha Foundation as online as well as in-person formats. It incorporates a combination of different breathing patterns and meditative components. The intervention training provides precise, step by step and easy to follow instructions on how to perform this practice. Performed in a seated posture, this is a simple, safe and accessible intervention that requires no previous experience of meditation. The intervention selected for this study was shown to significantly reduce perceived stress, enhance self-reported general well-being, improve positive emotions, mindfulness, sleep, engagement, relationships and may promote enhanced Heart Rate Variability and Sympathovagal balance. The control group will be selected to be age, gender and education level matched with the intervention group and will be asked to continue their daily routine.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Health services research
- Allocation
- Non-randomised
- Intervention model
- Factorial
- Masking
- Single blind (outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 2
- Model description
- This is a prospective cohort study with 40 intervention and 40 matched controls to be followed up for 6 months. Both cohorts will be recruited from meditation-Naïve healthy individuals. The intervention group will learn a 21 minute meditation to practice daily. Various outcomes related to brain health and brain age will be collected over a period of 6 months.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Wellness and Meditation-Based Intervention | Experimental | Behavioral: Shambhavi Madamudra KriyaShambhavi Mahamudra Kriya: a multi-component 21-minute meditation that incorporates a combination of different breathing patterns and meditative components. |
| Control | No intervention | –Control Group: selected to be age, gender and education level matched with the intervention group and will be asked to continue their daily routine while completing surveys at each timepoint. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 20 to 65 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Individuals between the ages of 20-65 years.
- Subjects will be required to be able to understand study instructions and provide informed consent.
- Currently residing in Massachusetts.
Key exclusion criteria (14 listed)
- Non-English Speaking. (Justification: Meditation and cognitive assessment instruments are not validated in a sufficient range of languages, and the research team lacks polylingual capabilities or the financial resources to hire interpreters for the duration of all proposed assessments.)
- Practicing meditation regularly for the past 6 months (3 or more times per week of practice regularly for the past 6 month).
- History of psychiatric illness such as severe anxiety, severe depression, Schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.
- History of any form of cognitive decline or neurological conditions such as dementia, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, brain tumors, brain surgery.
- Current use of cognition enhancing drugs
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Shambhavi Madamudra KriyaThe intervention is taught at the Inner Engineering program offered by non-profit Isha Foundation as online as well as in-person formats. It incorporates a combination of different breathing patterns and meditative components. The intervention training provides precise, step by step and easy to follow instructions on how to perform this practice. Performed in a seated posture, this is a simple, safe and accessible intervention that requires no previous experience of meditation. The intervention selected for this study was shown to significantly reduce perceived stress, enhance self-reported general well-being, improve positive emotions, mindfulness, sleep, engagement, relationships, and may promote enhanced Heart Rate Variability and Sympathovagal balance. | Behavioural | Wellness and Meditation-Based Intervention |
Primary outcome
Change in Frontal Midline Theta Power after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice
Time frame: Measured at Baseline and 6 months
Frontal Midline Theta Power is obtained from an average of 8 electrodes (Fpc, Fc, Cz, Pz, Oz, F7, F8, P7, P8) around the midline in a standard EEG cap and has been proposed as a correlate of meditation success in previous studies. Increased value suggests increased control over the brain's default mode network, suggesting more successful meditation experience.
Change in Gamma Slope Index (GSI) after 6 Months of Daily Meditation
Time frame: Measured at Baseline and 6 months
GSI is an indicator of the Excitation-Inhibition (E-I) balance in the brain and is computed from the power spectral density slope of oscillatory activity in the brain, taking the low-gamma (40-60Hz) band slope of the Power Spectral Density, and is steeper (more negative) when the E-I balance is tipped towards more inhibition. A higher negative value suggests shift of the brain's excitation/inhibition balance toward more inhibition, indicating a calmer brain.
3 secondary outcomes
Change in Brain cortical thickness after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice
Time frame: Measured at Baseline and 6 Months
Changes in Brain regional volume after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice
Time frame: Measured at Baseline and 6 Months
Change in Brain Connectivity after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice
Time frame: Measured at Baseline and 6 Months
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 14 May 2026.
- Background: PubMed 32366919Yordanova J, Kolev V, Mauro F, Nicolardi V, Simione L, Calabrese L, Malinowski P, Raffone A. Common and distinct lateralised patterns of neural coupling during focused attention, open monitoring and loving kindness meditation. Sci Rep. 2020 May 4;10(1):7430. doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-64324-6.
- Background: PubMed 27032724Fox KC, Dixon ML, Nijeboer S, Girn M, Floman JL, Lifshitz M, Ellamil M, Sedlmeier P, Christoff K. Functional neuroanatomy of meditation: A review and meta-analysis of 78 functional neuroimaging investigations. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2016 Jun;65:208-28. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.03.021. Epub 2016 Mar 28.
- Background: PubMed 27079530Luders E, Cherbuin N, Gaser C. Estimating brain age using high-resolution pattern recognition: Younger brains in long-term meditation practitioners. Neuroimage. 2016 Jul 1;134:508-513. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.04.007. Epub 2016 Apr 11.
- Background: PubMed 31932049Paixao L, Sikka P, Sun H, Jain A, Hogan J, Thomas R, Westover MB. Excess brain age in the sleep electroencephalogram predicts reduced life expectancy. Neurobiol Aging. 2020 Apr;88:150-155. doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2019.12.015. Epub 2019 Dec 23.
- Background: PubMed 29228793Peterson CT, Bauer SM, Chopra D, Mills PJ, Maturi RK. Effects of Shambhavi Mahamudra Kriya, a Multicomponent Breath-Based Yogic Practice ( Pranayama), on Perceived Stress and General Well-Being. J Evid Based Complementary Altern Med. 2017 Oct;22(4):788-797. doi: 10.1177/2156587217730934. Epub 2017 Sep 22.
- Background: PubMed 22707866Muralikrishnan K, Balakrishnan B, Balasubramanian K, Visnegarawla F. Measurement of the effect of Isha Yoga on cardiac autonomic nervous system using short-term heart rate variability. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2012 Apr;3(2):91-6. doi: 10.4103/0975-9476.96528.
- Background: PubMed 27815577Brandmeyer T, Delorme A. Reduced mind wandering in experienced meditators and associated EEG correlates. Exp Brain Res. 2018 Sep;236(9):2519-2528. doi: 10.1007/s00221-016-4811-5. Epub 2016 Nov 4.
- Background: PubMed 28676297Gao R, Peterson EJ, Voytek B. Inferring synaptic excitation/inhibition balance from field potentials. Neuroimage. 2017 Sep;158:70-78. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.06.078. Epub 2017 Jul 1.
- Background: PubMed 30549144Orekhova EV, Stroganova TA, Schneiderman JF, Lundstrom S, Riaz B, Sarovic D, Sysoeva OV, Brant G, Gillberg C, Hadjikhani N. Neural gain control measured through cortical gamma oscillations is associated with sensory sensitivity. Hum Brain Mapp. 2019 Apr 1;40(5):1583-1593. doi: 10.1002/hbm.24469. Epub 2018 Dec 13.
- Background: PubMed 32217820Kinnunen H, Rantanen A, Kentta T, Koskimaki H. Feasible assessment of recovery and cardiovascular health: accuracy of nocturnal HR and HRV assessed via ring PPG in comparison to medical grade ECG. Physiol Meas. 2020 May 7;41(4):04NT01. doi: 10.1088/1361-6579/ab840a.
- Background: PubMed 34201861Altini M, Kinnunen H. The Promise of Sleep: A Multi-Sensor Approach for Accurate Sleep Stage Detection Using the Oura Ring. Sensors (Basel). 2021 Jun 23;21(13):4302. doi: 10.3390/s21134302.
- Background: PubMed 32840331Wong W. Economic burden of Alzheimer disease and managed care considerations. Am J Manag Care. 2020 Aug;26(8 Suppl):S177-S183. doi: 10.37765/ajmc.2020.88482.
- NIA Strategic Directions 2020-2025, National Institute on AgingLink provided by the sponsor.
- Subramaniam, B. Inner Engineering Yoga Program on Short and Long Term Health Effects (ISHA-Impact): A Longitudinal Study. clinical trials.gov, 2021 Sep. Report No.: NCT04189146.Link provided by the sponsor.
Related trials for Meditation
Recruiting
Meditation for Older Adults With Chronic Low Back Pain
Chronic Low Back Pain
Not yet recruiting
Robot-Assisted Meditation for Older Adults With Cognitive Concerns
Cognitive Impairment, Perceived Stress
Not yet recruiting
Meditation and Yogic Breathing-driven Modulation of Neurofluid Coupling and Brain Clearance
Healthy
Recruiting
The COMParing App Support Strategies Study
Depression, Anxiety
Recruiting
Digital Mindfulness Meditation in Adolescents With Atopic Dermatitis
Atopic Dermatitis, Eczema
Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Balachundar Subramaniam, MD, MPH principal investigator
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study of Meditation and Brain; Agenesis, run by Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 14 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 14 May 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Change in Frontal Midline Theta Power after 6 Months of Daily Meditation Practice (time frame: Measured at Baseline and 6 months). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT05455814, which also lists 15 linked publications.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 14 May 2026.