Two researchers at Kent State Universities have found that meditation-based stress reduction (MBSR) can reduce high blood pressure, which affects nearly 60 million adults in the United States.

MBSR, which involves the practice of meditation, body awareness and some gentle yoga, has been shown to be effective in preventing and treating depression and anxiety and alleviating stress, but scientific studies of its effects on blood pressure are rare.

Joel W. Hughes, Ph.D., and David M. Fresco, Ph.D., both associate professors of psychology in the College of Arts and Sciences at Kent State, reported in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine that MBSR “may be an appropriate complementary treatment” for patients who prefer lifestyle changes and stress-management approaches to treating high blood pressure, or hypertension.

Their two-year study involved 56 adults in Northeast Ohio. Study participants who practiced mindfulness-based stress reduction had significant decreases in blood pressure measurements compared with participants who received another therapy, progressive muscle relaxation. 

1. https://www.kent.edu/research/meditation-effective-reducing-blood-pressure

The journal of Hypertension explains more

2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC07940042279/