The power of prayer

Mindfulness may be the latest buzz word, but does this practice – and its benefits – actually stem back to a much older tradition of prayer?

There’s barely a day goes by when we don’t see a headline championing the wonders of mindfulness – the latest trend that’s all about paying attention to the present moment and taking time to notice our own thoughts, feelings and the world around us. Five years ago, we’d never even heard of the word but now it’s been hailed as a drug-free modern medicine that can tackle stress, improve our relationships and even help depression. But is this mindfulness really such a new-fangled idea, and could the centuries’ old practice of prayer have a similiar affect? One American neuroscientist, Dr Andrew Newberg, has spent 20 years carrying out extensive research into whether prayer could have a direct impact on our brains. Dr Newberg’s main findings show that prayer can help reduce symptoms related to depression and anxiety, as well as improving the way our brain works in terms of concentration and memory. His studies show that 12 minutes of daily focus on prayer over an eight-week period can change the brain to such an extent that it can be measured on a brain scan, showing an increase to the limbic system, the part of the brain that regulates our emotions,

co-ordinating social interaction, compassion and sensitivity to others. Those who did this prayer exercise also reported being able to think more clearly and better remember things by about ten to 15 per cent. “It’s based on the overall concept that the more you use your brain, the better it functions and the more you stave off ageing and dementia,” says Dr Newberg. Prayer is, in that sense, a great workout for the brain, strengthening important brain regions in the same way mindfulness does. And as the brain controls basic body functions, such as heart rate, blood pressure and the immune system, Dr Newberg, a committed Christian, says there’s evidence that prayer can “cause a lot of different changes all the way throughout the body, which could have a healing effect”. In fact, a 2010 study in the journal Liver Transplantation found liver transplant patients with a ‘strong religious connection’ were three times more likely to survive, while other studies into recovery from the likes of HIV and depression have shown similar effects. Wider studies have shown praying before a mentally exhausting task improves your self-control following that task and can even help you exercise restraint over things such as having another chocolate at the end of a long, busy day or even smoking. One particularly interesting experiment was carried out by retired paediatrician Peter Boelens who helped people with depression in Mississippi by offering one-hour prayer sessions with a Christian minister for six weeks. They prayed for forgiveness and for God to heal their stresses. At the end of that time, all the participants scores on the Hamilton Ratings Scale for Depression and Anxiety – a questionnaire to assess depression – had gone down. Even a year later, the prayer group members still had good mental health. Increase in your capacity for trust and forgiveness of others are also benefits hailed by scientists studying the effect of prayer. One Christian psychiatrist, after observing patients, noted that when people understood they were loved and forgiven, symptoms often disappeared. Many of these studies showed praying for material wealth did not yield these same benefits as when praying for other people. This ties in with another result from the study, showing that prayer decreased activity in the parietal lobe, which is the part of our brain that orientates you in space and time. “When this happens you lose your sense of self,” says Dr Newberg. “It could be a sense where the self dissolves into nothingness or dissolves into God or the universe.” This experience was particularly extreme, he found, in the subjects he studied who pray by vocation, such as nuns and Buddhist monks. So what does it all mean? While everyone will react differently to prayer, a growing body of evidence suggests it could do our minds and bodies real good.

Studies have shown praying before a mentally exhausting task improves your self-control following that task

What do you think? Do you believe in the power of prayer or have you had experiences where things have changed after prayer? Write to the address on p3