Methodical meditation ‘enriches your gut flora’

Regular and deep meditation performed over several years may help to “enrich” gut microbiota, according to a study of Tibetan monks.

This could help lower the risks of physical and mental ill health, including anxiety, depression and heart disease, academics said.

Researchers from the Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, China, examined blood and stool samples from 37 Tibetan Buddhist monks from three temples and 19 of their non-religious neighbours

The monks had been practising a deep form of meditation for at least two hours a day for between three and 30 years.