TM can help heal HIV patients

According to the MailOnline, HIV infection statistics in the UK are extremely alarming. The number of people in the UK infected with HIV has reached an all-time high - nearly 110,000 people are living with the condition but around a quarter of the population who are infected are unaware and passing the virus to others through unprotected sex. Six percent of sexually active gay men nationwide and thirteen percent in London are diagnosed.

With the rising figures emerging this year it is necessary to edify the UK public, especially the schools, about the dangers of unprotected sex and for those already diagnosed with HIV several articles have recently been published revealing a study which has shown that TM can help heal them.

Sara C Nelson for Huffington Post UK wrote: "Transcendental Meditation (TM) can benefit people living with HIV/AIDS, a study has found. TM is the practice of meditating while repeating a mantra to lower stress levels and induce a state of calm. Research by the David Lynch Foundation (DLF) and the San Francisco AIDS Foundation found that practicing TM twice a day for 20 minutes helped improve the emotional and physical health of people with HIV. 39 patients with HIV took part in the study, which is in the process of being submitted to scientific journals."

Mandy Oaklander for TIME magazine wrote: "Practicing Transcendental Meditation (TM), a 20-minute twice-a-day mindfulness regimen, may help people with HIV feel better, a small new study finds. The project’s research, which is being submitted to scientific journals but is not yet published, was done with the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and the David Lynch Foundation, a nonprofit that funds research on stress reduction methods, including TM, for at-risk populations. In the 39 HIV patients who completed the study, researchers measured health factors like stress levels, wellbeing (using an established spiritual wellbeing scale), levels of psychological distress and physical symptoms related to HIV, like fatigue. They then taught TM to the patients, and after three months of meditation, patients experienced significant improvement, the study authors say."

Oaklander also cited Bob Roth, director of Director of the David Lynch Foundation HIV Initiative and TM teacher of 40 years, who claimed that patients were less tired, had more energy, and had better general health and physical functioning. "Psychological symptoms got a boost, too: patients reported being less stressed and anxious, with decreased anger, hostility and depressive symptoms."

The study didn’t look at blood biomarkers or measure T-cell counts, instead relied on reports of wellbeing from the study after they had practiced TM for three months. More research has to be conducted on this exciting study, however a confident and enthusiastic Roth said: "My prediction two years ago was that this could improve the quality of life of people living with HIV."

The David Lynch Foundation recently published a YouTube video "Transcending HIV" in which Clinical Services Director at the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, Jeffrey M Leiphart, Ph D, said: "There are very few things as stressful as saying, 'You now have a life threatening disease and probably it's going to kill you.'"

"Stress level goes up which causes the immune system to go down so anything that the person can do that interrupts them provides some percent of relaxation and safety will be immune enhancing. TM is a great example of that."

He also explains in the video that "when someone feels empowered it also helps immune function and so to have a technique and your own toolkit like TM that you can implement on your own is what we call self empowering and that's a huge piece."

One HIV patient in the study describes how TM has helped her: "I came to Transcendental Meditation through a flyer that the San Francisco Foundation had
posted. I felt the serenity, the peace, that I hadn't had before. The stress was slowly leaving me and the more I did it the less stress I felt."

"When I started meditating my body began to fight back. I'm currently over 1200 T-cells and I feel great," reports another HIV patient.

 

 

The future of health and wellness in the UK seems to be changing through the numerous benefits of TM.

 

Click to read the full articles:

Daily Mail

Huffington Post

TIME