The effects of meditation on your brain

- [Instructor] As we've said mental activities, change neural structure. Of all the techniques for producing mental changes, meditation is one of the ones whose effects on the brain have been most studied. Recently, MRI scans have been done in nuns who were in contemplative prayer and in Tibetan Monks who were in a state of what's called Schmatta. When these people were studied, there were areas of the brain, which metabolic activity was greater. For the nuns during loving union with Christ and for the Tibetan monastics during their state of being at one with emptiness, then during baseline activities in these same brains. Three key areas appear to be clearly activated during mindful in this meditation. These are the orbital frontal cortex, the anterior cingulate cortex, and the insula. When we think about these regions of the brain, this makes complete sense. The orbital frontal cortex, that's a fancy term for part…