Effect of a Web-Based Heartfulness Program on the Mental Well-Being, Biomarkers, and Gene Expression Profile of Health Care Students: Randomized Controlled Trial.
JMIR bioinformatics and biotechnology December 16, 2024 Jayaram Thimmapuram, Kamlesh D Patel, Deepti Bhatt et al. 2 citations
A 12-week Heartfulness meditation program reduced perceived stress by 17.35% and depression, anxiety, and stress scores by 27.14% among health care students, while a control group showed no significant changes. Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) levels increased significantly by 20.27% in the meditation group, and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels decreased in both groups. Gene expression analysis identified 875 upregulated and 1,539 downregulated genes in the meditation group compared to baseline, and 292 upregulated and 1,180 downregulated genes compared to the control group after the intervention. These findings suggest Heartfulness meditation improves mental well-being and alters stress-related biomarkers and gene expression profiles.