Mindful Meditation Increases Antibody Titers to Flu Vaccine

Brain electrical activity was measured on 25 participants before the program and immediately after it, as well as 4 months later. A wait list of 16 was also measured at the same intervals. At the end of the 8-week period, subjects in both groups were vaccinated with influenza vaccine.

Findings revealed significant increases in left-sided, anterior activation in meditators (a pattern previously associated with positive mood), as opposed to the non-meditators In addition, there were significant increases in antibody titers to influenza vaccine among the subjects in the meditation condition, as compared with those in the control group. The degree of left-sided activation predicted the degree of antibody titer rise to the vaccine.

The study concludes that a short program of mindfulness meditation produces demonstrable positive effects on brain and immune function and further research is indicated.

Citation: Davidson RJ, Kabat-Zinn J, Schumacher J, Rosencranz M, Miller D, Santorelli SF, Urbanowski F, Harrington A, Bonus K, Sheridan J. Alterations in Brain and Immune Function Produced by Mindfulness Meditation. Psychosomatic Medicine 65: pp 564-570 (2003).