Can meditation do anything about aging at the cellular level?

Telomeres are the protective caps at the ends of your chromosomes. They shorten as cells divide and you age. Shorter telomeres are associated with decline in cognitive function, mood, and physical functioning. The question is whether meditation can slow that wear-and-tear process.

A meta-analysis of 11 studies found that people who meditate have, on average, longer telomeres than non-meditators. The effect is statistically significant but modest. Remove one outlier study and the average gain shrinks considerably. More hours of meditation does appear to go hand in hand with a greater benefit. A supplementary systematic review of five studies in healthy adults adds nuance: two studies show clear benefits, while three others show a positive but non-significant trend. The researchers conclude that the effect in healthy people has not yet been proven.

Concrete intervention studies yield mixed, yet still interesting results. After an intensive one-month retreat, participants apparently had longer telomeres than comparable experienced meditators who stayed at home. Genes involved in telomere maintenance also shifted in a favorable direction. Notably, the greatest gains were seen in people with the highest tendency toward negative emotions. In another study of middle-aged adults, telomere length remained stable after three months of intensive meditation, while that of non-meditating peers shrank measurably. Both studies are small and not fully randomized, however, so strong conclusions go too far.

In cancer patients, mindfulness programs have been linked to improvements in biological measures, including telomere length alongside cortisol and blood pressure. But the precise size of that effect is unclear. Observational research further shows that people who naturally react little to negative thoughts and emotions have significantly longer telomeres. That is an indication of a mechanism, but not proof that meditating is the cause.