Kulreet Chaudhary, M.D., graduated from Loma Linda University Medical School with Alpha Omega Alpha honors and completed her neurology residency at the University of California, San Diego. She is currently the Medical Director of Wellspring Neurology at Scripps Memorial Hospital. Dr. Chaudhary also serves on the board of directors of the Center for Neurologic Study in La Jolla, California.
Here Dr. Kulreet Chaudhary talks about reducing health-care costs and hospitalizations through the Transcendental Meditation technique.
Dr. Kulreet Chaudhary: By 2017, health-care spending in the United States is projected to reach just over $4.3 trillion and comprise 20 percent of the GDP. Spiraling health-care costs are threatening the health and financial well-being of individuals, institutions, and the government.
The only permanent solution to the health-care crisis is to prevent disease from happening in the first place. The Transcendental Meditation technique has been shown to be the most effective wellness program for promoting health and reducing health-care utilization and medical expenses.
Dr. Kulreet Chaudhary: Research shows that people who practice Transcendental Meditation spend 11% less annually on health care than the general population.
Three hundred research studies published in the world’s leading peer-reviewed medical and academic journals academic journals have shown that the Transcendental Meditation technique:
- reduces carotid atherosclerosis, a cause of strokes and heart attacks
- lowers baseline cortisol levels, a stress hormone
- reduces blood pressure
- decreases the symptoms of angina pectoris
- decreases heart rate
- reduces respiratory rate
- produces a global reduction in somatic arousal, which indicates a more relaxed and balanced style of functioning
- reduces chronic stress
- increases health and longevity in the elderly
Dr. Kulreet Chaudhary: Research shows that the TM technique also strengthens health by decreasing habits such as tobacco, alcohol and non-prescription drug usage, which are behavioral correlates of chronic stress and result in millions of dollars in health-care expenditures each year. For example, figures from the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids assert that smokers cost the economy $97.6 billion a year in lost productivity.
Three examples of peer-reviewed, scientific research studies showing how the Transcendental Meditation program lowers health-care costs.
A large study of the insurance statistics of 2,000 Transcendental Meditation participants over a 5-year period indicates what could happen if Transcendental Meditation were incorporated into existing health care programs. The study found that the Transcendental Meditation group had 55% less medical care utilization, both in-patient and out-patient, compared to controls matched for age, gender, and occupation. The Transcendental Meditation group had lower sickness rates in all categories of disease, including 87% less hospitalization for heart disease and 55% less for cancer. The difference between the Transcendental Meditation and non-Transcendental Meditation groups was greatest for individuals over 40 years of age.
Reference: Orme-Johnson, D. W. (1987). Medical care utilization and the Transcendental Meditation program. Psychosomatic Medicine; 49(1): 493-507.
Impact of Transcendental Meditation on Hospital Admissions
A study of Transcendental Meditation participants over the age of 65 investigated whether the Transcendental Meditation technique can reduce medical expenditures in the elderly. Payments to physicians for treating 163 Transcendental Meditation practitioners over the age of 65 were compared with those for 163 control subjects matched for age, sex and other factors. The TM group’s five-year cumulative reduction in payments to physicians was 70% less than the control group’s. This is especially significant because the elderly account for disproportionately higher expenses than the rest of the population. The rising costs for health care for the elderly is a major concern for governments and health insurance providers throughout the world.
Reference: Herron, R.E. Cavanaugh, K. Can the Transcendental Meditation Program Reduce the Medical Expenditures of Older People? A Longitudinal Cost Reduction Study in Canada. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality 2005; 17: 415–442.
Several randomized studies indicate that the Transcendental Meditation technique reduces hypertension as effectively as drug therapies. In a study published in the American Journal of Health Promotion in 1996, the cost-effectiveness of the Transcendental Meditation technique was compared with the five leading anti-hypertension drugs over a period of 20 years.
The study indicated that TM technique had the lowest cost and the most health benefits. The cost reduction of Transcendental Meditation ranged from 23.7% to 72.9% less than the anti-hypertensive medications. As mentioned above, it is documented in over 600 research studies that the Transcendental Meditation program produces a wide range of health benefits with no adverse side effects.
Reference: Schneider RH, Alexander CN, Staggers F, Orme-Johnson DW, Rainforth M, Salerno JW, Sheppard W, Castillo-Richmond A, Barnes VA, Nidich SI. A randomized controlled trial of stress reduction in African Americans treated for hypertension over one year. American Journal of Hypertension, 18:88-98, 2005.
Here is a selection of the research, including abstracts, showing that the Transcendental Meditation technique lowers health care costs by improving mental, physical, emotional and societal health.
- Herron, R. E. Cavanaugh, K. (2005). Can the Transcendental Meditation Program Reduce the Medical Expenditures of Older People? A Longitudinal Cost Reduction Study in Canada. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 17(1), 415–442. Abstract
- Schneider RH, Alexander CN, Staggers F, Orme-Johnson DW, Rainforth M, Salerno JW, Sheppard W, Castillo-Richmond A, Barnes VA, Nidich SI (2005). A randomized controlled trial of stress reduction in African Americans treated for hypertension over one year. American Journal of Hypertension, 18:88-98.
- Herron, R. E., Hillis, S. L. (2000). Impact of the Transcendental Meditation Program on Medical Expenses. Abstracts of the American Public Health Association 128th Annual Meeting and Exposition, Nov. 12-16, p. 178. Abstract
- Herron, R. E., Hillis, S. L. (2000). The Impact of the Transcendental Meditation Program on Government Payments to Physicians in Quebec: An Update. American Journal of Health Promotion, 14(5), 284-291. Abstract
- Orme-Johnson, D. W., Herron, R. E. (1997). Reduced Medical Care Utilization and Expenditures Through An Innovative Approach. Abstracts of the Association for Health Services Research 14th Annual Meeting, June 15-17, p. 19. Abstract
- Orme-Johnson, D. W., Herron, R. E. (1997). An Innovative Approach to Reducing Medical Care Utilization and Costs. American Journal of Managed Care, 3(1), 135-144. Abstract
- Herron, R. E., Schneider, R. H., Mandarino, J. V., Alexander, C. N., Walton, K. G. (1996). Cost-Effective Hypertension Management: Comparison of Drug Therapies with an Alternative Program. American Journal of Managed Care, II(4), 427-437. Abstract
- Herron, R. E., Hillis, S. L., Mandarino, J. V., Orme-Johnson, D. W., Walton, K. G. (1996). Reducing Medical Costs: The Impact of Transcendental Meditation on Government Payments to Physicians in Quebec. American Journal of Health Promotion, 10, (3), 208-216. Abstract
- Herron, R. E. (1995). The Health Care Cost Crisis and the Role of Prevention: New Approaches Utilizing the Transcendental Meditation Program. Modern Science & Vedic Science, 6, (1), 33-59 Abstract
- Orme-Johnson, D. W. (1987). Medical care utilization and the Transcendental Meditation program. Psychosomatic Medicine, 49(1), 493–507. Abstract
- Schneider, R., Cavanaugh, W., Boncheff, S., and Cavanaugh, K. (1986). Toward better health: Transcendental Meditation can cut expenses without decreasing quality. Business and Health, 4, 39-42. Also in Strategies for Maintaining a Vital Work Force, (Greenvale, NY: Panel Publishers), 1989, pp. 129-139.
For a certified teacher of the Transcendental Meditation program near you, please call 1–888–LEARN-TM (1–888–532–7686).
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