Vagal Tone: It’s All in Your Perception The vagus nerve is, the longest cranial nerve in your brain, and interestingly may connect positive emotions that flow from positive interaction with others. Increased positive emotions produces increased vagal “tone,” or response, described as a “proxy index of physical health7.” The vagus nerve also mediates your parasympathetic nervous system and may also have a positive influence here. Before and after the meditation classes, participants were encouraged to log the time they spent meditating or praying and journal both the positive and negative aspects associated with their meditative forays. Afterward, scientists recorded each participant’s heart rate variability, which directly affected baseline vagal tone. According to Time Health & Family: “The vagus regulates how efficiently heart rate changes with breathing and, in general, the greater its tone, the higher the heart-rate variability and the lower the risk for cardiovascular disease and other major killers. It may also play a role in regulating glucose levels and immune responses8. The vagus nerve itself is connected to other nerves that: “… tune our ears to human speech, coordinate eye contact and regulate emotional expressions. It influences the release of oxytocin, a hormone that is important in social bonding. Studies have found that higher vagal tone is associated with greater closeness to others and more altruistic behavior9.” An interesting point is that the response has everything to do with the perception of the participant; the positive effect has a direct correlation to perceived social connectedness on the part of individual subjects. Participants in the meditative segment of the study exhibited increased joy, interest, amusement, serenity and hope after the six-week program. Researchers found it significant that they also discovered an important residual benefit from the emotional and psychological changes: a greater sense of connectedness to others.
Posted on: Sat, 28 Sep 2013 00:32:44 +0000
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