---
title: Current Research (archived)
url: https://mbmi.org/archive/research/current
description: The Current Research page archived from mbmi.org: a CDC-funded program on the molecular and neurological effects of the relaxation response and on blood pressure.
original_author: Mind/Body Medical Institute (later Benson-Henry Institute)
archived_at: https://web.archive.org/web/20081105082151/http://www.mbmi.org/research/current.asp
---
# Current Research (archived)

A description of three research projects under a multi-year federal grant.

- Original author: Mind/Body Medical Institute (later Benson-Henry Institute)
- Original URL: http://www.mbmi.org/research/current.asp
- Captured: 2005-12-21 to 2008-11-05 (16 snapshots)
- Source: https://web.archive.org/web/20081105082151/http://www.mbmi.org/research/current.asp
- Current guide: https://mbmi.org/relaxation-response/research

## What this page said

Beginning in 2001, the institute said it ran a multi-year research program sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to investigate the scientific basis of the relaxation response, as a collaboration between Beth Israel Deaconess, Massachusetts General Hospital and Tufts New England Medical Center.

Project 1 examined molecular and biochemical changes in about 45 healthy young adults given eight weeks of relaxation response training or an educational program. Project 2 used functional MRI to compare the brain activity of about 50 experienced practitioners from yoga traditions with that of novices. Project 3 was a randomised trial of eight weeks of training to lower blood pressure in about 120 older adults with hypertension, followed by a test of whether medication could be safely reduced. Results were expected in 2006.

## Key points from the original

- Funded by the CDC from 2001.
- Three projects: molecular mechanisms, brain imaging and blood pressure.
- Described as work in progress as of the captures.

This is a historical record, not medical advice.