The 2008 Annual Meeting of the Royal College of Psychiatrists at Imperial College, London was told that the evidence-base for the therapeutic value of meditation for a wide range of health problems was significantly stronger than most pharmaceutical products. A new meta-analysis of 823 randomly controlled trials of meditation, conducted by the US National Institute of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, showed the clinical benefits of meditation across a wide range of physical and emotional disorders.
"Meditation is a way of life rather than quick fix achieved by using gimmicks such as incense, music and light," Dr Avdesh Sharma, past president of the Indian Psychiatric Association, said. "It doesn't work immediately. You need to practice it for several weeks before the effects begin to be felt." Dr Sharma added: "If meditation was a drug, we'd all want shares in it. It has a beneficial effect on most physical health problems and is very effective for mental health problems significantly reducing levels of depression, anxiety and insomnia by improving relaxation, oxygenation of the brain, and energy levels."
