You've likely heard that meditation and exercise can bring big health benefits, but a new study adds another to the list: prevention of cold and flu. University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers looked at nearly 400 adults ages 30 to 69 between 2012 and 2016. They divided them into three groups: one took an eight-week exercise class, one took an eight-week meditation class, and the third took no classes. The participants took their classes between September and October and were monitored through May weekly to look for signs of acute respiratory infections. Over the course of eight months, there were 112 cold and flu episodes among the meditation group (they missed 73 days of work), and 120 such episodes among the exercise group (they missed 82 days of work). Among the control group there were 134 respiratory infection episodes for which 105 working days were missed. Lead study author Dr. Bruce Barrett says, "More research into the benefits of exercise and meditation is warranted, maybe in higher-risk or sicker populations, where there are more health benefits to gain."
Daily Mail