‘Relaxation Revolution’ author Benson says stress-control methods can trigger genetic changes, better health

In 1970, Herbert Benson’s book The Relaxation Response described how to use meditation techniques to ease stress. Benson, founder of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, now says that his team’s new research—outlined in his 2010 book, The Relaxation Revolution—shows that the same techniques can lead to genetic changes, and could be used in the future to treat disease.

“It’s effective with virtually all diseases with a stress component,” Benson, quoted in the Harvard Gazette, told a Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) audience on April 4, 2012, as part of the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series.

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Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Series