Q. What happens inside my brain when I meditate? I love the feeling but would like to know what’s happening in there. — Candy, Olympia, Wa.
A. You’ve om-ed in on a key reason we’re fans of daily meditation: Many studies show that it can literally change your brain. First, regular meditation gradually rewires your noggin. Over time, it produces very high-frequency brain waves that increase your abilities to focus, pay attention, learn and remember.
Studies of Buddhist monks have found that with daily meditation, these brain waves can stay ramped up permanently — particularly in the region where you think happy thoughts. And that actually increases the variability of your heart rate — a good thing. Imagine one of those serenely smiling statues of Buddha … that could be you.
Meditation also helps your brain stay younger longer. Like Agatha Christie’s famous detective, Hercule Poirot, you’ll grow older and smarter, not slower, as you age because meditation helps you produce more “little gray cells.”
One study found that extensive meditation practice slows age-related thinning of your frontal cortex. The longer you do it, the thicker your cortex becomes. This is one time when being a “fathead” is a good thing.
Q. Is craving ice a symptom of something deficient in your diet? I’ve been eating ice like crazy for about a month now. — Marie, Oklahoma City, Okla.
A. Sometimes, yes, so it’s time to see your doc for a blood test. Good bet (if you consider a 1-in-10 shot good) you have iron-deficiency anemia, a lack of oxygen-toting red blood cells caused by insufficient iron.
Craving ice is different from other food cravings you’re probably familiar with, like yearning for pickles when you’re pregnant, chocolate when you’re cranky or a mojito after a long week with your boss.
There’s actually a medical name for ice cravings: pagophagi. It comes from the word “pica,” Latin for “magpie,” a bird that (like goats and 2-year-olds) will eat anything in sight. In humans, pica cravings can be for ice, clay and dirt (mmm, mudpies), among other odd things. No one is exactly sure why people with iron-deficiency anemia can’t seem to get enough ice. Some experts suspect your body wants ice to relieve another common anemia symptom: an inflamed tongue.
Get your doc to check under your hood with a blood test. If the answer’s yup, you’re low on iron, you’ll need medical help to figure out why and an Rx to get your iron up.
Q. What is a good diet to help lower blood pressure? I’ve lost 30 pounds but my high blood pressure is at a standstill. — Karen, via e-mail
A. We’ve got just the thing. Repeat this three times: “DASH it all!” You just vented your frustration AND memorized the name of the top diet for lowering blood pressure — the DASH plan. It stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, and it’s a wiz at getting your numbers down. In fact, the low-sodium DASH diet works so well that it can reduce blood pressure in as little as 14 days.
If you do DASH, you’ll likely see your BP drop an average of 8-14 points.
While DASH wasn’t designed for weight loss, people who follow it lose pounds anyway. Partly because when you’re eating belly-filling foods like whole grains, vegetables and fruit, you won’t even want to squeeze one Hoho in there. And partly because DASH calls for 30 minutes of moderate exercise a day (walking is aces). Meanwhile, limiting your sodium to 1,500 mg a day (about three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt) is like a balm to your blood pressure.
What’s on the daily menu? Lots: 6 servings of whole grains; 3-4 servings of vegetables; 4 servings of fruit; 3-6 servings of lean poultry, meat and fish; 3 servings of nuts, seeds or beans; and 2 servings of fats and oils (choose healthy monounsaturated ones, like olive, flaxseed and canola oils). Eat up, and relish watching your blood pressure and dress size go down.
Dr. Mehmet Oz and Dr. Michael Roizen are authors of “You: On a Diet.” Submit questions at .
