The study was based on 14 practitioners who specialise in a specific meditation technique which is known as Acem Meditation / photo: shutterstock.com/Vinogradov Illya
Brain activity is greater during meditation than during periods of idle rest, refuting the idea that meditation is used to empty the mind – according to a study by neuroscientists from Norway and Australia*.
Scientists from The Norwegian University of Science and Technology, The University of Oslo and The University of Sydney used functional magnetic resonance image scanning to see what goes on in the brain during Acem Meditation – a mindful relaxation technique based on modern psychology and research.
Acem is a non-directive meditation technique which involves the mental repetition of a soothing, yet meaningless sound combining vowels and consonants. At the same time it allows spontaneously-occurring thoughts, images, sensations, memories and emotions to pass freely through the mind.
The method is thought to facilitate mental processing of emotional experiences, thereby contributing to wellness and stress management. Fourteen experienced practitioners of the Acem Meditation technique took part in the study.
The predominant resting system in the brain is called the ‘default mode network’ which is responsible for our wandering mind. Interestingly, the research found that this wandering mind mode is activated on a greater level during meditation than when the mind is resting normally.
The study highlighted that the brain simply activates different networks when it rests, compared to when someone concentrates or attends to an external task.
The default mode network is considerably less active when the spontaneous flow of wandering thoughts is restricted by a more concentrated focus of attention during concentrative meditation – not common to non-directive Acem Meditation. The areas of the brain which are less active during meditation include those which are involved in processing memories and emotions.
The results were published in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.
* Xu J and Davanger S et al. Nondirective Meditation Activates Default Mode Network and Areas Associated with Memory Retrieval and Emotional Processing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 2014
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2014 issue 3
Letters: Letters
Bill Bensley gives his opinion on where spa design is heading in the future
Luxury brands: The high life
We take a look at the spa concepts of luxury brands such as Dior, Guerlain, Armani and Versace
Country focus: The Maldives
Neena Dhillon takes a look around Cheval Blanc Randheli and Velaa Private Island – two of the hottest new spa destinations in the Maldives
Q&A: Morgan Lefrançois
The spa business development manager at Clarins on working with Velaa Private Island; plus a first-person account of the resort by Liz Terry
Therapy: Well seasoned
An underground salt mine offering subterraneotherapy and herb spas feature in this report by Sophie Benge
Holiday village spa: Full steam ahead
The unique hydrothermal spa concept at Center Parcs UK attracts 300,000 guests a year and brings in £15m in revenue. Katie Barnes visits its latest site
Marketing: Screen star
Professional spa brands are using TV shopping channel QVC to increase footfall in spas and can sell up to £4m of products in just one day
Mineral Spa: Mission accomplished
With 168 pools and 90 treatment rooms, Mission Hills Haikou has one of the world’s largest spa and mineral springs. Jennifer Harbottle finds out more
Fitness: Cool customer
We explain the science behind Vasper, a high-tech fitness system that’s being used by athletes and astronauts
In today’s premium spa environment, every detail shapes the guest experience – right down to
the softness of towels and the freshness of linens. [more...]
The study was based on 14 practitioners who specialise in a specific meditation technique which is known as Acem Meditation / photo: shutterstock.com/Vinogradov Illya
Brain activity is greater during meditation than during periods of idle rest, refuting the idea that meditation is used to empty the mind – according to a study by neuroscientists from Norway and Australia*.
Scientists from The Norwegian University of Science and Technology, The University of Oslo and The University of Sydney used functional magnetic resonance image scanning to see what goes on in the brain during Acem Meditation – a mindful relaxation technique based on modern psychology and research.
Acem is a non-directive meditation technique which involves the mental repetition of a soothing, yet meaningless sound combining vowels and consonants. At the same time it allows spontaneously-occurring thoughts, images, sensations, memories and emotions to pass freely through the mind.
The method is thought to facilitate mental processing of emotional experiences, thereby contributing to wellness and stress management. Fourteen experienced practitioners of the Acem Meditation technique took part in the study.
The predominant resting system in the brain is called the ‘default mode network’ which is responsible for our wandering mind. Interestingly, the research found that this wandering mind mode is activated on a greater level during meditation than when the mind is resting normally.
The study highlighted that the brain simply activates different networks when it rests, compared to when someone concentrates or attends to an external task.
The default mode network is considerably less active when the spontaneous flow of wandering thoughts is restricted by a more concentrated focus of attention during concentrative meditation – not common to non-directive Acem Meditation. The areas of the brain which are less active during meditation include those which are involved in processing memories and emotions.
The results were published in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.
* Xu J and Davanger S et al. Nondirective Meditation Activates Default Mode Network and Areas Associated with Memory Retrieval and Emotional Processing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 2014
Read more from this issue of Spa Business magazine
View contents of Spa Business 2014 issue 3
Letters: Letters
Bill Bensley gives his opinion on where spa design is heading in the future
Luxury brands: The high life
We take a look at the spa concepts of luxury brands such as Dior, Guerlain, Armani and Versace
Country focus: The Maldives
Neena Dhillon takes a look around Cheval Blanc Randheli and Velaa Private Island – two of the hottest new spa destinations in the Maldives
Q&A: Morgan Lefrançois
The spa business development manager at Clarins on working with Velaa Private Island; plus a first-person account of the resort by Liz Terry
Therapy: Well seasoned
An underground salt mine offering subterraneotherapy and herb spas feature in this report by Sophie Benge
Holiday village spa: Full steam ahead
The unique hydrothermal spa concept at Center Parcs UK attracts 300,000 guests a year and brings in £15m in revenue. Katie Barnes visits its latest site
Marketing: Screen star
Professional spa brands are using TV shopping channel QVC to increase footfall in spas and can sell up to £4m of products in just one day
Mineral Spa: Mission accomplished
With 168 pools and 90 treatment rooms, Mission Hills Haikou has one of the world’s largest spa and mineral springs. Jennifer Harbottle finds out more
Fitness: Cool customer
We explain the science behind Vasper, a high-tech fitness system that’s being used by athletes and astronauts
People taking GLP-1 weight loss medications such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound
may be losing weight, but they’re also becoming less physically active, according to new
research presented at the ENDO 2026 annual meeting of the Endocrine Society
Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala Capital has made a binding, fully financed
€1 billion
offer to acquire Pierre and Vacances SA, the European holiday resort operator behind the
continental European Center Parcs business.
Global retreat trade show, Synergy The Retreat Show, has launched a resource called The
Source, which hosts an open-access online Transformation Series programme.
The Standards Authority for Touch in Cancer Care (SATCC) charity has announced its first five-
day Living with Cancer and Beyond retreat, which will be held at Carden Park Hotel and Spa in
Cheshire, UK, between 1 and 5 September.
Patmos Aktis, a Luxury Collection Resort and Spa, has opened in Greece, with a renovated and
rebranded wellness offering called Ansana Wellness and Spa.
The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, an Autograph Collection property in Hawaii, US, has opened its
22,000 sq ft indoor-outdoor Spa at Mauna Kea as the final step in the property’s overall
renovation, which has cost more than US$180 million (€166 million, £140 mill
The UK spa review and discovery platform for consumers, the Good Spa Guide, has announced
it will host the Good Spa Guide Awards 2026 during an event on 16 November at Sopwell House
Hotel in St Albans, UK.
Eighty-four per cent of consumers now say wellness is a top priority in their lives, with this
percentage increasing year on year, according to a preview presentation of McKinsey’s Future of
Wellness 2026 research report.
Mass protests have been taking place since Monday 1 June in Albania over the development of
a luxury resort by Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner.
Global Wellness Day (GWD) marked its 15th anniversary on Saturday 13 June 2026, with the
theme: #JoyMagenta – a celebration of the healing qualities of simple gestures and activities
that spark joy.
In today’s premium spa environment, every detail shapes the guest experience – right down to
the softness of towels and the freshness of linens. [more...]
