Hypertension (or high blood pressure) is the leading preventable cause of heart disease. It affects 1.3 billion people worldwide. New guidelines from a hypertension society include daily meditation for 45 minutes to reduce blood pressure. It says "body and mind" goals should be adopted in conjunction with established advice, like cutting down on salt, limiting alcohol intake, and exercising regularly. The study author told the BBC that meditating sounds a bit "fluffy," but evidence shows it makes, "an important contribution to reducing the effects of stress on the cardiovascular system".

Hypertension is referred to as a "silent killer" because we rarely see symptoms. It increases the risk of heart disease, heart failure, and stroke. It kills around 10 million people annually. Nearly 30 percent of people worldwide struggle with it. The author said: "All of us need to take a step back and…decompress and just relax." The American Heart Association also says meditating can lower blood pressure through "restful alertness". The association reports that many studies show that "quieting the brain" benefits the cardiovascular system.