Chill therapy
In the 1970s, Herbert Benson’s book “The Relaxation Response” described a method for easing moments of great stress — the opposite of the “fight or flight” mechanism that causes panic when it kicks in at the wrong time. Now, Benson says, new research by his team at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) demonstrates that the relaxation response can create genetic changes in irritable bowel syndrome sufferers, and with further study might be applied to the treatment of other diseases — even cancer. “It’s effective with virtually all diseases with a stress component,” Benson said. Benson was speaking April 4 at the Dean’s Distinguished Lecture Book Presentation at the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH). HSPH Dean Julio Frenk served as moderator. Benson is a Harvard Medical School-trained cardiologist and founder of the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine at MGH. He was one of the first Western doctors to popularize the use of traditional...