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Prayer....Is It Good For You?

By Lea Gracer

So often in medical settings, prayer and spirituality are only considered once all other options have been exhausted and hope is all but lost. However, it is possible we are missing out on a vital force for balance and health in our lives by not employing prayer in our everyday lives.

In recent years the push for scientific proof for the power of prayer has accelerated. Sir John Templeton, founder of Templeton Mutual Funds, has donated his wealth and time toward "spiritual progress." David Larson, M.D., president of The National Institute for Healthcare Research (NIHR), presents many research findings in the 1994 publication "The Forgotten Factor in Physical and Mental Health: What does the research show?" The majority of these studies reflect a beneficial connection between health and spiritual commitment.

In published papers that focused on mental health, nine out of nine studies revealed a benefit from a "relationship with God," four out of five showed a benefit from prayer. "Social support" showed a positive benefit in 11 out of 12 studies.Overall, the beneficial associations occurred 4.5 times more often than harmful ones.

Further studies examine the effects of  prayer on alcoholism and drug addiction, blood pressure, and longevity. Most, though not all, show a protective effect of spirituality on health. Not surprisingly, the studies found denomination of religion to be a neutral factor. The effect of one's prayers on another is called "distant," "remote," or "intercessory" prayer. On this subject, Dr.  Elizabeth Targ, along with R. Sicher, and D. Moore of the California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, conducted a randomized double blind study of the effect of  distant healing on a population with advanced AIDS. (West J Med 1998 Dec:169(6):356-63.) The healers were from different healing and spiritual  traditions. Of the 40 patients in the study, those that received prayers   fared significantly better with improved  mood, fewer doctor's visits and hospitalizations, lower illness severity,   and fewer new AIDS defining illnesses. Although it did not prove the power of prayer, it highlighted the need for further studies.

More recently, a double blind study of the effect of distant or intercessory healing on patients with heart disease was performed at the Mid-America
Heart Institute in Kansas City, MO. The 900 patients did not know they were being prayed for. Published in the Archives of Internal Medicine in 1999, the researchers concluded that "Remote, intercessory prayer was associated with lower Coronary Care Unit course scores. This results that prayer may be an effective adjunct to standard medical   care." (Arch Inter Med 1999,  159:2273-2278).

Are you interested in including prayer to your standard medical care? An important aspect to complementary medicine is the integration of body, mind and spirit. All the practitioners at this clinic are respectful of all
spiritual paths and are comfortable with integrating this personal aspect into your care.Interested in receiving intercessory prayer or being part of a prayer group? Inform your practitioner as this is a free service available to our clients. For more information, call  Lea Gracer at 928-282-2520.

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