Contemplative Practice Amidst a Global Pandemic: Stress Coping and Telomere Biology

Co-funding for new research that examines how adaptive coping styles, driven by contemplative practices, support better mental health and optimal physical states (identified through less telomere erosion). The research team, led by Cliff Saron of the University of California, Davis, will test the hypothesis that greater meditation experience will mitigate the negative relationship between stress exposure and telomere length within the context of the many attendant challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.