Rapid shift of gut microbiome and enrichment of beneficial microbes during arhatic yoga meditation retreat in a single-arm pilot study.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Single-arm uncontrolled pre-post pilot trial
PubMed 39939954 · doi:10.1186/s12906-025-04783-4
What was done
A single-arm pilot study investigated the effects of a 9-day intensive Arhatic Yoga meditation retreat combined with a vegetarian diet on oral and gut microbial communities. Oral and fecal samples were collected from 24 practitioners at baseline (Day 0), midpoint (Day 3), and study completion (Day 9). Microbial compositions were analyzed via 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, DESeq2 differential abundance testing, and PICRUSt2 functional pathway predictions.
What was found
Oral microbiome profiles exhibited significant changes in species richness and evenness by Day 9 (p < 0.05). Non-metric multidimensional scaling and PERMANOVA demonstrated a significant shift in gut microbiome profiles by Day 3 (p < 0.05), with microbial convergence between beginner and advanced practitioners by Day 9. While the authors report enrichment of health-associated microbes related to gut-barrier and immune function, specific taxa names and quantitative effect sizes were not provided in the abstract.
Why it matters
This study provides preliminary pilot data indicating that intensive multimodal retreat environments combining meditation practices and vegetarian diet can rapidly alter oral and fecal microbial community structures.
Limits
The study is an uncontrolled, single-arm trial with a small sample size (n = 24), preventing isolation of meditation effects from dietary changes, environmental shifts, or travel. Follow-up ended at Day 9 with no post-retreat washout evaluation, functional changes were based solely on predictive bioinformatic modeling (PICRUSt2), and the trial was registered retrospectively.
Cited by
- context Practicing 5 minutes of meditation per day produces measurable changes in the gut microbiome and the brain.