Brain Myth #5: EEG Readings Predict Improvements in Health

Fact: Maybe yes, maybe no. Different behaviors, and different ways of thinking will generate different brainwave frequencies (delta, theta, alpha, beta, and gamma) in different parts of the brain. In the 1980s and 90s, considerable attention was given to EEG readings that record faint electrical activity along the outermost surface of the brain. Biofeedback and neurofeedback devices showed that we can consciously alter the brainwave frequencies in some parts of the brain, and when a person learns how to do this, certain improvements in behavior, cognition, and emotional regulation could be made. The research remained controversial because there was no agreement about which frequency would bring about the desired changes.

New brain-probing technology has demolished the early models by showing how different parts of the brain simultaneously generate different frequencies. Furthermore, these frequencies change from moment to moment, even when the same task is being performed. The result? Today we know less about what brainwave frequencies mean, nor can we say that one frequency creates a specific state of alertness, relaxation, or mental improvement.

Here’s what’s important: we now know that you can train yourself – through concentration and relaxation – to alter the brainwave frequencies in different regions. Like physical exercise, this form of mental “innercise” teaches you how to have more conscious control over nonconscious neural processes. The secret lies in the correct development of concentration, not in generating or maintaining a specific brainwave frequency. Praxis Now makes use of this new finding by teaching you how to pay attention to each unique neural states generated by the audio entrainment frequencies we use.

Source : http://www.praxisnow.com/brain-training/brain-myths