
For the first time, the American Heart Association (AHA) and American College of Cardiology (ACC) have recognised psychosocial stress as a key contributor to high blood pressure and cardiometabolic risk in their 2025 guideline. This represents a major shift in medical practice. The guideline now places psychological stress alongside traditional biomedical and lifestyle factors as a causal driver of hypertension.
Within this new framework, the guideline identifies Transcendental Meditation (TM) as a validated, standardised method to address psychosocial stress and lower high blood pressure for prevention of cardiovascular disease. TM is the only meditation technique included, reflecting extensive evidence for its physiological and clinical benefits.
