People who meditate on the daily basis are less likely to have work-related stress or burnout, according to a recent study.

Researchers from Maharishi University's Institute for Natural Medicine and Prevention in Fairfield, Iowa observed that after practicing 20 minutes of Transcendental Meditation (TM) twice a day for four months, teachers and support staff working at a school for children with behavior problems felt less stressed after practicing, Reuters reported.

Participants "reported feeling less stressed and more energetic within a few days," study's senior author Sanford Nidich said, according to Reuters.

Accordingt to researchers,starting stress levels among the study participants had averaged 39 on a 40-point scale and fell 5 points by the end of the study period.

In comparison, 20 school staffers who did not meditate started with stress levels around 37 on the same scale and those rose 2 points during the same period.

Participants who meditated also reported feeling less depressed and less emotionally exhausted, according to Nidich and his coauthors write in the Permanente Journal.

TM, a trademarked method of meditation, generally involves sitting with one's eyes closed for 20 minutes twice a day and thinking about a particular sound or mantra.

"Automatic self-transcending techniques, such as TM, involve the effortless use of a sound without meaning (mantra), which allows the mind to settle to quieter levels of thought," Nidich's team writes.

Certified instructors teach the practice nationwide at a cost of $960 for the full course , according to the TM.org website.

Previous research has said that there are many benefits from various forms of meditation, such as TM or the popular "mindfulness meditation" approach, for conditions ranging from anxiety to pain, according to Reuters.