Mindfulness

Mindfulness is Associated with Lower Functional Impairment and Avoidance in Major Depressive Disorder

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Mindfulness is Associated with Lower Functional Impairment and Avoidance in Major Depressive Disorder

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“People at risk for depression are dealing with a lot of negative thoughts, feelings and beliefs about themselves and this can easily slide into a depressive relapse. MBCT helps them to recognize that’s happening, engage with it in a different way and respond to it with equanimity and compassion.” – Willem Kuyken

 

Clinically diagnosed depression is the most common mental illness, affecting over 6% of the population. Major depression can be quite debilitating, impairing the ability of the patients to effectively conduct their lives. Depression can be difficult to treat and is usually treated with anti-depressive medication. But, of patients treated initially with drugs only about a third attained remission of the depression. After repeated and varied treatments including drugs, therapy, exercise etc. only about two thirds of patients attained remission. But drugs often have troubling side effects and can lose effectiveness over time. In addition, many patients who achieve remission have relapses and recurrences of the depression. Even after remission some symptoms of depression may still be present (residual symptoms).

 

Being depressed and not responding to treatment or relapsing is a terribly difficult situation. The patients are suffering and nothing appears to work to relieve their intense depression. Suicide becomes a real possibility. So, it is imperative that other treatments be identified that can relieve the suffering. Mindfulness training is an alternative treatment for depression. It has been shown to be an effective treatment for depression and its recurrence and even in the cases where drugs fail. Behavioral activation involves engaging with what is going on in the present moment and is thought to help with depression while avoiding symptoms and ruminating tend to exacerbate the depression. There is little data, however, of the interplay of activation and mindfulness in patients with major depression.

 

In today’s Research News article “Roles of Trait Mindfulness in Behavioral Activation Mechanism for Patients With Major Depressive Disorder.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7202344/), Takagaki and colleagues had adult patients with major depressive disorder complete questionnaires designed to measure behavioral activation for depression including subscales measuring activation, avoidance/rumination, work/school impairment, and social impairment; mindfulness including subscales measuring describe, observe, act with awareness, nonreactivity, and non-judging; depression; and disability.

 

They found that the greater the level of depression the greater the level of disability, avoidance/rumination, and mindful observing and the lower the levels of mindful describing, acting with awareness, nonreacting and non-judging. Similarly, they also found that the higher the levels of avoidance/rumination the greater the levels of depression, disability, and mindful observing and the lower the levels of mindful describing, acting with awareness, nonreacting and non-judging. Structural equation modelling revealed that mindful acting with awareness, nonreacting and non-judging was directly negatively related to avoidance/rumination which was in turn positively related to disability. In addition, mindful acting with awareness and nonreacting were directly negatively related to disability.

 

These results are correlative and caution must be taken in making causal inferences. Nevertheless, the results suggest that the degree of disability/impairment in patients with major depressive disorder is directly and indirectly associated with mindfulness with avoidance/rumination as an intermediary. That is, avoidance of a negative aversive state and engagement in rumination rather than active problem-solving to some extent mediates the association of mindfulness with lower levels of impairment in life. Hence, mindfulness is related to the patient’s ability to better conduct their life and it does so directly and indirectly by being associated with less avoidance of psychological pain and less rumination.

 

So, mindfulness is associated with lower functional impairment and avoidance in major depressive disorder.

 

“Mindfulness training can “generate positive emotions by cultivating self-compassion and self-confidence through an upward spiral process, although behavioral activation is action oriented while mindfulness emphasizes the acceptance and awareness of present moment emotions, thoughts, and bodily sensations, the two can be complementary.” _ Amanda MacMillan

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Takagaki, K., Ito, M., Takebayashi, Y., Nakajima, S., & Horikoshi, M. (2020). Roles of Trait Mindfulness in Behavioral Activation Mechanism for Patients With Major Depressive Disorder. Frontiers in psychology, 11, 845. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00845

 

Abstract

Behavioral activation and mindfulness have both been shown to engender improvement of functional impairment in patients with major depressive disorder. In behavioral activation, the practice of engaging with the direct experience of the present moment is central, especially when targeting avoidance. Consequently, mindfulness affects changes of avoidance in behavioral activation. This study was designed to assess exploratory relations among trait mindfulness, avoidance, and functional impairment in behavioral activation mechanism for depression. For 1042 participants with depression only or for depression with anxiety disorders, we used structural equation modeling to examine relations among trait mindfulness, avoidance, and functional impairment. Trait mindfulness non-reactivity, non-judging, and acting with awareness had a direct negative effect on avoidance. Trait mindfulness non-reactivity, trait non-judging, and trait acting with awareness had indirect negative effects on functional impairment. Results show that each trait mindfulness facet exhibited a distinct pattern of relations with avoidance and impairment.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7202344/

 

Mindfulness is Associated with Greater Prosocial Behavior and Lower Rumination

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Mindfulness is Associated with Greater Prosocial Behavior and Lower Rumination

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“With mindfulness, people deeply experience the present feelings with clarity and emotionally calm, and thus prevents them from suppression or rumination.” – Ying Yang

 

Humans are social animals. This is a great asset for the species as the effort of the individual is amplified by cooperation. In primitive times, this cooperation was essential for survival. But in modern times it is also essential, not for survival but rather for making a living and for the happiness of the individual. Mindfulness has been found to increase prosocial emotions such as compassion, and empathy and prosocial behaviors such as altruism.

 

Worry (concern about the future) and rumination (repetitive thinking about the past) are associated with mental illness, particularly anxiety and depression. Fortunately, worry and rumination may be interrupted by mindfulness and emotion regulation improved by mindfulness. But there has been little study of the relationships between mindfulness, prosocial behaviors and rumination.

 

In today’s Research News article “Prosocial Behavior Can Moderate the Relationship Between Rumination and Mindfulness.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7180177/),  Meng and Meng recruited adults high in rumination and low in rumination and asked them to evaluate what actions that they might take in a number of situations. They randomly assigned half of each group to work with situations that evoked either helping others (prosocial behavior) and the other half to work with neutral situations that didn’t involve helping. They were measured before and after the task for mindfulness and rumination. In a second study they recruited undergraduate students and had them complete questionnaires measuring mindfulness, rumination, and prosocial tendencies.

 

In the first study they found that overall, those participants high in rumination had significantly lower mindfulness than those low in rumination. They also found that the group working with helping situations had a significantly greater increase in mindfulness after the task than those working with the neutral situations and this effect was greatest in participants high in rumination.

 

In the second study they found that the higher the levels or all aspects of rumination the lower the levels of mindfulness. They also found that the higher the levels of mindfulness the greater the tendencies for prosocial behavior. Finally, they performed a moderation analysis and found that those participants high in prosocial tendencies had greater reductions in mindfulness produced by the reflective pondering aspect of rumination than the participants low in tendencies for prosocial behavior.

 

Overall, they found that rumination was associated with lower levels of mindfulness. This is not surprising as rumination involves repetitive thinking about past and future events that is incompatible with present moment awareness, mindfulness. In addition, they found that working on tasks that demanded helping behavior tended to increase mindfulness especially when rumination was high. Further they found that tendencies for prosocial behaviors were associated with higher levels of mindfulness. This suggests that prosocial behavior and mindfulness are significantly related and that evoking thinking about prosocial behavior tends to make the individual more mindful.

 

Although many aspects of this study were correlative and do not indicate causal relationships, it is clear that mindfulness and prosocial behavior are positively related and that rumination interferes with this relationship. They also suggest that engaging in prosocial behavior helps make people who ruminate a lot to be more mindful.

 

Previous research has shown that training in mindfulness increases the tendency to engage in prosocial behavior. This study turns the tables and demonstrates that engaging in prosocial behaviors increases mindfulness. All of which suggests that being aware of what’s going on in the present moment makes the individual more likely to see what others may need and that tending to the needs of others evokes present moment awareness.

 

Mindfulness is associated with greater prosocial behavior and lower rumination.

 

“mindfulness meditation training increases compassionate prosocial behaviors.” – J. David Cresswell

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Meng, Y., & Meng, G. (2020). Prosocial Behavior Can Moderate the Relationship Between Rumination and Mindfulness. Frontiers in psychiatry, 11, 289. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00289

 

Abstract

Objective

Rumination, which is a coping style to distress, has become a common mode of thinking about mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety. Improving mindfulness is an effective way to help people cope with rumination. Individuals who had higher prosocial behaviors reported a high level of mindfulness. This study aimed to explore whether prosocial behavior helps individuals with high-level rumination improve their mindfulness, and explain the reason why prosocial behavior can influence the relationship between mindfulness and rumination.

Methods

Introducing prosocial behavior situations, the first study chose 51 high-level rumination and 53 low-level rumination participants and measured the influence of prosocial behavior on mindful attention awareness in the present moment. In the second study, a questionnaire was conducted among 261 participants to explore the moderating effect of prosocial behavior between rumination and mindfulness.

Results

In individuals with high-level rumination, ΔMAAS (mindful attention awareness scale) (posttest-baseline) scores in the prosocial behavior condition were significantly higher compared to those in the control condition (p=0.003). Meanwhile, prosocial behavior played a moderating effect between reflective pondering of rumination and mindfulness (R2 = 0.03, p=0.004).

Conclusions

Encouraging prosocial behavior is an effective way to improve mindfulness in highly ruminative individuals.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7180177/

 

Improve Tolerance for Distress with Brief Mindfulness Training

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Improve Tolerance for Distress with Brief Mindfulness Training

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“when you are being mindful of your emotions you don’t fight the wave, but instead allow the wave to carry you over its crest and down the other side, or you might choose to surf the wave allowing it to carry you into shore.” – Lisa Saulsman

 

Psychological distress is related to an increase in physiological stress responses. That is, when the individual is anxious, ruminating, or having negative emotions, the physiology including the hormonal system reacts. The increased activity can be measured in heightened stress hormones in the blood and increased heart rate, blood pressure etc. These physiological stress responses on the short-term are adaptive and help to fight off infection, toxins, injury, etc. Unfortunately, psychological distress is often persistent and chronic and resulting in chronic stress which in turn can produce disease.

 

Many of the symptoms of psychological distress have been shown to be related to a lack of mindfulness. Anxiety is often rooted in a persistent dread of future negative events while rumination is rooted in the past, with persistent replaying of negative past events. Since mindfulness is firmly rooted in the present it is antagonistic toward anything rooted in the past or future. Hence, high levels of mindfulness cannot coexist with anxiety and rumination. In addition, high mindfulness has been shown to be related to high levels of emotion regulation and positive emotions. So, mindfulness would appear to be an antidote to psychological distress.

 

In today’s Research News article “The Effect of a Brief Mindfulness Training on Distress Tolerance and Stress Reactivity.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6494113/), Carpenter and colleagues recruited undergraduate students who had no experience with mindfulness or meditation practices and measured them for mindfulness, anxiety, depression, perceived stress. mindfulness use, and respiration. They were then measured for distress tolerance with a cold pressor task in which they were asked to keep their arm in very cold water for as long as they could (up to a maximum of 180 seconds). They were also asked to hyperventilate for as long as they could (up to a maximum of 300 seconds). After having completed these tasks they were randomly assigned to receive either 15 minutes of relaxation with music or mindfulness training with meditation and non-judgmental awareness. They then repeated the distress tasks. Finally, only after training they were asked to write a sentence stating that a good friend will be in a bad car accident and think about and visualize the scene. Participants were asked to rate their level of distress prior to each task and after the task to rate their maximal level of distress during the task,

 

They found that in comparison to baseline and the relaxation condition, after mindfulness training there was a significant increase in persistence of hyperventilation, time continuing to hyperventilate. The mindfulness participants also were less likely to attempt to neutralize feelings produced by stating and visualizing a friend in a future car accident. There were no significant effects of training on the reported levels of distress. They also found that using mindfulness nonjudging and nonreacting mediated the effect of mindfulness training on persistence in the cold pressor and urge to neutralize feelings in the car accident tasks, such that mindfulness training not only directly affected these outcomes but also indirectly by increasing these uses of mindfulness which in turn affected performance.

 

These results suggest that a brief mindfulness training produces a greater ability to tolerate physical and psychological distress. They also suggest that mindfulness has these effects in part by inducing mindful nonjudgment and nonreaction. The ability to engage in a stressful task appears to be improved by observing it in the present moment nonjudgmentally and nonreactively.

 

Mindfulness training has been previously shown to reduce distress, pain, and responding to stress. What is new and interesting here is that such a brief mindfulness training can have significant effects like these. This suggests that brief mindfulness training may be beneficially employed whenever and individual is about to engage in a distressful task, such as working through traumatic experiences, engaging in athletic endeavors, etc., making the individual better able to focus on the present moment and better cope with the distress.

 

So, improve tolerance for distress with brief mindfulness training.

 

“mindfulness is believed to facilitate increased distress tolerance and nonjudgmental acceptance of unpleasant experiences.” – Andrew Bliesner

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Carpenter, J. K., Sanford, J., & Hofmann, S. G. (2019). The Effect of a Brief Mindfulness Training on Distress Tolerance and Stress Reactivity. Behavior therapy, 50(3), 630–645. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2018.10.003

 

Highlights

  • Mindfulness training increased distress tolerance on the hyperventilation challenge
  • Mindfulness training led to reduced urges to neutralize an upsetting thought
  • No effect of the intervention was seen on subjective distress
  • Lower trait awareness predicted a greater effect of mindfulness on hyperventilation

Abstract

Distress tolerance (DT) is considered an underlying facet of anxiety, depression and a number of other psychological disorders. Mindfulness may help to increase DT by fostering an attitude of acceptance non-judgment toward distressing experiences. Accordingly, the present study examined the effects of a brief mindfulness training on tolerance of different types of distress, and tested whether trait mindfulness moderates the effect of such training. Undergraduates (n = 107) naïve to mindfulness completed a measure of trait mindfulness and underwent a series of stress tasks (cold pressor, hyperventilation challenge, neutralization task) before and after completing a 15-minute mindfulness training or a no-instruction control in which participants listened to relaxing music. Participants in the mindfulness condition demonstrated greater task persistence on the hyperventilation task compared to the control group, as well as a decreased urge to neutralize the effects of writing an upsetting sentence. No effect on distress ratings during the tasks were found. Overall trait mindfulness did not significantly moderate task persistence, but those with lower scores on the act with awareness facet of mindfulness demonstrated greater relative benefit of mindfulness training on the hyperventilation challenge. Mediation analyses revealed significant indirect effects of mindfulness training on cold pressor task persistence and urges to neutralize through the use of the non-judge and non-react facets of mindfulness. These results suggest that a brief mindfulness training can increase DT without affecting the subjective experience of distress.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6494113/

 

Improve Resilience and Inner Peace to Reduce Negative Views of the Past with Mindfulness

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Improve Resilience and Inner Peace to Reduce Negative Views of the Past with Mindfulness

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“mindfulness promotes a more balanced time perspective, with a reduced focus on negative aspects of the past and negative anticipations of the future.” – Michael Rönnlund

 

Mindfulness stresses present moment awareness, minimizing focus on past memories and

future planning. Depression is characterized by a focus on the past while anxiety is characterized by focus on the future. This is representative of a past-negative time perspective which is a pessimistic negative view of what transpired in the past. Although awareness of the past and future are important, focus on the present moment generally leads to greater psychological health and well-being. This is generally characterized by inner peach which is a mild positive state with calmness and harmony in the mind. Although these concepts are well known, their interrelationships and the effect of meditation practice on them, have not been well studied.

 

In today’s Research News article “Dispositional Mindfulness and Past-Negative Time Perspective: The Differential Mediation Effects of Resilience and Inner Peace in Meditators and Non-Meditators.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7212969/), Ge and colleagues recruited adults over the internet who regularly meditated and those who did not. They completed questionnaires measuring their meditation experience, mindfulness, resilience, inner peace, and past-negative time perspective.

 

They found that mindfulness, resilience, and inner peace were all significantly and positively inter-related and negatively related to past-negative time perspective. They also found that the meditators had significantly higher levels of mindfulness and inner peace and lower levels of past-negative time perspective than the non-meditators. Structural equation modelling revealed that the negative relationship between mindfulness and past-negative time perspective was mediated by the relationships of mindfulness with resilience and inner peace. That is the higher the levels of mindfulness the higher the levels of resilience and inner peace which in turn were related to lower levels of past-negative time perspective. Non-meditators also had an additional direct negative relationship between mindfulness and past-negative time perspective.

 

It should be kept in mind that these results are correlational and causation cannot be determined. But they suggest that mindfulness is associated with greater ability to cope with difficulties, resilience, greater calmness and mental harmony, inner peace, and a less negative pessimistic perspective of past events. In addition, mindfulness’ relationship with less past-negative time perspective, in part, occurs due to mindfulness’ relationship with resilience and inner peace.

 

It can be postulated that mindfulness produces a positive state that is resistant to disruption by events and this produces a more positive assessment of what occurred in the past. This, in turn, prevents the emergence of negative emotional states such as anxiety and depression. This may represent a mechanism whereby mindfulness alters the individual’s psychological makeup resulting in greater psychological health and well-being.

 

So, improve resilience and inner peace to reduce negative views of the past with mindfulness.

 

“Mindfulness is about being fully aware of each moment in your life. Each thought, feeling, sensation and experience are accepted for what it is. There’s no battle going on in your head and heart. You are open to it ALL.” – Bev Janisch

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Ge, J., Yang, J., Song, J., Jiang, G., & Zheng, Y. (2020). Dispositional Mindfulness and Past-Negative Time Perspective: The Differential Mediation Effects of Resilience and Inner Peace in Meditators and Non-Meditators. Psychology research and behavior management, 13, 397–405. https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S229705

 

Abstract

Purpose

Past-negative time perspective (PNTP) can affect our everyday lives and is associated with negative emotions, unhealthy behaviors, rumination, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Dispositional mindfulness may be able to reduce the negative effects of PNTP; however, few studies have investigated their relationship. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore the effect dispositional mindfulness has on PNTP, as well as the mediating role of resilience and inner peace in this regard.

Methods

This study investigated the cross-sectional relationship between self-reported mindfulness, resilience, inner peace, and PNTP. In order to further explore the relationship between mindfulness and PNTP, this study specially selected and analyzed the samples of 185 meditators and 181 non-meditators.

Results

Correlation analysis revealed that mindfulness is significantly positively correlated with resilience and inner peace. Conversely, PNTP is significantly negatively correlated with mindfulness, resilience, and inner peace. Structural equation model analysis revealed that resilience and inner peace partially mediated the relationship between mindfulness and PNTP. Furthermore, a multi-group analysis showed that the mediating effects are different between meditators and non-meditators. For meditators, the effect of mindfulness on PNTP was fully mediated by resilience and inner peace. For non-meditators, the effect of mindfulness on PNTP was only partially mediated by resilience and inner peace.

Conclusion

Based on the significant differences between the mediational models of meditators and non-meditators, we believe that dispositional mindfulness can negatively predict PNTP, and practicing meditation consistently improves dispositional mindfulness, resilience and inner peace and effectively reduces PNTP. Our findings indicate that a combination of mindfulness and PNTP could be used to design new psychological interventions to reduce the symptoms of mental health concerns such as negative bias, rumination, depression, anxiety, and PTSD.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7212969/

 

Lunchtime Mindfulness and Exercise Training have only Weak Benefits for Stress and Mental Health

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Lunchtime Mindfulness and Exercise Training have only Weak Benefits for Stress and Mental Health

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

”The research is strong for mindfulness’ positive impact in certain areas of mental health, including stress reduction, emotion and attention regulation, reduced rumination, for reducing mild to moderate depression and anxiety, and preventing depressive relapse.” – Kelle Walsh

 

Over the last several decades, research and anecdotal experiences have accumulated an impressive evidential case that the development of mindfulness has positive benefits for the individual’s mental, physical, and spiritual life. Mindfulness appears to be beneficial both for healthy people and for people suffering from a myriad of mental and physical illnesses. It appears to be beneficial across ages, from children to the elderly. And it appears to be beneficial across genders, personalities, race, and ethnicity. The breadth and depth of benefits is unprecedented. There is no other treatment or practice that has been shown to come anyway near the range of mindfulness’ positive benefits.

 

Exercise can also improve emotions and their regulation. More and more businesses are employing mindfulness training for their employees improving their well-being and promoting creativity and productivity. So, it makes sense to study the relative abilities of exercise and mindfulness training in the workplace in promoting well-being.

 

In today’s Research News article “Mindfulness versus Physical Exercise: Effects of Two Recovery Strategies on Mental Health, Stress and Immunoglobulin A during Lunch Breaks. A Randomized Controlled Trial.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7215846/), Díaz-Silveira and colleagues recruited mid-level professionals with moderate stress levels who were nor either regularly exercising or practicing mindfulness from a large multinational company. They were randomly assigned to a no-treatment, mindfulness, or exercise group. Mindfulness training consisted of a modified Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program. Exercise consisted of aerobic gym and outdoor workouts. “The intervention took place during the five working days of five consecutive weeks, during which the two active groups practiced MM or PE during the lunch break (before having lunch), with equal time intervals of 15 min in the first week, 20 min in the second week, 25 min in the third week and 30 min in the fourth and fifth weeks.” They were measured before and after training and 1 and 6 months later for perceived stress and general mental health and provided saliva samples that were assayed for immunoglobulin A.

 

They found that immediately after the 5-weeks of training both the mindfulness and exercise groups had significant reduction in perceived stress including harassment, overload, and irritability-tension-fatigue dimensions. But these improvements were no longer present 1 and 6 months later. They also found that at the 6-month follow up the mindfulness group had significantly improved mental health.

 

These are interesting but somewhat disappointing results. Mindfulness training and exercise appeared to reduce perceived stress levels but the benefits did not last. Also, the mental health benefit for mindfulness training was only apparent at the 6-month follow-up. Prior research has routinely reported lasting reductions in perceived stress and mental health. This suggests that mindfulness and exercise training during the work lunch hour is not the best way to approach mindfulness training in the workplace. The reasons for this should be explored in future research. But it is possible that the rest and relaxation during lunchtime is important for well-being and that filling this time with mindfulness and exercise practice is somewhat counterproductive.

 

So, lunchtime mindfulness and exercise training have only weak benefits for stress and mental health.

 

“Mindfulness is recommended as a treatment for people with mental ill-health as well as those who want to improve their mental health and wellbeing.” – Mental Health Foundation

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Díaz-Silveira, C., Alcover, C. M., Burgos, F., Marcos, A., & Santed, M. A. (2020). Mindfulness versus Physical Exercise: Effects of Two Recovery Strategies on Mental Health, Stress and Immunoglobulin A during Lunch Breaks. A Randomized Controlled Trial. International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(8), 2839. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17082839

 

Abstract

This research analyses the effects of mindfulness meditation (MM) and physical exercise (PE), practised as daily recovery activities during lunch breaks, on perceived stress, general mental health, and immunoglobin A (IgA). A three-armed randomized controlled trial with 94 employees was conducted for five weeks including two follow-up sessions after one and six months. Daily practice lasted 30 min maximum. Perceived stress and general mental health questionnaires and saliva samples were used. There were significant differences in time factor comparing pre- and post-test of Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ) both for PE [Mdiff = 0.10, SE = 0.03, p = 0.03], and for MM [Mdiff = 0.09, SE = 0.03, p = 0.03]. Moreover, there were significant differences of interaction factor when comparing MM vs. PE in total score at pre-post [F = −2.62 (6, 168.84), p = 0.02, ω2 = 0.09], favoring PE with medium and high effect sizes. Regarding General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) variable, practicing MM showed significant effects in time factor compared to pre-Fup2. No significant differences were found for IgA. Thus, practicing both MM and PE as recovery strategies during lunch breaks could reduce perceived stress after five weeks of practice, with better results for PE. Moreover, practicing MM could improve mental health with effects for 6 months.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7215846/

 

Mindfulness Improves Physical Health

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Mindfulness Improves Physical Health

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“mindfulness benefits our bodies, not just our minds.” – Jill Suttie

 

Mindfulness training has been shown to be effective in improving physical and psychological health and particularly with the physical and psychological reactions to stress. Techniques such as Mindfulness Training, Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) as well as Yoga practice and Tai Chi or Qigong practice have been demonstrated to be effective. This has led to an increasing adoption of these mindfulness techniques for the health and well-being of both healthy and ill individuals.

 

The evidence has been accumulating. So, it is reasonable to step back and summarize what has been learned and examine possible mechanism by which mindfulness may improve physical health. In today’s Research News article “Mindfulness Training and Physical Health: Mechanisms and Outcomes.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6613793/), Creswell and colleagues review and summarize the published controlled research studies on mindfulness effects on physical health.

 

They report that the published randomized controlled trials found that mindfulness training produced significant improvements in chronic pain management, including low back pain, arthritis, fibromyalgia. They also report that mindfulness training produced significant improvements in stress related health conditions, including psoriasis, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), irritable bowel syndrome, type 2 diabetes, HIV progression, inflammatory responses, and even colds. Hence, mindfulness training appears to significantly improve the physical health of the individual.

 

They postulate that mindfulness training improves health primarily through improving the physiological, psychological, and behavioral responses to stress. They postulate that it affects the physiological stress responses by modulating the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal hormonal responses to stress.  They further postulate that it affects the psychological stress responses by improving the monitoring and acceptance of stress. Finally, they postulate that mindfulness training improves health behaviors including reduced smoking, and improved diet, sleep, and activity all of which promote health.

 

The review indicates that there is substantial evidence that mindfulness training is good for health and improves a wide range of physiological, psychological, and behavioral responses that contribute to good health. It appears that reactions to stress may be central to these benefits. Regardless, it is clear that mindfulness improves health.

 

So, mindfulness improves physical health.

 

“If greater well-being isn’t enough of an incentive, scientists have discovered that mindfulness techniques help improve physical health in a number of ways. Mindfulness can: help relieve stress, treat heart disease, lower blood pressure, reduce chronic pain, , improve sleep, and alleviate gastrointestinal difficulties.” – Harvard Health

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Creswell, J. D., Lindsay, E. K., Villalba, D. K., & Chin, B. (2019). Mindfulness Training and Physical Health: Mechanisms and Outcomes. Psychosomatic medicine, 81(3), 224–232. https://doi.org/10.1097/PSY.0000000000000675

 

Abstract

Objective:

There has been substantial research and public interest in mindfulness interventions, biological pathways, and health over the past two decades. This article reviews recent developments in understanding relationships between mindfulness interventions and physical health.

Methods:

A selective review was conducted with the goal of synthesizing conceptual and empirical relationships between mindfulness interventions and physical health outcomes.

Results:

Initial randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in this area suggest that mindfulness interventions can improve pain management outcomes among chronic pain populations, and there is preliminary evidence for mindfulness interventions improving specific stress-related disease outcomes in some patient populations (i.e., clinical colds, psoriasis, IBS, PTSD, diabetes, HIV). We offer a stress buffering framework for the observed beneficial effects of mindfulness interventions and summarize supporting biobehavioral and neuroimaging studies that provide plausible mechanistic pathways linking mindfulness interventions with positive physical health outcomes.

Conclusion:

We conclude with new opportunities for research and clinical implementations to consider in the next two decades.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6613793/

 

Adherence to a Mindfulness Intervention Assists in Preventing Alcoholism Relapse

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Adherence to a Mindfulness Intervention Assists in Preventing Alcoholism Relapse

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Thoughts and feelings, including urges to use substances or activities, are always temporary. Through mindfulness and its related practices (including meditation) it is possible to learn how to face uncomfortable, painful thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations, and let them pass—without obsessing on or avoiding them.” – Dan Mager

 

Inappropriate use of alcohol is a major societal problem. In fact, about 25% of US adults have engaged in binge drinking in the last month and 7% have what is termed an alcohol use disorder. Alcohol abuse is very dangerous and frequently fatal. Nearly 88,000 people in the US and 3.3 million globally die from alcohol-related causes annually, making it the third leading preventable cause of death in the United States. Drunk driving accounted for over 10,000 deaths; 31% of all driving fatalities. Excessive alcohol intake has been shown to contribute to over 200 diseases including alcohol dependence, liver cirrhosis, cancers, and injuries. It is estimated that over 5% of the burden of disease and injury worldwide is attributable to alcohol consumption.

 

Obviously, there is a need to find effective methods to prevent and treat alcohol abuse. There are a number of programs that are successful at stopping the abuse, including the classic 12-step program emblematic of Alcoholics Anonymous. Unfortunately, the majority of alcohol abusers relapse and return to drinking. Hence, it is important to find an effective method to both treat alcohol abuse and to prevent relapse. Mindfulness practices have been shown to improve recovery from various addictions and reduce relapse. Mindfulness training has been successfully applied to treating alcohol abuse. It appears to increase the ability of the drinker to control alcohol intake. Since, mindfulness appears to hold promise as a treatment for excessive alcohol intake, there is a need to examine the ability of mindfulness training to reduce relapse after successful cessation.

 

In today’s Research News article “Mindfulness-based relapse prevention for alcohol dependence: Findings from a randomized controlled trial.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6508889/), Zgierska and colleagues recruited alcohol dependent adults who were in early recovery in an alcohol treatment program. They were randomly assigned to either continue to receive their current treatment or to receive an 8 weekly 2-hour Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP) program with home practice tailored for alcohol abuse. They were measured before and after treatment and a year later for alcohol consumption, drinking-related consequences, mindfulness, and perceived stress.

 

They reported that over the one-year follow-up period there were no significant differences between the treatment as usual or the Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP) participants on any of the outcome measures. But, for the MBRP participants who attended at least 4 sessions, the greater the number of sessions attended, and the greater the amount of home practice the lower the percentage of drinking days and the fewer the heavy drinking days during the 1-year follow-up.

 

The results of the present study are surprising as prior research has consistently demonstrated that mindfulness training improves relapse prevention. The present findings may have been due to a ceiling effect. The participants in both groups were committed to stopping drinking and already had up to 14 days of sobriety prior to entry into the study. This was reflected in that 60% of the participants in both groups were abstinent at the 1-year follow-up. This is an exceptionally high success rate for alcohol relapse prevention. So, the treatment as usual group may have been so successful that it left little room for the Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP) participants to show any further improvement.

 

The results of the present study indicate that participation in the program and adherence to the program requirements are exceptionally important. After taking out those non-adherent participants there was a positive relationship between adherence and relapse prevention.

 

So, adherence to a mindfulness intervention assists in preventing alcoholism relapse.

 

“We need to consider many different approaches to addiction treatment. It’s a tough problem,” Mindfulness therapy is “another possibility for people to explore,” – Sarah Bowen

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Zgierska, A. E., Burzinski, C. A., Mundt, M. P., McClintock, A. S., Cox, J., Coe, C. L., Miller, M. M., & Fleming, M. F. (2019). Mindfulness-based relapse prevention for alcohol dependence: Findings from a randomized controlled trial. Journal of substance abuse treatment, 100, 8–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2019.01.013

 

Highlights

MBRP-A plus usual care and usual care alone resulted in similar health benefits.

Addition of MBRP-A to usual care did not further improve drinking-related outcomes.

Greater MBRP-A intervention adherence was associated with better outcomes.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:

To assess the effects of mindfulness-based relapse prevention for alcohol dependence (MBRP-A) intervention on drinking and related consequences.

METHODS:

123 alcohol-dependent adults in early recovery, recruited from outpatient treatment programs, were randomly assigned to MBRP-A (intervention plus usual-care; N=64) or Control (usual-care-alone; N=59) group. MBRP-A consisted of eight-weekly sessions and home practice. Outcomes were assessed at baseline, 8 weeks and 26 weeks (18 weeks post-intervention), and compared between groups using repeated measures analysis.

RESULTS:

Outcome analysis included 112 participants (57 MBRP-A; 55 Control) who provided follow-up data. Participants were 41.0±12.2 years old, 56.2% male, and 91% white. Prior to “quit date,” they reported drinking on 59.4±34.8% (averaging 6.1±5.0 drinks/day) and heavy drinking (HD) on 50.4±35.5% of days. Their drinking reduced after the “quit date” (before enrollment) to 0.4±1.7% (HD: 0.1±0.7%) of days. At 26 weeks, the MBRP-A and control groups reported any drinking on 11.5±22.5% and 5.9±11.6% of days and HD on 4.5±9.3% and 3.2±8.7% of days, respectively, without between-group differences (ps≥0.05) in drinking or related consequences during the follow-up period. Three MBRP-A participants reported “relapse,” defined as three-consecutive HD days, during the study. Subgroup analysis indicated that greater adherence to session attendance and weekly home practice minutes were associated with improved outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS:

MBRP-A as an adjunct to usual-care did not show to improve outcomes in alcohol-dependent adults in early recovery compared to usual-care-alone; a return to drinking and relapse to HD were rare in both groups. However, greater adherence to MBRP-A intervention may improve long-term drinking-related outcomes.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6508889/

 

Improve Follower Well-Being with Leader Mindfulness

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Improve Follower Well-Being with Leader Mindfulness

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Mindfulness will help you clear away the trivia and needless worries about unimportant things, nurture passion for your work and compassion for others, and develop the ability to empower the people in your organization.” – Bill George

 

Work is very important for our health and well-being. We spend approximately 25% of our adult lives at work. How we spend that time is immensely important for not only to productivity in the workplace but also to our psychological and physical health. Mindfulness practices have been implemented in the workplace and they have been shown to markedly reduce the physiological and psychological responses to stress. This, in turn, improves productivity and the well-being of the employees. As a result, many businesses have incorporated mindfulness practices into the workday.

 

Mindfulness may also help to promote leadership in the workplace. It can potentially do so by enhancing emotion regulation, making the individual better able to recognize, experience, and adaptively respond to their emotions, and making the leader better able to listen to and to understand the needs and emotion of the workers they lead. Hence, the mindfulness of the leader may well be associated with the follower’s perception of their leadership abilities and in turn with the follower’s well-being.

 

In today’s Research News article “Follower Mindfulness and Well-Being: The Mediating Role of Perceived Authentic Leadership and the Moderating Role of Leader Mindfulness.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00879/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1339331_69_Psycho_20200528_arts_A), Zhang and colleagues recruited team leaders and followers at 2 Chinese manufacturing plants and had them complete questionnaires measuring mindfulness, perceived authentic leadership, and well-being.

 

They found that the higher the leader mindfulness the higher the follower mindfulness and the higher the follower mindfulness the greater the levels of perceived authentic leadership, and follower well-being. In addition, the higher the perceived authentic leadership the higher the follower well-being. So, both mindfulness and the perception of authenticity of the leader are associated with greater well-being in the employee.

 

A mediation analysis revealed that the relationship between follower mindfulness and follower well-being was mediated by perceived authentic leadership with the higher the perceived authentic leadership the stronger the relationship between follower mindfulness and follower well-being. They also found that the leader’s mindfulness was associated with higher levels of perceived authentic leadership.

 

These results suggest that the well-being of the employee is positively related to both the employee’s and the supervisor’s mindfulness; the more they are mindful, the greater the employee’s well-being. In addition, the perception that the leader is authentic is positively associated with both the leader’s and the follower’s levels of mindfulness. Hence, the leader is perceived as authentic if they are mindful and also if the employee is mindful. Finally, the results suggest that the perception that the leader is authentic is important for the ability of the follower’s mindfulness to be associated with greater well-being.

 

This study is correlational and as such causation cannot be determined. But the results indicate that mindfulness in the workplace is highly associated with the well-being of the employees. It does so directly and also indirectly by being associated with the perception that the supervisor is an authentic leader. This underscores the importance of mindfulness to the workplace and suggests that mindfulness training for both the employees and their supervisors could results in improved morale and well-being.

 

So, improve follower well-being with leader mindfulness.

 

“A mindful leader is someone who embodies leadership presence by cultivating focus, clarity, creativity and compassion in the service of others.” – Janice Marturano

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Zhang J, Song LJ, Ni D and Zheng X (2020) Follower Mindfulness and Well-Being: The Mediating Role of Perceived Authentic Leadership and the Moderating Role of Leader Mindfulness. Front. Psychol. 11:879. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00879

 

Drawing on implicit leadership theory and the mindfulness literature, we propose that perceived authentic leadership mediates the relationship between follower mindfulness and follower well-being. Leader mindfulness plays a moderating role in this process. We validated these hypotheses with the two-wave data from 56 leaders and 275 followers in two private enterprises located in China. We used Mplus 8.0 to test our hypotheses. Consistent with our hypotheses, the results showed that perceived authentic leadership mediated the positive relationship between follower mindfulness and follower well-being. Higher leader mindfulness enhanced the effect of follower mindfulness on perceived authentic leadership and also strengthened the indirect effect of follower mindfulness on follower well-being via perceived authentic leadership. The theoretical and managerial implications are further discussed in the light of these findings.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00879/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1339331_69_Psycho_20200528_arts_A

 

Reduce Physiological Indicators of Stress with Mindfulness

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Reduce Physiological Indicators of Stress with Mindfulness

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“Learning how to accept your present-moment experience is really important for reducing stress,” – Emily Lindsay

 

Mindfulness training has been shown to be effective in improving physical and psychological health. One reason for these benefits is that mindfulness training improves the individual’s physical and psychological reactions to stress. Stress is an integral part of life, that is actually essential to the health of the body. In moderation, it is healthful, strengthening, and provides interest and fun to life. If stress, is high or is prolonged, however, it can be problematic. It can significantly damage our physical and mental health and even reduce our longevity, leading to premature deaths.

 

It is important that we develop methods to either reduce or control high or prolonged stress or reduce our responses to it. Mindfulness practices have been found routinely to reduce the psychological and physiological responses to stress. and this appears to be important for health. So, it is important to study the mechanisms by which mindfulness reduces stress.

 

In today’s Research News article “Mindfulness-Based Student Training Leads to a Reduction in Physiological Evaluated Stress.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00645/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1332835_69_Psycho_20200519_arts_A), Voss and colleagues recruited university students and randomly assigned them to receive either no-treatment or a once a week for 90 minutes, 8-week mindfulness training program based upon Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR). The program contained meditation, body scan, yoga, and discussion and daily 20-min home practice. They were measured before and after training with physiological indicators of autonomic nervous system activity with electrocardiogram (ECG), finger-pulse plethysmography, and respiration.

 

They found that in comparison to the baseline and the no-treatment control participants the participants who received mindfulness training had significantly lower blood pressure pulse wave variability in both their systolic and diastolic blood pressures. These results suggest that mindfulness training resulted in improved regulation of the autonomic nervous system suggesting lower physiological arousal and greater peripheral physiological relaxation. This normally suggests a dominance of the parasympathetic (relaxation) component of the system as opposed to the sympathetic (arousal) component. The study suggests that the mindfulness training produced lower levels of physiological indicators of stress.

 

Prior research has established the mindfulness training produces lower psychological responses to stress. It has also shown that mindfulness training produces higher levels of heart rate variability, another measure of parasympathetic predominance and improved autonomic regulation. So, the present study, using different physiological measures, also showed that mindfulness training improves autonomic regulation suggestive of greater ability to respond to stress with lower physiological reactivity.

 

The importance of the observed improvements in autonomic regulation should not be underestimated. The greater ability to respond adaptively to stress is thought to underlie many of the improvements in mental and physical health produced by mindfulness training. In other words, the physiological indicators of reduced stress responsivity observed here, are indicators of the improvements in the individual’s ability to withstand stress and thereby maintain their health and well-being

 

So, reduce physiological indicators of stress with mindfulness.

 

“Mindfulness can lead to less intense stress responses. This has many health benefits, such as lowering your blood pressure and strengthening your immune system.” – Healthy Aging

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Voss A, Bogdanski M, Langohr B, Albrecht R and Sandbothe M (2020) Mindfulness-Based Student Training Leads to a Reduction in Physiological Evaluated Stress. Front. Psychol. 11:645. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00645

 

Background and Objective: In today’s fast-paced modern lifestyle, chronic stress has become a serious issue with potential consequences for our physical and mental health. The concept of mindfulness and its derived Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program is considered to be an effective stress management technique for patients as well as for healthy persons. The effects of MBSR interventions on their participants have been subject of previous research, especially with regard to psychological or social science approaches using self-reports and questionnaires. In contrast, medical investigations in this field have been less frequent and often somehow limited, for example, addressing only absolute (discrete) mean values for heart rate or blood pressure.

Methods: In this study, we have evaluated a Mindfulness Based Student Training program (MBST) by applying methods of biosignal analysis to examine its impact on the training participants’ autonomic regulation. This intervention program included classical MBSR elements but was adapted to suit the normal daily needs of university students. We obtained the electrocardiogram, finger-pulse plethysmography, and respiration activity from students participating in either the intervention group (IGR, 38 subjects) or a passive control group (CON, 35 subjects) prior to and after 8 weeks of MBST intervention.

Results: When comparing various indices from heart rate variability, pulse wave variability, and respiration in linear and nonlinear domains, significant changes in the autonomic regulation were observed for the IGR group after 8 weeks of MBST.

Conclusion: The results indicate a reduced stress level exclusively for the intervention participants, and therefore, we assume a health benefit from the MBST program.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00645/full?utm_source=F-AAE&utm_medium=EMLF&utm_campaign=MRK_1332835_69_Psycho_20200519_arts_A

 

Andreas.Voss@eah-jena.de

 

Improve Smoking Abstinence with Mindfulness

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Improve Smoking Abstinence with Mindfulness

 

By John M. de Castro, Ph.D.

 

“mindfulness training (MT) may decouple the association between craving and smoking, thus facilitating smoking cessation.” – J. Kim Pemberthy

 

“Tobacco use remains the single largest preventable cause of death and disease in the United States.” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). So, treating nicotine addiction and producing smoking cessation could greatly improve health. But smoking has proved devilishly difficult to treat. There are a wide variety of methods and strategies to quit smoking which are to only a very limited extent effective. According to the National Institutes of Health, about 40% of smokers who want to quit make a serious attempt to do so each year, but fewer than 5% actually succeed. Most people require three or four failed attempts before being successful.

 

One problem is that nicotine is one of the most addictive substances known and withdrawal from nicotine is very stressful, producing many physical and psychological problems, including negative emotional states and depression. In essence, the addict feels miserable without the nicotine. This promotes relapse to relieve the discomfort. Better methods to quit which can not only promote quitting but also prevent relapse are badly needed. Mindfulness practices have been found to be helpful in treating addictions, including nicotine addiction, and reducing the risk of relapse.

 

In today’s Research News article “Mechanisms linking mindfulness and early smoking abstinence: An ecological momentary assessment study.” (See summary below or view the full text of the study at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6483850/), Spears and colleagues recruited adult smokers desiring to quit and provided them with “six smoking cessation counseling sessions (10–20 minutes each).” They completed questionnaires on demographics and mindfulness. They were also asked to complete assessments at baseline and for 4 weeks after cessation of smoking on a smartphone of positive and negative emotions, smoking urges, and expectancy of regulating emotions whenever they had an urge to smoke, smoked a cigarette, and 4 randomly selected times per day prompted on their smartphone.

 

Of the participants 63% achieved smoking abstinence after treatment and 41% remained abstinent 7 days later. They found that on the day of smoking cessation and 7 days later, the higher the levels of mindfulness the lower the levels of negative emotions, stress, smoking urges, and expectancies that smoking would improve mood and the higher the levels of positive emotions. They also found that lower smoking urges were associated with higher levels of abstinence when the participants were low in mindfulness but not when they were high in mindfulness. In addition, the higher the levels of mindfulness, the higher the levels of positive emotions and the lower the levels of negative emotions which were in turn associated with higher levels of smoking abstinence.

 

Even though the smoking cessation therapy did not include a mindfulness component, the participant’s level of mindfulness was an important contributor to successful smoking abstinence. Mindfulness appeared to be associated with improved mood and lower stress levels and urges to smoke which were in turn associated with improved outcomes. Hence, mood and stress appear to mediate the association of mindfulness with successfully quitting smoking. Mindful people appear to have more positive moods which works to improve the likelihood of quitting smoking.

 

So, improve smoking abstinence with mindfulness.

 

“stress is caused by craving. If you can let go of that craving, then your stress will dissolve, and practicing mindfulness is the way to do that.” – Judson Brewer

 

CMCS – Center for Mindfulness and Contemplative Studies

 

This and other Contemplative Studies posts are also available on Google+ https://plus.google.com/106784388191201299496/posts and on Twitter @MindfulResearch

 

Study Summary

 

Spears, C. A., Li, L., Wu, C., Vinci, C., Heppner, W. L., Hoover, D. S., Lam, C., & Wetter, D. W. (2019). Mechanisms linking mindfulness and early smoking abstinence: An ecological momentary assessment study. Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors, 33(3), 197–207. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000451

 

Abstract

Research suggests that individuals with greater dispositional mindfulness (i.e., non-judgmental, present-focused attention) are more likely to quit smoking, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. This study investigated mechanisms linking mindfulness and early smoking abstinence using ecological momentary assessment (EMA). Participants were 355 smokers (33% Caucasian, 33% African American, 32% Latino; 55% female) receiving smoking cessation treatment. Mindfulness was assessed at baseline and on the quit date. For 4 days pre-quit and 1 week post-quit, participants completed up to 4 EMAs per day indicating levels of negative affect (NA), positive affect (PA), smoking urges, and affect regulation expectancies. Mean, slope, and volatility were calculated for each pre-quit and post-quit EMA variable. Associations among mindfulness, EMA parameters, and abstinence on the quit day and 7 days post-quit, as well as indirect effects of mindfulness on abstinence through EMA parameters were examined. Mindfulness predicted higher odds of abstinence in unadjusted but not covariate-adjusted models. Mindfulness predicted lower NA, higher PA, and lower affective volatility. Lower stress mediated the association between mindfulness and quit-day abstinence. Higher ratings of happy and relaxed, and lower ratings of bored, sad and angry, mediated the association between mindfulness and post-quit abstinence. Mindfulness appeared to weaken the association between craving and post-quit abstinence. This study elucidates real-time, real-life mechanisms underlying dispositional mindfulness and smoking abstinence. During the early process of quitting smoking, more mindful individuals appear to have more favorable emotional profiles, which predicts higher likelihood of achieving abstinence 1 week after the quit date.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6483850/