Dose–response Relationship of Reported Lifetime Meditation Practice with Mental Health and Wellbeing: a Cross-sectional Study

High-precision neurofeedback-guided meditation training optimises real-world self-guided meditation practice for well-being

Meditation can benefit well-being and mental health, but novices often struggle to effectively recognize and disengage from mental processes during meditation due to limited awareness, potentially diminishing meditation's benefits. We investigated whether personalised high-precision neurofeedback (NF) can improve disengagement from mental activity during meditation and enhance meditation's outcomes. In a single-blind, controlled, longitudinal paradigm, 40 novice meditators underwent two consecutive days of meditation training with intermittent visual feedback from either their own (N=20) or a matched participant's (N=20; control group) posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) activity measured using 7 Tesla functional magnetic resonance imaging. During training, the experimental group showed stronger functional decoupling of PCC from dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, indicating better control over disengagement from mental processes during meditation. This led to greater improvements in emotional well-being and mindful awareness of mental processes during a week of real-world self-guided meditation. We provide compelling evidence supporting the utility of high-precision NF-guided meditation training to optimise real-world meditation practice for well-being.

The self-efficacy for regular meditation practice scale (SERMS): Development and psychometric validation

The health benefits of meditation are well-documented, yet people struggle to practice regularly. Domain-specific self-efficacy is an important modifiable driver of health behavior change that is poorly understood in the meditation context. As such, the present study developed the Self-Efficacy for Regular Meditation Practice Scale (SERMS) assessing confidence in one's capacity to meditate frequently and in a way that favorably impacts well-being, including securing the psychological, social, and structural supports needed for ongoing practice. Participants provided online survey data at baseline and 1-week follow-up. Exploratory factor analyses were conducted (n = 249) followed by confirmatory factor analysis (n = 249). A three-factor structure best fit the data, with subscales measuring self-efficacy to benefit from meditation, persist in meditation, and obtain teacher and community support. Validity and test-retest reliability coefficients supported the SERMS as a promising measure of self-efficacy for meditation that may further research on meditation behavior adoption.

Tai Chi Expertise Classification in Older Adults Using Wrist Wearables and Machine Learning

Tai Chi is a Chinese martial art that provides an adaptive and accessible exercise for older adults with varying functional capacity. While Tai Chi is widely recommended for its physical benefits, wider adoption in at-home practice presents challenges for practitioners, as limited feedback may hamper learning. This study examined the feasibility of using a wearable sensor, combined with machine learning (ML) approaches, to automatically and objectively classify Tai Chi expertise. We hypothesized that the combination of wrist acceleration profiles with ML approaches would be able to accurately classify practitioners' Tai Chi expertise levels. Twelve older active Tai Chi practitioners were recruited for this study. The self-reported lifetime practice hours were used to identify subjects in low, medium, or highly experienced groups. Using 15 acceleration-derived features from a wearable sensor during a self-guided Tai Chi movement and 8 ML architectures, we found multiclass classification performance to range from 0.73 to 0.97 in accuracy and F1-score. Based on feature importance analysis, the top three features were found to each result in a 16-19% performance drop in accuracy. These findings suggest that wrist-wearable-based ML models may accurately classify practice-related changes in movement patterns, which may be helpful in quantifying progress in at-home exercises.

Web-Based Therapist-Guided Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Body Dysmorphic Disorder: Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND

Internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and stand-alone mindfulness meditation interventions are gaining empirical support for a wide variety of mental health conditions. In this study, we test the efficacy of web-based therapist-guided mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT-M) for body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), a psychiatric disorder characterized by preoccupations with perceived defects in appearance.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to determine whether CBT-M for BDD delivered on the web is feasible and acceptable and whether mindfulness meditation adds to CBT treatment effects for BDD.

METHODS

In this 8-week, 2-arm, parallel pilot randomized controlled trial, n=28 adults (aged between 18 and 55 years) were randomly allocated to an experimental group (web-based therapist-guided CBT-M) or a control group (web-based therapist-guided CBT). Study retention, accrual, and intervention adherence were assessed, along with self-report measures for BDD, depression, anxiety, and pain intensity taken at baseline and postintervention.

RESULTS

This study was feasible to implement and deemed acceptable by participants. After 8 weeks, significant improvements were found on all outcome measures for both treatment groups, and large between-group effect sizes favoring CBT-M were found for BDD symptom severity (d=-0.96), depression (d=-1.06), pain severity (d=-1.12), and pain interference (d=-1.28). However, linear mixed models demonstrated no significant differences between the groups over 8 weeks.

CONCLUSIONS

The results suggest that mindfulness meditation may add to beneficial web-based CBT treatment effects for BDD. An adequately powered randomized control trial of web-based CBT-M is warranted.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05402475, http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05402475.

A randomized controlled trial of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for major depressive disorder in undergraduate students: Dose- response effect, inflammatory markers and BDNF

To examine the dose-response effect of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) for college students with major depressive disorder (MDD), a randomized control trial with MBCT and a wait-list (WL) group was performed. All participants were invited to self-administer a set of questionnaires at baseline, mid-intervention (4th week), and post-intervention (8th week) by the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS). The serum levels of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-α, BDNF were detected at baseline and post-intervention. After intervention, the scores of PHQ-9, GAD-7, PSQI, and the levels of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-α in the MBCT were significantly lower than those in WL group, and total scores of FFMQ, SCS, and the level of BDNF were significantly higher than those in WL group. In MBCT group, daily practice time and session numbers positively related to reduction rates of PHQ-9, GAD-7 and PSQI at post-intervention. The reduction rate of PHQ-9, GAD-7 and PSQI at post-intervention in the completers were higher significantly than those in the partial attendees. These findings suggested MBCT is effective for MDD, and the intervention has a dose-response effect. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registration number is [ChiCTR2100044309].

Mindfulness meditation and psychedelics: potential synergies and commonalities

There has been increasing scientific and clinical interest in studying psychedelic and meditation-based interventions in recent years, both in the context of improving mental health and as tools for understanding the mind. Several authors suggest neurophysiological and phenomenological parallels and overlaps between psychedelic and meditative states and suggest synergistic effects of both methods. Both psychedelic-assisted therapy and meditation training in the form of mindfulness-based interventions have been experimentally validated with moderate to large effects as alternative treatments for a variety of mental health problems, including depression, addictions, and anxiety disorders. Both demonstrated significant post-acute and long-term decreases in clinical symptoms and enhancements in well-being in healthy participants, in addition. Postulated shared salutogenic mechanisms, include, among others the ability to alter self-consciousness, present-moment awareness and antidepressant action via corresponding neuromodulatory effects. These shared mechanisms between mindfulness training and psychedelic intervention have led to scientists theorizing, and recently demonstrating, positive synergistic effects when both are used in combination. Research findings suggest that these two approaches can complement each other, enhancing the positive effects of both interventions. However, more theoretical accounts and methodologically sound research are needed before they can be extended into clinical practice. The current review aims to discuss the theoretical rationale of combining psychedelics with mindfulness training, including the predictive coding framework as well as research findings regarding synergies and commonalities between mindfulness training and psychedelic intervention. In addition, suggestions how to combine the two modalities are provided.

Serum melatonin and serotonin levels in long-term skilled meditators

INTRODUCTION

Melatonin and its precursor serotonin are neurochemicals that play an important role in the physiological regulation of mood, sleep, and behavior. Studies have suggested the possibility of changes in the levels of melatonin and serotonin following meditation. However, the outcome of Buddhist meditation on both these two neurochemicals collectively have not been studied yet.

OBJECTIVE

To assess the effect of Vipassana meditation on serum melatonin and serotonin levels in long-term meditators and to compare them with an age, gender, and education level matched, non-meditating control group.

METHODS

The serum melatonin and serotonin levels of long-term meditators (n=30), recruited using a validated interview, and age, gender and educational level matched control subjects (n=30) who had never practiced meditation, were determined using commercial ELISA kits (LDN, Nordhorn, Germany).

RESULTS

The median concentration of melatonin (18.3 pg/ml) and serotonin (149.0 ng/ml) in the meditator group, were significantly higher compared to the control group; melatonin (15.6 pg/ml; p = 0.006), serotonin (118.1 ng/ml; p < 0.001). The levels had no significant correlation with demographic factors but positively correlated with meditation factors in those who had meditated for <=10years (n=26, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

The findings indicate elevated melatonin and serotonin levels in the long-term meditators with potential beneficial effects in decreasing stress and improving relaxation in individuals.