The Many Roads to Mindfulness: A Review of Nonmindfulness-Based Interventions that Increase Mindfulness

Long-term effects of combined mindfulness intervention and app intervention compared to single interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic: a randomized controlled trial

Objectives

The study examines the short-, middle-, and long-term effects of a combined intervention (face-to-face mindfulness intervention plus the mindfulness app 7Mind), compared to single interventions (face-to-face mindfulness intervention alone and an intervention via app 7Mind alone). The subgroups were compared with an active control group on mindfulness, mindful characteristics, mental health, emotion regulation, and attentional abilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the study explores whether students' engagement with the app and their formal mindfulness practice at home improves intervention outcomes.

Methods

The study employs a randomized controlled trial approach involving three intervention groups and an active control group, with two follow-ups conducted over 12 months. The study included 177 university students who were randomly assigned to a mindfulness group (n = 42), a mindfulness app group (7Mind app, n = 44), a mindfulness + app group (n = 45), and an active control group (n = 46). The duration of the interventions was 4 weeks. The outcome variables were assessed at pre- and post-intervention, at 4 and 12 months post-intervention.

Results

At post-intervention and during both follow-ups, students in the combined mindfulness intervention did not demonstrate better outcomes compared to students in the single interventions or the active control group across all measures. Additionally, no statistically significant difference was observed between all interventions and the active control groups on any of the measures. However, it is noteworthy that all intervention groups and the active control group exhibited improvement in mindfulness, body awareness, emotion regulation, stress, and attentional abilities over the short, medium, and long term. Moreover, higher app usage in the app groups was significantly associated with increased body awareness. However, greater app use was also correlated with higher stress.

Conclusion

The results suggest that the mindfulness intervention and the mindfulness app were similar to the active control condition (communication training) on the investigated variables in the short, medium, and long term. Furthermore, an increased use of a mindfulness app can negatively affect stress.

Online Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for People with Parkinson’s Disease and Their Caregivers: a Pilot Study

Anxiety and depression are common non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Caregivers of people with PD may experience severe caregiver burden. This study explored the feasibility and potential benefits of an online mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) intervention for improving anxiety and depressive symptoms in people with PD and their caregivers (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04469049, 7/8/2020). People with PD or parkinsonism and anxiety and/or depressive symptoms and caregivers of people with PD participated in one of three online MBCT groups. Demographic variables, pre- and post-MBCT behavioral measures (GAD-7, PHQ-9, Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire — FFMQ-15, Caregiver Self-Assessment Questionnaire — CSAQ), and satisfaction surveys were collected. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize data. Pre- and post-MBCT behavioral scores were compared using mixed-effect models. Fifty-six potential participants were assessed for eligibility. Twenty-eight entered MBCT groups; all but one completed the intervention. The overall sample analyzed (22 people with PD, 4 caregivers) showed significant GAD-7 and PHQ-9 score reductions and FFMQ-15 total and observing and non-reactivity subscale score increases (all p’s < 0.05). Participants with PD and anxiety symptoms (n = 14) had a significant GAD-7 score reduction; those with PD and depressive symptoms (n = 12) had a significant PHQ-9 score reduction (both p’s < 0.05). Participants with PD also had a significant FFMQ-15 observing subscale score increase (p < 0.05). The caregiver sample was too small to be analyzed separately. Online MBCT is feasible (as measured by high attendance, completion rate, and participant satisfaction) and may be effective in improving anxiety and depressive symptoms in people with PD.

PE augmented mindfulness: A neurocognitive framework for research and future healthcare

Various well-controlled studies have suggested that practitioners in mindfulness can be prone to patient drop-out (e.g., due to chronic stress, pathology, cognitive reactivity), despite researchers having identified the underlying mechanisms that link mindfulness to mental health. In this article, a framework for physical exercise (PE) augmented mindfulness is proposed, which posits that consistently practiced PE before meditation can support (early-stage) mindfulness. Neurocognitive research shows PE (aerobic exercises or yoga) and mindfulness to impact similar pathways of stress regulation that involve cognitive control and stress regulation, thereby supporting the proposed synergistic potential of PE augmented mindfulness. Research focused on the psychophysiological impact of PE, showed its practice to promote short-term neurocognitive changes that can promote both cognitive control and the attainment of mindful awareness (MA). In order to chart dose responses required for protocol development, further research will be presented. Together these findings are discussed in light of future research on this multidisciplinary topic, protocol development, mindful walking, and further application in healthcare and beyond.

The Impact of Baseline Mindfulness Scores on Mindfulness-Based Intervention Outcomes: Toward Personalized Mental Health Interventions

A growing body of evidence has portrayed mindfulness as a useful tool for dealing with a broad range of psychological problems and disorders. This has created the impression that mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) can be used to treat nearly all psychological difficulties, in all cases. Nonetheless, little research has been done on how individual differences may contribute to intervention outcomes. The goal of this study was to evaluate the role of baseline mindfulness on participants’ outcomes by examining three prior Randomized Controlled Trials that addressed the impact of MBIs on mental health and mindfulness measures. The participants were 164 people, aged between 12 and 45, from both clinical and non-clinical samples. Our findings indicate that at least two thirds of the change produced by these interventions in terms of mindfulness scores can be predicted by the baseline scores of the same variables. We also found that many trajectories are not only strongly influenced by the initial status of the participants, but also by the intervention performed, as attested to by the significant interactions found. These results stress the need to continue doing research in a way that considers the diversity of participants’ trajectories, increasing the room for intervention improvements aligned with a more personalized health care model.

Mantram Repetition as a Portable Mindfulness Practice: Applications During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Objective

Mantram or holy name repetition has long been practiced in every major religious tradition. Repetition of a mantram as a mindfulness practice is helpful for stress management and resilience building. The objective of this article is to provide an overview of the key features of mantram and the Mantram Repetition Program (MRP) developed in the US Veterans Healthcare System, the evidence base for the MRP, and its applications.

Methods

MRP practices are portable and do not require an extended or regularized period of sitting, in contrast to most methods of meditation. Core functions of MRP practices include focus shifting, frame activation, and fostering of mindfulness. We review scientific research, including multiple randomized trials, that has investigated the MRP.

Results

Research on the MRP has documented reductions in posttraumatic stress symptoms, insomnia, hyperarousal, and depression, as well as enhancement of quality of life, self-efficacy, and mindfulness. Mantram repetition may possess comparative advantages for managing symptoms of various mental health conditions, including posttraumatic stress disorder, HIV/AIDS, cancer, and chronic diseases.

Conclusions

MRP practices can be integrated into daily routines to manage stress and improve coping, safety, efficacy, calmness, and resilience. The inclusion of mantram repetition alongside conventional mindfulness-based practices for stress management will improve their cultural and religious inclusiveness, enabling societies and organizations to build greater collective resilience. Mantram repetition can be readily used in the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on healthcare workers, patients, and the public.

Effectiveness of mindfulness based cognitive therapy on weight loss, improvement of hypertension and attentional bias to eating cues in overweight people

Objectives

Prevalence rates of overweight and obesity are dramatically ever-increasing across the world. Therefore, this study was to evaluate the effect of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) on weight loss, hypertension, and attentional bias towards food cues in a group of women affected with this condition.

Methods

A total of 45 participants were selected out of women referring to the Nutrition and Diet Therapy Clinic affiliated to Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Iran, and then randomized into three groups of 15. The first experimental group was subjected to an energy-restricted diet therapy together with MBCT during 8 sessions, the second group took the diet therapy alone, and the third group received no intervention. Body mass index (BMI), hypertension, and attentional bias towards food cues were correspondingly evaluated before, at the end, and four weeks after the completion of the interventions.

Results

The results of this study revealed that MBCT, along with diet therapy, had been significantly more effective in weight loss, decrease in BMI, lower systolic blood pressure (SBP), and attentional bias towards food cues compared with the diet therapy alone (P ≤ 0.01). MBCT had no significant impact on the decline in diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in participants in the follow-up phase.

Conclusion

This study demonstrated that MBCT along with the conventional diet therapy was more effective in weight loss, decrease in BMI, hypertension control, as well as attentional bias towards food cues than the diet therapy alone.