Online mindfulness intervention reduces fatigue, negative work-related worry
September 9, 2014
Science Daily/British Psychological Society (BPS)
Brief online mindfulness interventions requiring only two hours of training and practice per week are effective at reducing fatigue and negative work-related rumination and at improving sleep quality, a study concludes.
Persistent work-related rumination, in particular where individuals experience negative emotional thoughts (affective rumination), has previously been shown to be related to increased levels of stress and work-related fatigue.
Stress and its associated physical response are known to have negative health effects in the long run. Business concerns over employee welfare and the impact of time off work highlight the importance of finding ways to help employees reduce the pressure and impact work-related worry may be having.
The intervention had a significant positive effect on levels of affective rumination, sleep quality and fatigue for participants in the intervention group in comparison to the control group. The researchers said: "Research has shown that there are significant numbers of people who are suffering from work-related fatigue and rumination. We ourselves have found evidence of the causal relationship between how people worry about work and their ability to recover and switch off effectively at the end of the day.
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140909191959.htm
Yogic breathing shows promise in reducing symptoms of PTSD
September 11, 2014
Science Daily/University of Wisconsin-Madison
New research offers hope for those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Researchers there have shown that a breathing-based meditation practice called Sudarshan Kriya Yoga can be an effective treatment for PTSD.
One of the greatest casualties of war is its lasting effect on the minds of soldiers. This presents a daunting public health problem: More than 20 percent of veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a 2012 report by RAND Corp.
Individuals with PTSD suffer from intrusive memories, heightened anxiety, and personality changes. The hallmark of the disorder is hyperarousal, which can be defined as overreacting to innocuous stimuli, and is often described as feeling “jumpy,” or easily startled and constantly on guard.
Hyperarousal is one aspect of the autonomic nervous system, the system that controls the beating of the heart and other body functions, and governs one’s ability to respond to his or her environment. Scientists believe hyperarousal is at the core of PTSD and the driving force behind some of its symptoms.
Standard treatment interventions for PTSD offer mixed results. Some individuals are prescribed antidepressants and do well while others do not; others are treated with psychotherapy and still experience residual affects of the disorder.
Sudarshan Kriya Yoga is a practice of controlled breathing that directly affects the autonomic nervous system. While the practice has proven effective in balancing the autonomic nervous system and reducing symptoms of PTSD in tsunami survivors, it has not been well studied until now.
“A clinician could use a ‘tool box’ of psychological assessments to determine the cognitive and emotional style of the patient, and thereby determine a treatment that would be most effective for that individual,” he says. “Right now, a large fraction of individuals who are given any one type of therapy are not improving on that therapy. The only way we can improve that is if we determine which kinds of people will benefit most from different types of treatments.”
That assessment is critical. At least 22 veterans take their own lives every day, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Because Sudarshan Kriya Yoga has already been shown to increase optimism in college students, and reduce stress and anxiety in people suffering from depression, it may be an effective way to decrease suffering and, quite possibly, the incidence of suicide among veterans.
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140911151651.htm
Meditation may mitigate migraine misery
September 11, 2014
Science Daily/Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center
Meditation might be a path to migraine relief, according to a new study. "For the approximate 36 million Americans who suffer from migraines, there is big need for non-pharmaceutical treatment strategies, and doctors and patients should know that meditation is a safe intervention that could potentially decrease the impact of migraines," one author said.
"We found that the MBSR participants had trends of fewer migraines that were less severe," Wells said. "Secondary effects included headaches that were shorter in duration and less disabling, and participants had increases in mindfulness and self-efficacy -- a sense of personal control over their migraines. In addition, there were no adverse events and excellent adherence."
Based on these findings, the research team concluded that MBSR is a safe and feasible therapy for adults with migraines. Although the sample size of this pilot study was too small to detect statistically significant changes in migraine frequency or severity, secondary outcomes demonstrated this intervention had a beneficial effect on headache duration, disability, self-efficacy and mindfulness.
"For the approximate 36 million Americans who suffer from migraines, there is big need for non-pharmaceutical treatment strategies, and doctors and patients should know that MBSR is a safe intervention that could potentially decrease the impact of migraines," Wells said.
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140911163116.htm
Mindfulness protects adults' health from the impacts of childhood adversity
September 13, 2014
Science Daily/Temple University
Adults who were abused or neglected as children are known to have poorer health, but adults who tend to focus on and accept their reactions to the present moment—or are mindful—report having better health, regardless of their childhood adversity, researchers report.
Nearly one-fourth of those surveyed reported three or more types of adverse childhood experiences, and almost 30 percent reported having three or more stress-related health conditions like depression, headache, or back pain, noted the researchers. However, the risk of having multiple health conditions was nearly 50 percent lower among those with the highest level of mindfulness compared to those with the lowest. This was true even for those who had multiple types of childhood adversity.
Regardless of the amount of childhood adversity, those who were more mindful also reported significantly better health behaviors, like getting enough sleep, and better functioning, such as having fewer days per month when they felt poorly -- either mentally or physically, said Whitaker.
"Our results suggest that mindfulness may provide some resilience against the poor adult health outcomes that often result from childhood trauma," he said. "Mindfulness training may help adults, including those with a history of childhood trauma, to improve their own well-being and be more effective with children."
While many smaller studies have shown that learning mindfulness practices like meditation can improve psychological and physical symptoms such as depression and pain, more research is needed to see if interventions to increase mindfulness can improve the health and functioning of those who have had adverse childhood experiences, Whitaker said.
With nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults reporting one or more types of adverse childhood experiences, Whitaker noted that "mindfulness practices could be a promising way to reduce the high costs to our society that result from the trauma adults experienced during childhood."
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140913141308.htm
Yoga, meditation may help train brain to help people control computers with their mind
September 25, 2014
Science Daily/University of Minnesota
People who practice yoga and meditation long term can learn to control a computer with their minds faster and better than people with little or no yoga or meditation experience, new research by biomedical engineers shows. The research could have major implications for treatments of people who are paralyzed or have neurodegenerative diseases.
In the study, researchers involved a total of 36 participants. One group of 12 had at least one year of experience in yoga or meditation at least two times per week for one hour. The second group included 24 healthy participants who had little or no yoga or meditation experience. Both groups were new to systems using the brain to control a computer. Both groups participated in three, two-hour experiments over four weeks in which they wore a high tech, non-invasive cap over the scalp that picked up brain activity. The participants were asked to move a computer cursor across the screen by imaging left or right hand movements.
The participants with yoga or meditation experience were twice as likely to complete the brain-computer interface task by the end of 30 trials and learned three times faster than their counterparts for the left-right cursor movement experiments.
"In recent years, there has been a lot of attention on improving the computer side of the brain-computer interface but very little attention to the brain side," said lead researcher Bin He, a biomedical engineering professor in the University of Minnesota's College of Science and Engineering and director of the University's Institute for Engineering in Medicine. "This comprehensive study shows for the first time that looking closer at the brain side may provide a valuable tool for reducing obstacles for brain-computer interface success in early stages."
Researchers have been increasingly focused on finding ways to help physically disabled individuals who are paralyzed, have lost limbs, or suffer from diseases such as ALS or cerebral palsy. In these cases, brain function remains intact, but these people have to find a way to bypass muscular control to move a wheelchair, control an artificial limb, or control other devices.
Professor He gained international attention in 2013 when members of his research team were able to demonstrate flying a robot with only their minds. However, they found that not everyone can easily learn to control a computer with their brains. Many people are unsuccessful in controlling the computer after multiple attempts. A consistent and reliable EEG brain signal may depend on an undistracted mind and sustained attention. Meditators have shown more distinctive EEG patterns than untrained participants, which may explain their success.
Professor He said he got the idea for the study more than five years ago when he began his brain-computer interface research and noticed one woman participant who was much more successful than other participants at controlling the computer with her brain. The woman had extensive experience with yoga and mediation, referred to by researchers as Mind-Body Awareness Training (MBAT).
The next step for He and his team is to study a group of participants over time who are participating in yoga or meditation for the first time to see if their performance on the brain-computer interface improves.
"Our ultimate goal is to help people who are paralyzed or have brain diseases regain mobility and independence," He said. "We need to look at all possibilities to improve the number of people who could benefit from our research."
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140925132559.htm
Dispositional mindfulness associated with better cardiovascular health
October 23, 2014
Science Daily/Brown University
A new study that measured 'dispositional mindfulness' along with seven indicators of cardiovascular health found that persons reporting higher degrees of awareness of their present feelings and experiences had better health. The research suggests that interventions to improve mindfulness could benefit cardiovascular health, an idea researchers can test.
As noted more precisely in a new study in the International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, researchers at Brown University found a significant association between self-reported "dispositional mindfulness" and better scores on four of seven cardiovascular health indicators, as well as a composite overall health score. Dispositional mindfulness is defined as someone's awareness and attention to what they are thinking and feeling in the moment.
The study is the first to quantify such an association between mindfulness and better cardiovascular health, said study lead author Eric Loucks, assistant professor of epidemiology in the School of Public Health. It's an encouraging link for health promotion, because mindfulness can be enhanced with training.
"Mindfulness is changeable, and standardized mindfulness interventions are available," Loucks said. "Mostly they've been looked at for mental health and pain management, but increasingly they are being looked at for cardiovascular risk factors such as obesity, smoking, and blood pressure."
The connection may come about because people who are attuned to their present feelings may be better at minding and managing the various cravings -- for salty or sugary foods or cigarettes or even a spell on the couch -- that undermine health, Loucks said. Mindfulness interventions, for example, have already shown efficacy in helping people to quit smoking.
Meditation makes you more creative
October 28, 2014
Science Daily/Leiden University
Certain meditation techniques can promote creative thinking, even if you have never meditated before. The study is a clear indication that you don't need to be an experienced meditator to profit more from meditation. The findings support the belief that meditation can have a long-lasting influence on human cognition, including how we conceive new ideas.
Long-lasting influence
The study is a clear indication that you don't need to be an experienced meditator to profit more from meditation. The findings support the belief that meditation can have a long-lasting influence on human cognition, including how we conceive new ideas. Besides experienced meditators, also novices may profit from meditation.
Different techniques, different effects
But the results demonstrate that not all forms of meditation have the same effect on creativity. Test persons performed better in divergent thinking (= thinking up as many possible solutions for a given problem) after Open Monitoring meditation (= being receptive to every thought and sensation). The researchers did not see this effect on divergent thinking after Focused Attention meditation (=focusing on a particular thought or object.)
Setup of the study
40 individuals participated in this study, who had to meditate for 25 minutes before doing their thinking tasks. There were both experienced mediators and people who never meditated before. The study investigated the influences of different types of meditative techniques on the two main ingredients of creativity:
• Divergent thinking Allows for many new ideas to be generated. It is measured using the so-called Alternate Uses Task method where participants are required to think up as many uses as possible for a particular object, such as a pen.
• Convergent thinking Convergent thinking, on the other hand, is a process whereby one possible solution for a particular problem is generated. This is measured using the Remote Associates Task method, where three unrelated words are presented to the participants, words such as 'time', 'hair' and 'stretch'. The participants are then asked to identify the common link: in this case, 'long'
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/10/141028082355.htm
Meditation, support groups: Clear new evidence for mind-body connection demonstrated
November 3, 2014
Science Daily/Alberta Health Services
For the first time, researchers have shown that practicing mindfulness meditation or being involved in a support group has a positive physical impact at the cellular level in breast cancer survivors.
"We already know that psychosocial interventions like mindfulness meditation will help you feel better mentally, but now for the first time we have evidence that they can also influence key aspects of your biology," says Dr. Linda E. Carlson, PhD, principal investigator and director of research in the Psychosocial Resources Department at the Tom Baker Cancer Centre.
"It was surprising that we could see any difference in telomere length at all over the three-month period studied," says Dr. Carlson, who is also a U of C professor in the Faculty of Arts and the Cumming School of Medicine, and a member of the Southern Alberta Cancer Institute. "Further research is needed to better quantify these potential health benefits, but this is an exciting discovery that provides encouraging news."
Allison McPherson was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2008. When she joined the study, she was placed in the mindfulness-based cancer recovery group. Today, she says that experience has been life-changing.
"I was skeptical at first and thought it was a bunch of hocus-pocus," says McPherson, who underwent a full year of chemotherapy and numerous surgeries. "But I now practise mindfulness throughout the day and it's reminded me to become less reactive and kinder toward myself and others."
Study participant Deanne David was also placed in the mindfulness group."Being part of this made a huge difference to me," she says. "I think people involved in their own cancer journey would benefit from learning more about mindfulness and connecting with others who are going through the same things."
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141103114132.htm
Anxiety can damage brain
November 10, 2014
Science Daily/Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care
People with mild cognitive impairment are at increased risk of converting to Alzheimer's disease within a few years, but a new study warns the risk increases significantly if they suffer from anxiety.
"Our findings suggest that clinicians should routinely screen for anxiety in people who have memory problems because anxiety signals that these people are at greater risk for developing Alzheimer's," said Dr. Linda Mah, principal investigator on the study, clinician-scientist with Baycrest's Rotman Research Institute, and assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. Dr. Mah is also a co-investigator in a multi-site study lead by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, and partially funded by federal dollars (Brain Canada), to prevent Alzheimer's in people with late-life depression or MCI who are at high risk for developing the progressive brain disease.
"While there is no published evidence to demonstrate whether drug treatments used in psychiatry for treating anxiety would be helpful in managing anxiety symptoms in people with mild cognitive impairment or in reducing their risk of conversion to Alzheimer's, we think that at the very least behavioural stress management programs could be recommended. In particular, there has been research on the use of mindfulness-based stress reduction in treating anxiety and other psychiatric symptoms in Alzheimer's --and this is showing promise," said Dr. Mah.
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141110124352.htm
Mindfulness treatment as effective as CBT for depression, anxiety
November 27, 2014
Science Daily/Lund University
Group mindfulness treatment is as effective as individual cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in patients with depression and anxiety, according to a new study from Lund University in Sweden and Region Skåne. This is the first randomized study to compare group mindfulness treatment and individual cognitive behavioral therapy in patients with depression and anxiety in primary health care.
The researchers, led by Professor Jan Sundquist, ran the study at 16 primary health care centres in Skåne, a county in southern Sweden. They trained two mindfulness instructors, from different occupational groups, at each primary health care centre during a 6-day training course.
In spring 2012, patients with depression, anxiety or reactions to severe stress were randomized to either structured group mindfulness treatment with approximately 10 patients per group, or regular treatment (mainly individual CBT). Patients also received a private training programme and were asked to record their exercises in a diary. The treatment lasted 8 weeks. General practitioner and mindfulness instructor Ola Schenström designed the mindfulness training programme and model for training instructors.
A total of 215 patients were included in the study. Before and after treatment, the patients in the mindfulness and regular treatment groups answered questionnaires that estimated the severity of their depression and anxiety. Self-reported symptoms of depression and anxiety decreased in both groups during the 8-week treatment period. There was no statistical difference between the two treatments.
"The study's results indicate that group mindfulness treatment, conducted by certified instructors in primary health care, is as effective a treatment method as individual CBT for treating depression and anxiety," says Jan Sundquist. "This means that group mindfulness treatment should be considered as an alternative to individual psychotherapy, especially at primary health care centres that can't offer everyone individual therapy."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141127112755.htm
Mindfulness intervention boosts brain activation for healthy pleasures
December 5, 2014
Science Daily/University of Utah Health Sciences
How can people who are dependent on prescription opioids reduce their cravings? Learn to enjoy other aspects of their lives.
Researchers report that after a sample of chronic pain patients misusing opioids went through MORE, they exhibited increased brain activation on an EEG to natural healthy pleasures. The MORE intervention concentrates on helping people to recover a sense of meaning and fulfillment in everyday life, embracing its pleasures and pain without turning to substance use as a coping mechanism.
The MORE intervention concentrates on helping people to recover a sense of meaning and fulfillment in everyday life, embracing its pleasures and pain without turning to substance use as a coping mechanism. It integrates the latest research on addiction, cognitive neuroscience, positive psychology and mindfulness. Participants in Garland's study received eight weeks of instruction in applying mindfulness-oriented techniques to alleviate pain and craving while strengthening positive emotions and the sense of reward and meaning in life.
For example, to enhance their sense of reward in life, participants in Garland's study were taught a "mindful savoring practice," in which they focused attention on pleasant experiences such as a beautiful nature scene, sunset or feeling of connection with a loved one.
In a meditation session, participants were taught to focus their awareness on colors, textures and scents of a bouquet of fresh flowers and to appreciate joy arising from the experience. As part of their daily homework, they were then asked to practice the meditation technique as a way to enjoy other pleasant life experiences.
Results from Garland's new research shows that after a sample of chronic pain patients misusing opioids went through MORE, they exhibited increased brain activation on an EEG to natural healthy pleasures. The more their brains became active in response to natural healthy pleasure, the less the patients craved opioids.
"These findings are scientifically important because one of the major theories about how and why addiction occurs asserts that over time drug abusers become dulled to the experience of joy in everyday life, and this pushes them to use higher and higher doses of drugs to feel happiness," said Garland.
"This study suggests that this process can be reversed. We can teach people to use mindfulness to appreciate and enjoy life more, and by doing that, they may feel less of a need for addictive drugs. It's a powerful finding."
Garland's latest study builds on earlier work published in February in The Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, in which the MORE intervention was found to reduce opioid misuse among a sample of chronic pain patients compared to another sample of chronic pain patients participating in a conventional support group.
The results are of particular interest in Utah, which claims one of the highest prescription drug abuse rates in the U.S. According to the most recent statistics available from the state Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health, Utah ranks eighth in the U.S. for its number of deaths attributed to prescription drug overdose.
Science Daily/SOURCE :http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/12/141205142434.htm