Can heart rate variability demonstrate the effects and the levels of mindfulness? A repeated-measures study on experienced and novice mindfulness practitioners.
BMC complementary medicine and therapies – July 03, 2025
Source: PubMed
Summary
The way our heart beats can actually show the immediate effect of mindfulness. Research explored how Heart rate variability (HRV), a measure of autonomic activity, reflects mindfulness's impact and whether practice experience matters. Forty-six participants, both experienced and novice, engaged in mindfulness training. Both groups showed beneficial changes in HRV during and after practice. Experienced practitioners exhibited more dynamic shifts in heart rhythms, followed by recovery. Novices showed simpler, positive changes. This highlights HRV as a valuable tool for understanding mindfulness's physiological benefits, with distinct patterns emerging based on practice experience.
Abstract
Heart rate variability (HRV) is a potential biomarker that might demonstrate the effects of mindfulness, but it might be influenced by practice experiences. This study wanted to elucidate the possibility of using HRV metrics to reveal the effects of mindfulness and examine its variation between novice and experienced mindfulness practitioners. Forty-six participants (20 experienced practitioners, 26 novices) were enrolled to practice 14-day mindfulness training. HRV data were collected during three phases (20 min baseline, T1; 20 min mindfulness, T2; 20 min post-mindfulness, T3) using Holter monitoring. The linear mixed model was conducted to explore the effects of group and time based on standardized data. The experienced group had higher full-scale scores of FFMQ both in the pre-test (t = -3.34, df = 44, p = 0.002) and the post-test (t = -2.35, df = 44, p = 0.025). Both groups showed significant changes in HRV indices (e.g., RMSSD, SDNN, LnHF) from T1 to T2 or T3 (p < 0.05). In the experienced group, significant fluctuations (p < 0.05) were observed at T2, followed by recovery at T3, in SD1/SD2, Sample Entropy, normalized High Frequency (HFn), DFA_α1, and DFA_α2. In contrast, the novice participants only showed monotonic changes in SD1/SD2 and DFA_α1. This study revealed significant HRV changes during mindfulness practice, with distinct patterns observed between novice and experienced practitioners.