An eight-week Hatha Yoga program for healthy yoga novices aged 18 to 40 reduced self-reported stress and stress reactivity and increased mindfulness, compared to a waitlist control group. However, the intervention did not significantly change state or trait anxiety, nor did it improve participants' ability to suppress distractions. The stress reductions were not explained by changes in distractor suppression, which remained unaffected. The findings suggest that regular Hatha Yoga practice can improve certain mental health outcomes without directly altering cognitive functions related to distraction suppression.
An 8-week digital mindfulness intervention using a smartphone app for daily 10–15-minute audio-guided meditation was feasible for psychologically burdened COPD patients, with an 81% usage rate and 21% dropout. Anxiety and emotional functioning improved significantly after 8 weeks compared to a waitlist control group, but depression and other secondary outcomes did not show significant effects. Momentary stress, anxiety, and dyspnoea were significantly reduced immediately after meditating. The intervention was rated as enjoyable by 93% and helpful by 71% of participants. Digital mindfulness may be a promising low-threshold add-on treatment for COPD, though larger trials are needed.