Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2023
Ana María González-martín, Agustín Aibar-Almazán, Yulieth Rivas-Campo et al.
64 citations
A systematic review and meta-analysis of 21 studies found that mindfulness programs lasting 8 weeks to 3 months significantly improve mental health in university students. The review searched PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and CINAHL, initially identifying 321 studies. Methodological quality was assessed with the PEDro scale. The results demonstrate that mindfulness interventions are effective for enhancing the mental health of college students.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2023
Xinyi Zuo, Yong Tang, Yifang Chen et al.
56 citations
A meta-analysis of 11 randomized controlled trials with 1,824 participants found that mindfulness therapy had small but significant positive effects on depression, anxiety, stress, and sleep quality. Depression scores improved moderately (standardized mean difference -0.33), anxiety improved similarly (-0.35), stress showed a slightly larger effect (-0.39), and sleep quality improved substantially (-0.81). However, mindfulness therapy did not significantly change mindfulness itself compared to control groups. The authors suggest future research should investigate whether improving adherence and fidelity to mindfulness therapy can further enhance mental health outcomes.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2023
Praag Bhardwaj, Monika Pathania, Yogesh Bahurupi et al.
31 citations
A 12-week yoga-based meditation and breath intervention delivered via mobile health (mHealth) reduced burnout and improved professional quality of life among healthcare providers at a north Indian tertiary care hospital. The randomized waitlist-controlled trial enrolled 98 healthcare providers (62 males, 36 females; average age 28.26 years). The experimental group attended weekly online yoga sessions and practiced daily at home; the control group continued usual routines.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2024
Agnieszka Zok, Monika Matecka, Artur Bienkowski et al.
6 citations
A survey of 520 yoga practitioners found that stress reduction was the most common motivation for starting yoga. Regular practice was associated with significantly lower stress levels, and experienced practitioners reported less stress than beginners. Dynamic forms of yoga that combine fluid movements with synchronized breathing were particularly effective. The findings suggest that yoga is an affordable, side-effect-free tool for managing stress across all ages.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2022
Sandra L Neate, Jeanette C Reece, Craig Hassed et al.
4 citations
Participants in a 4-week online mindfulness course described developing mindfulness through paying attention to the present moment, letting go, acceptance, gentleness, and a sense of belonging. They reported translating mindfulness into daily life as a support to mental wellbeing, dealing with uncertainty and adversity, living more consciously, connecting with self and others, and channeling attention into productivity. These insights from 527 respondents (16% of 3,335 course completers) suggest how online mindfulness programs can be designed to foster beneficial outcomes.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2024
Mayra Pires Alves Machado, Emérita Sátiro Opaleye, Andre Bedendo et al.
3 citations
Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBRP) as an add-on to outpatient treatment for substance use disorder is feasible in a socially vulnerable Brazilian population, though it faces challenges. A mixed-methods study in eight public Psychosocial Care Centers in São Paulo with 140 participants, 24 healthcare professionals, and 7 managers ran 17 MBRP groups. Qualitative data from interviews and field notes, combined with quantitative pre-post measures of consumption, depression, anxiety, craving, readiness to change, and dependence severity, showed positive acceptance and mental health benefits despite high dropout due to social factors and initial cultural misperceptions of meditation. Adapting the protocol format is needed for effective integration into public healthcare.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2024
Robert H Schneider, Michael C Dillbeck, Gunvant Yeola et al.
3 citations
During global armed conflicts like the Israel-Hamas and Ukraine-Russia wars, innovative public health strategies are needed for peacebuilding. Evidence-based meditation from Ayurveda and Yoga, particularly the Transcendental Meditation program, may reduce collective stress and prevent collective violence and war. Empirical studies with cross-cultural replications indicate these practices can lower collective stress and war activity while improving quality of life. The mechanisms involve public health models, cognitive neuroscience, population neuroscience, quantum physics, and systems medicine, addressing brain-based factors underlying collective stress and violence. This perspective suggests Transcendental Meditation and the advanced TM-Sidhi program, as components of Traditional Medicine, could enhance societal well-being and peace.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2024
Sukesh Paranthatta, Titty George, H M Vinaya et al.
3 citations
Sailors who practiced 45 minutes of Cyclic Meditation daily for three weeks experienced reduced anxiety and improved sleep quality, along with lower blood pressure and pulse rate, compared to a control group that continued routine activities. The control group showed no significant changes. The findings suggest that Cyclic Meditation can be a practical routine for sailors to manage anxiety and enhance sleep during long voyages.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2025
Jiaxin Shi, Hao Tian, Jingwen Wei et al.
2 citations
Meditation significantly improves global cognitive performance, sleep quality, and health status in older adults with subjective cognitive decline, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer's disease. A meta-analysis of 25 randomized controlled trials involving 2,095 participants found that meditation raised Mini-Mental State Examination scores by an average of 2.22 points, improved Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores by 1.40 points, and increased 36-Item Short Form Health Survey scores by 3.50 points. No significant effect on depression was detected. The findings suggest meditation is a useful adjunct therapy, though results should be interpreted cautiously due to heterogeneity and limited sample sizes.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2025
Ambra Gentile, Sara Vivirito, Musa Kirkar et al.
1 citation
A combined mindfulness and cold-water immersion program lasting 20 weeks reduced depression and anxiety symptoms in adults aged around 60. Depression scores improved significantly more for older participants than for middle-aged ones. Anxiety also decreased, with no difference between age groups. Perceived executive functioning did not change significantly. The findings suggest the combined training may support healthy aging.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2025
Richa Gawande, Felipe Kalatauma Rosario, Carlos Santiago et al.
1 citation
A community-based peer-led mindfulness intervention called Mandela Yoga, co-developed by Black and Brown yoga teachers, therapists, and community leaders with lived experience of recovery, incarceration, chronic illness, and racism, was implemented as part of a Federally Qualified Health Center reentry program for men of color recently released from incarceration. A qualitative analysis of a 12-week implementation documented attendance and conducted interviews with the peer facilitator and one participant. Four key themes emerged: breath and mind-body connection leading to presence; consistency; peer connection; and agency and positive action. Mandela Yoga shows promise as a mind-body-community intervention for communities of color in recovery and post-incarceration.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2025
Mateus Torres-Cruz, Mariana Moura-Alves, Renata Pereira Lima et al.
1 citation
A low-cost 12-week program combining socioemotional skills training with moderate physical activity reduced depression scores and negative emotions among adults living in Paraisópolis, one of Brazil's largest favelas, during the final period of the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants in the intervention group showed an average decrease of 3.2 points on the DASS-21 depression scale and a 2.7-point reduction in negative affect on the PANAS scale, while the waiting-list control group showed no such changes. The intervention also lowered systolic blood pressure by an average of 7.0 mmHg in hypertensive or pre-hypertensive participants and improved physical endurance and flexibility. Qualitative interviews indicated the program alleviated anxiety and sadness and boosted physical vitality.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2026
Lori Rubenstein Fazzio, Anne Pitman, Shelly Prosko
Death anxiety is common in modern cultures and leads to avoidance of advance care planning and overuse of life-prolonging treatments. This Perspective proposes shifting from a pathogenic focus on life-extension and symptom reduction to a salutogenic approach emphasizing meaning-making and adaptive engagement with mortality. Antonovsky's Sense of Coherence framework—comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness—is presented as a psychosocial resource that supports wellbeing amid existential stressors. Cultivating conscious mortality awareness may strengthen Sense of Coherence. Savasana (corpse pose) is proposed as an embodied contemplative practice for experiential engagement with impermanence, not as a treatment for death anxiety but as a salutogenic practice supporting reflective meaning-making when practiced intentionally across the lifespan.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2026
Neelam Oswal, Pranita Jagtap, Pradnya Dasarwar
Regular practice of ānāpāna, a beginning step of vipassanā meditation, over one academic year improved sustained attention and adjustment with self among 8th-grade students. In a mixed-methods study, 44 students practiced ānāpāna daily for 10 minutes on school days, while 45 served as a waitlisted control. By the program's end, the experimental group showed significantly greater gains in sustained attention (Cohen's d = 0.61) compared to controls. At an interim assessment, adjustment with self also improved more in the experimental group (d = 0.43). Qualitative data from students, teachers, and parents supported these findings, noting better focus, emotional regulation, positive relationships, and strategic use of ānāpāna for stress. The findings suggest ānāpāna practice can benefit educational activities for early adolescents.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2025
Jakub Sobieraj, Jakub Sleziak, Michał Szyszka et al.
Among university students in Wrocław, Poland, complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use is nearly universal, with 96.1% of 493 surveyed students reporting its use. Depression is the most common mental health disorder (74.7% of those with a history). The most popular CAM methods include physical exercise (81.4%), meditation (60.5%), and yoga (39.1%); herbal substances such as lemon balm (53.0%) and ashwagandha (24.8%) are also common, alongside marijuana (31.3%) and psychedelics (10.4%). Key barriers to professional care are cost (80.7%), availability (35.7%), and stigma (30.7%). Students using marijuana, ashwagandha, or St. John's wort report more intense depressive symptoms. The findings suggest that limited access to psychiatric care drives high CAM use, and unsupervised use may pose risks, warranting education and clinical guidelines.
Frontiers in public health
January 1, 2025
Sukesh Paranthatta, Titty George, H M Vinaya et al.
correction
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