Evaluating a Mindfulness Intervention as an Aid for Dietary Change
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Date
2010-06
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Publisher
The Ohio State University
Abstract
Mindfulness refers to awareness in each moment. Jon Kabat-Zinn, at University of Massachusetts Medical School developed Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) to help patients with chronic pain and stress-related disorders. The program requires a 2-3 hour meeting/week and 45-60 minute daily meditation for 8 weeks. Researchers at The Ohio State University created and tested a low-dose (ld) version, (MBSR-ld), in a clinical trial. Both MBSR and MBSR-ld include mindful eating. MBSR has been effective in eating disorders but hasn't been examined in the non-clinical subject. The focus of this study was to examine the impact of mindfulness training on eating behaviors in the non-clinical subject. In the MBSR-ld study there were 90 participants in each group. The primary hypothesis was that participants in the mindfulness group would display greater changes in eating behavior than the active control group, a lifestyle education program, as measured by food frequency questionnaires (FFQ). A second hypothesis was they would become more mindful pre/post as measured by five daily diary questions on eating patterns. The final hypothesis was the mindfulness group would show a greater increase in mindfulness as measured by the validated MAAS (mindfulness attention awareness scale). MAAS measures dispositional mindfulness and awareness in the present moment. Daily diaries were completed for two weeks pre and two weeks post-intervention. The MAAS was completed once pre and once post-intervention. See Appendix I for the MAAS. While pairwise t-tests revealed the active control group exhibited an increase in consumption of fruits and vegetables (p = 0.01), the mindfulness group had changes such as a decrease in consumption of breads (p = 0.02), meats (p = 0.00), and alcohol (p = 0.06), and was more mindful in eating patterns (p = 0.01). Both groups increased MAAS scores which may be attributed to both programs increasing overall awareness. However, the mindfulness group received 1/8 weeks focused on food and eating behaviors and the active control group received similar lessons in 6/8 weeks. Both groups experienced benefits of becoming aware of eating behaviors however the mindfulness training allowed the information to be learned and applied in less time. Mindful eating may be an effective approach towards dietary change.
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Keywords
mindful, eating behaviors