A diet and exercise program that included mindfulness training resulted in participants having lower metabolic risk factors compared to those who underwent the same program without the training, according to a study led by researchers at UC San Francisco.
Metabolic risk factors include large waist circumference, high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar and triglycerides, and low levels of HDL cholesterol, the “good” cholesterol.
The presence of at least three of these risk factors warrants a diagnosis of metabolic syndrome, a condition that raises the likelihood of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and stroke.
In the study, which was published in the journal Obesity, 194 adults with obesity were randomly divided into two groups. Both underwent the same diet and exercise program, which included information on healthy eating and exercise.
One group received additional information on nutrition and exercise, together with relaxation and cognitive-behavioral techniques for managing stress, while the other participated in a program that focused on “attention to present-moment experience, including experiences of eating and the thoughts and emotions related to it.”
“Mindful eating practices promote awareness of experiences related to the desire to eat, actual sensations of hunger, fullness, satisfaction and enjoyment,” said first author Jennifer Daubenmier, Ph.D., of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine; Center for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment and the Department of Medicine at UCSF. (MORE)
Source: Knowridge Science Report
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