A randomized controlled trial of mindfulness: effects on university students' mental health.

BACKGROUND: The development of mental health disorders is common in the university population, and mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) seem to be effective in addressing them in different contexts. Thus, this study investigated the impact of an 8-week MBI adapted to university students from the Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention (MBSR) on different symptoms related to mental health problems, specifically symptoms of anxiety, depression, stress and insomnia. METHODS: University students (n = 136) were randomized into MBI group (n = 71) or wait-list group (n = 65). All participants completed self-administered questionnaires before and after the intervention, and the experimental group answered questionnaires weekly during intervention. Generalized mixed models were used to assess the effects of the intervention. RESULTS: There were improvements in the symptoms of stress (B = 5.76, p < 0.001), depression (B = 1.55, p < 0.01) and insomnia (B = 1.35, p = 0.020) from the beginning of the intervention to the final assessment when it was compared to the control group. No effect was found in respect of trait anxiety. The MBI was found to be effective in reducing important symptoms related to university students' mental health, possibly grounding further research on the intervention's potential of preventing the development of mental disorders. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The research was registered in the Brazilian Registry of Clinical Trials (ReBEC) - number RBR-63qsqx, approved at 09/16/2019.

Psychometric properties of the short version of the Five Facets of Mindfulness Questionnaire in brazilian portuguese / Propriedades psicométricas da versão curta do Questionário das Cinco Facetas de Mindfulness em português / Propiedades psicométricas de la versión corta del Cuestionario de las Cinco Facetas de Mindfulness en portugués

The aims of the current study were to evaluate the psychometric properties of a short version of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ-SF-BR) and verify if the addition of wording mechanisms (positive or negative) contributes to the fit of the shortened Brazilian Portuguese version of the FFMQ. Four hundred eight participants answered self-report measurements. Structural equation modelling was employed for both objectives. Adequate model fit was found for the 5-factor FFMQ-SF-BR model, with significant improvements arising from the addition of wording mechanism effects. No evidences of differential item functioning and population heterogeneity were found. Bifactor analysis showed that latent traces are preferred overusing raw sum scores. The FFMQ-SF-BR is suitable to measure mindfulness in the Brazilian population and has the benefits of decreasing data collection length without losing content coverage. (AU)

O presente estudo objetivou avaliar as propriedades psicométricas de uma versão curta em português do Questionário das Cinco Facetas de Mindfulness (FFMQ-SF-BR) e verificar se a adição de mecanismos de formulação dos itens (positivos ou negativos) contribui para o ajuste do modelo em cinco fatores. Quatrocentos e oito participantes preencheram instrumentos de autorrelato. Modelagem de equações estruturais foi aplicada em ambos os objetivos. Índices adequados de ajuste foram encontrados para o modelo em cinco fatores, com melhorias significativas advindas da adição dos mecanismos de formulação dos itens. Não foram encontradas evidências de funcionamento diferencial dos itens ou heterogeneidade populacional. A análise de um modelo bifator demonstrou que valores de traços latentes são preferíveis à soma da pontuação. A FFMQ-SF-BR é adequada para mensurar mindfulness na população brasileira, com os benefícios de diminuir o tempo de coleta sem perda de conteúdo. (AU)

El presente estudio tuvo como objetivo evaluar las propiedades psicométricas de una versión corta del Cuestionario de las Cinco Facetas de Mindfulness (FFMQ-SF-BR) en portugués y verificar si la adición de mecanismos de formulación de ítems (positivos o negativos) contribuye al ajuste del modelo de cinco factores. Cuatrocientos ocho participantes completaron instrumentos de autoinforme. Se aplicó el modelo de ecuaciones estructurales a ambos objetivos. Se encontraron índices de ajuste adecuados para el modelo en cinco factores, con mejoras significativas derivadas de los mecanismos de formulación de ítems. No hubo evidencias de funcionamiento diferencial de los ítems o heterogeneidad de la población. El análisis de un modelo bifactorial mostró que los valores de los rasgos latentes son preferibles a la suma puntuaciones. La FFMQ-SF-BR es adecuada para medir el mindfulness en la población brasileña, reduciendo el tiempo de recolección de datos sin pérdida de contenido. (AU)

Comparative effectiveness of mindfulness and mindful eating programmes among low-income overweight women in primary health care: A randomised controlled pragmatic study with psychological, biochemical, and anthropometric outcomes.

Obesity is a chronic and multifactorial disease, with growing rates in the last 50 years worldwide, reaching pandemic levels. It is a major public health problem and is difficult to treat. Different approaches have been used to improve this scenario, including mindfulness-based interventions to enhance dietary behaviour and nutritional status. We compared the effectiveness of a 10-week mindful eating programme with that of a 10-week mindfulness programme and of a no-treatment control group. The sample was composed of adult, low-income women with a body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 to < 40 receiving primary health care in São Paulo, Brazil. The participants (n = 284) were randomised into 3 groups: the control, mindfulness, and mindful eating. We took anthropometric and body composition measurements, applied psychometric measures, and performed biochemical tests at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and after 3 months. We estimated the regression coefficients among the analysis of adherent participants (per protocol: PP) and among those of all participants randomised to treatment (intention-to-treat: ITT) in addition to multiple imputation (MI). Both groups showed improvement in eating behaviour and reduction of binge eating both in the post-intervention and follow-up periods, but without significant changes in weight or most of the biological tests. Those in the mindful eating programme performed slightly better than those in the mindfulness and control groups in terms of improving eating behaviour and reducing binge eating among low-income overweight women.

Effects of Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention on the Chronic use of Hypnotics in Treatment-Seeking Women with Insomnia: a Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: Hypnotics are one of the most frequently prescribed drugs worldwide, especially for women, and their chronic use may lead to tolerance, dosage escalation, dependence, withdrawal syndrome, and cognitive impairments, representing a significant public health problem. Consistent evidence from previous studies shows benefits of mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) for substance use disorders (SUD) and insomnia. However, to date, there is a lack of research about effects of MBIs on reduction/cessation of chronic hypnotic use among women with insomnia. METHOD: The present randomized trial evaluated the efficacy of the 8-week group-delivered mindfulness-based relapse prevention (MBRP) program in an intervention group (IG, n = 34) compared with weekly phone monitoring only in the control group (CG, n = 36) in reducing hypnotic use and insomnia severity over a 6-month follow-up period. RESULTS: There were significant differences between groups at baseline regarding hypnotic use but not insomnia. Group effects on hypnotic use were found immediately after the intervention (bT1 = 2.01, p < 0.001) and at the 2-month follow-up (bT2 = 2.21, p < 0.001), favoring the IG. The IG also had a greater reduction from baseline levels than the control group in insomnia severity at the 4-month (bT3 = 0.21, p = 0.045) and 6-month (bT4 = 0.32, p = 0.002) follow-ups. CONCLUSIONS: The findings provide preliminary evidence of benefits of MBRP for reducing insomnia severity and potentially chronic hypnotic use. However, IG effects on chronic hypnotic use may have resulted from IG and control group differences in chronic hypnotic use at baseline. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02127411.

Impulsivity and Mindfulness among Inpatients with Alcohol Use Disorder.

BACKGROUND: Impulsivity is both a risk factor for and a consequence of alcohol use disorder (AUD), for which mindfulness-based approaches have been proven to be effective. However, the specific relationship between mindfulness and impulsivity has been little explored in the literature, especially in people with AUD. This study aims to investigate the relationship between different facets of dispositional mindfulness and impulsivity among people with AUD in an inpatient setting in Brazil. Methods: Participants (n = 165) completed the following self-report measures: the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), the Five Facets of Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ-SF), and the Short UPPS-P Impulsive Behavior Scale (SUPPS-P). Multiple imputation techniques and linear models were employed to assess the relationships between dispositional mindfulness and impulsivity. Results: In complete case analysis, the UPPS-P facet "lack of premeditation" was inversely related to the FFMQ facet "non-reactivity" (B = -0.17; p = 0.01); and "positive urgency" was inversely related to "act with awareness" (B = -0.27, p = 0.02) and "non-reactivity" (B = -0.17, p = 0.01). Conclusion: Relationships of varying magnitudes between dispositional mindfulness and impulsivity domains among people with AUD were found, suggesting that higher mindfulness skills are related to less impulsive traits. Our results encourage further longitudinal studies evaluating the potential of specific mindfulness components to decrease impulsivity among AUD inpatients, including its underlying mechanisms.

Dispositional mindfulness, anticipation and abstinence symptoms related to hypnotic dependence among insomniac women who seek treatment: A cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION: Dispositional mindfulness can be described as the mental ability to pay attention to the present moment, non-judgmentally. There is evidence of inverse relation between dispositional mindfulness and insomnia and substance use, but as of yet, no studies evaluating the specific association between dispositional mindfulness and the components of hypnotic use disorder. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between dispositional mindfulness and the components of dependence among female chronic hypnotic users. DESIGN AND METHOD: Seventy-six women, chronic users of hypnotics, who resorted to Mindfulness-Based Relapse Prevention for the cessation of hypnotic use were included in the study. The Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) evaluated the levels and facets of mindfulness, and the subscales of the Benzodiazepine Dependence Questionnaire (BENDEP) assessed dependence on hypnotics. We also evaluated sociodemographic variables and symptoms of insomnia and anxiety. The associations between the FFMQ facets and the BENDEP subscales were evaluated with binomial logistic regression, adjusted for income, schooling, anxiety, and insomnia. RESULTS: We observed associations between facets of the FFMQ and specific aspects of hypnotic dependence. The facet "observing" was inversely associated with the "concern about lack of availability of the hypnotic" [aOR = 0.87 95% CI (0.79-0.97)], and the facet "non-reacting to inner experience" with "noncompliance with the prescription recommendations" [aOR = 0.86 95% CI (0.75-0.99)]. The total score of the FFMQ was inversely associated to those two dependence subscales [aOR = 0.94 95% CI (0.89-0.99)]. "Observing" and "non-reactivity to inner experience" were also inversely associated with the "impairments related to the withdrawal symptoms" [aOR = 0.84 95% CI (0.73-0.97)] and [aOR = 0.78 95% CI (0.63-0.96)], respectively. The FFMQ was not associated with "awareness of problematic hypnotic use". CONCLUSION: Dispositional mindfulness, specifically the facets "observing" and "non-reactivity to inner experience, were inversely associated with the components of hypnotic dependence related to the anticipation of having the substance, its expected effect, and the impairments caused by the abstinence. We discuss the implications of those results for the clinical practice and future investigations.