The role of mindfulness training in sustaining weight reduction: retrospective cohort analysis.
Petra Hanson, Maria Lange, Dominic Oduro-Donkor, Emma Shuttlewood, Martin O Weickert, Harpal S Randeva, Vinod Menon, Regi T Alexander, Paul Basset, Rohit Shankar, Tom M Barber
BJPsych Open November 15, 2022 DOI: 10.1192/bjo.2022.602 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Retrospective observational evaluation Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 289 |
| Population | Adults with a body mass index greater than 35 kg/m2 attending a UK obesity service between 2016 and 2020 |
| Intervention | CALMPOD (Compassionate Approach to Living Mindfully for Prevention of Disease) |
| Duration | 2-year follow-up with 6-monthly appointments |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Psychosocial interventions Education and training Outcome studies Cognitive behavioural therapies Complimentary therapies |
| Key findings | Among 289 adults with a body mass index above 35 kg/m2, those who took the CALMPOD mindfulness course attended more follow-up appointments and lost more weight at two years (5.6 kg vs 3.9 kg) than those given standard lifestyle advice, with no differences in haemoglobin A1C or total cholesterol. The authors suggest CALMPOD may improve longer-term patient and clinical outcomes, while noting the need for prospective large-scale studies. |
Abstract
Background: Psychological stress has an established bi-directional relationship with obesity. Mindfulness techniques reduce stress and improve eating behaviours, but their long-term impact remains untested. CALMPOD (Compassionate Approach to Living Mindfully for Prevention of Disease) is a psychoeducational mindfulness-based course evidenced to improve eating patterns across a 6-month period, possibly by reducing stress. However, no long-term evaluation of impact exists.
Aims: This study retrospectively evaluates 2-year outcomes of CALMPOD on patient engagement, weight and metabolic markers.
Method: All adults with a body mass index >35 kg/m2 attending an UK obesity service during 2016-2020 were offered CALMPOD. Those who refused CALMPOD were offered standard lifestyle advice. Routine clinic data over 2 years, including age, gender, 6-monthly appointment attendance, weight, haemoglobin A1C and total cholesterol, were pooled and analysed to evaluate CALMPOD.
Results: Of 289 patients, 163 participated in the CALMPOD course and 126 did not. No baseline demographic differences existed between the participating and non-participating groups. The CALMPOD group had improved attendance across all 6-monthly appointments compared with the non-CALMPOD group (P < 0.05). Mean body weight reduction at 2 years was 5.6 kg (s.d. 11.2, P < 0.001) for the CALMPOD group compared with 3.9 kg (s.d. 10.5, P < 0.001) for the non-CALMPOD group. No differences in haemoglobin A1C and fasting serum total cholesterol were identified between the groups.
Conclusions: The retrospective evaluation of CALMPOD suggests potential for mindfulness and compassion-based group educational techniques to improve longer-term patient and clinical outcomes. Prospective large-scale studies are needed to evaluate the impact of stress on obesity and the true impact of CALMPOD.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Undergraduate students | 2006 | Observational cohort | |
| Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders Patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder with or without agoraphobia | 1992 | Observational cohort | n = 22 |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Long-term Buddhist practitioners and controls | 2004 | Observational cohort |