Evaluation of Yoga for Preventing Adolescent Substance Use Risk Factors in a Middle School Setting: A Preliminary Group-Randomized Controlled Trial.
Bethany Butzer, Amanda LoRusso, Sunny H Shin, Sat Bir S Khalsa
Journal of Youth and Adolescence May 31, 2016 DOI: 10.1007/s10964-016-0513-3 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 211 |
| Population | Seventh-grade students in a public school (63.2% female; 53.6% White) |
| Intervention | Yoga |
| Duration | 32-session intervention with 6-month and 1-year post-intervention follow-ups |
| Topics | Addiction Meditation |
| Keywords | Humans Substance-related disorders Yoga Risk factors Health behavior Schools Students Adolescent Female Surveys and questionnaires Self-control Adolescence Substance use |
| Key findings | Control-group participants were significantly more willing to try smoking cigarettes immediately after the intervention than yoga-group participants, while no immediate differences emerged for other outcomes. At 6-month and 1-year follow-ups, females in the yoga condition and males in the control condition showed improvements in emotional self-control, suggesting possible delayed effects. |
Abstract
Adolescence is a key developmental period for preventing substance use initiation, however prevention programs solely providing educational information about the dangers of substance use rarely change adolescent substance use behaviors. Recent research suggests that mind-body practices such as yoga may have beneficial effects on several substance use risk factors, and that these practices may serve as promising interventions for preventing adolescent substance use. The primary aim of the present study was to test the efficacy of yoga for reducing substance use risk factors during early adolescence. Seventh-grade students in a public school were randomly assigned by classroom to receive either a 32-session yoga intervention (n = 117) in place of their regular physical education classes or to continue with physical-education-as-usual (n = 94). Participants (63.2 % female; 53.6 % White) completed pre- and post-intervention questionnaires assessing emotional self-regulation, perceived stress, mood impairment, impulsivity, substance use willingness, and actual substance use. Participants also completed questionnaires at 6-months and 1-year post-intervention. Results revealed that participants in the control condition were significantly more willing to try smoking cigarettes immediately post-intervention than participants in the yoga condition. Immediate pre- to post-intervention differences did not emerge for the remaining outcomes. However, long-term follow-up analyses revealed a pattern of delayed effects in which females in the yoga condition, and males in the control condition, demonstrated improvements in emotional self-control. The findings suggest that school-based yoga may have beneficial effects with regard to preventing males' and females' willingness to smoke cigarettes, as well as improving emotional self-control in females. However additional research is required, particularly with regard to the potential long-term effects of mind-body interventions in school settings. The present study contributes to the literature on adolescence by examining school-based yoga as a novel prevention program for substance use risk factors.
Comparable studies
Other randomized controlled trials on addiction, most cited first.
Citations in the library
Cited by 8
- Mindfulness-Based Interventions for the Treatment of Substance and Behavioral Addictions: A Systematic Review Frontiers in Psychiatry March 29, 2018
- The role of non-ordinary states of consciousness occasioned by mind-body practices in mental health illness. Journal of Affective Disorders August 15, 2023
- A Consideration of Transpersonal Research Methods for Studying Yoga and Mindfulness in Schools October 31, 2022
- Participation in a yoga intervention is associated with improved mental health among Latinx adolescents. Stress and Health August 2023
- Effect of Yoga and Mindfulness Intervention on Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression in Young Adolescents Attending Middle School: A Pragmatic Community-Based Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial in a Racially Diverse Urban Setting International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health September 24, 2022
and 3 more in the library
Cites 8
- Mindfulness Meditation for Substance Use Disorders: A Systematic Review Substance Abuse October 1, 2009
- A narrative review of yoga and mindfulness as complementary therapies for addiction. Complementary Therapies in Medicine June 1, 2013
- Testing the indirect effect of trait mindfulness on adolescent cigarette smoking through negative affect and perceived stress mediators Journal of Substance Use October 3, 2011
- The emerging role of meditation in addressing psychiatric illness, with a focus on substance use disorders. Harvard Review of Psychiatry 2009
- Mindfulness Training as an Intervention for Substance User Incarcerated Adolescents: A Pilot Grounded Theory Study Substance Use & Misuse March 11, 2014
and 3 more in the library