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Barrett B, Walters S, Checovich MM, Grabow ML, Middlecamp C, Wortzel B, Tetrault K, Riordan KM, Goldberg S. Mindful Eco-Wellness: Steps Toward Personal and Planetary Health. Glob Adv Integr Med Health 2024; 13:27536130241235922. [PMID: 38410151 PMCID: PMC10896055 DOI: 10.1177/27536130241235922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2023] [Revised: 01/31/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024]
Abstract
Rising greenhouse gas levels heat the earth's surface and alter climate patterns, posing unprecedented threats to planetary ecology and human health. At the same time, obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease have reached epidemic proportions across the globe, caused in part by decreases in physical activity and by over-consumption of carbon-intensive foods. Thus, interventions that support active transportation (walking or cycling rather than driving) and healthier food choices (eating plant-based rather than meat-based diets) would yield health and sustainability "co-benefits." Emerging research suggests that mindfulness-based practices might be effective means toward these ends. At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, we have developed a mindfulness-based group program, Mindful Eco-Wellness: Steps Toward Healthier Living. Loosely based on the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction course, our curriculum teaches mindfulness practices in tandem with sustainability principles, following weekly themes of Air, Water, Food, Energy, Transportation, Consumption, Nature Experience, and Ethics. For example, the "Air" class offers participants practice in guided breath meditations while they learn about the benefits of clean air. The theme of "Food" is presented through mindful eating, accompanied by educational videos highlighting the consequences of food production and consumption. "Transportation" includes walking/movement meditations and highlights the health benefits of physical activity and detriments of fossil-fueled transportation. Pedagogical lessons on energy, ecological sustainability, and the ethics of planetary health are intertwined with mindful nature experience and metta (loving-kindness) meditation. Curricular materials, including teaching videos, are freely available online. Pilot testing in community settings (n = 30) and in group medical visits (n = 34) has demonstrated feasibility; pilot data suggests potential effectiveness. Rigorous evaluation and testing are needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruce Barrett
- Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Sarah Walters
- Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Mary M. Checovich
- Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Maggie L. Grabow
- Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Cathy Middlecamp
- Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Beth Wortzel
- Harmonia Center for Psychotherapy, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Kaitlin Tetrault
- Department of Biostatistics, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Kevin M. Riordan
- Department of Counseling Psychology, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
- Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Simon Goldberg
- Department of Counseling Psychology, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
- Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Madison, WI, USA
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Rebello-Sanchez I, Vasquez-Avila K, Parente J, Pacheco-Barrios K, De Melo PS, Teixeira PE, Jong K, Caumo W, Fregni F. Insights and Future Directions on the Combined Effects of Mind-Body Therapies with Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation: An Evidence-based Review. J Int Soc Phys Rehabil Med 2022; 5:129-148. [PMID: 36583065 PMCID: PMC9797000 DOI: 10.4103/ijprm.jisprm-000167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Mind-body therapies (MBTs) use mental abilities to modify electrical neural activity across brain networks. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique that modulates neuronal membrane potentials to enhance neuroplasticity. A combination of these treatment strategies may generate synergistic or additive effects, and thus has been more commonly tested in clinical trials, fostering a novel yet promising field of research. We conducted a literature search in four different databases including only randomized clinical trials (RCTs) that tested the combination of MBTs with tDCS. Ten studies (n=461) were included. Combined protocols included meditation/mindfulness (8/10), biofeedback (1/10), and hypnosis (1/10). The RCTs were heterogeneous with regards to population, design, and types of outcomes. Based on the findings of this search, we provide here a content description, methodological and practical insights, and future directions for the field. We hope this review will provide future authors with information to facilitate the development of trials with improved protocols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingrid Rebello-Sanchez
- Neuromodulation Center and Center for Clinical Research Learning, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 96-13th Street, Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Karen Vasquez-Avila
- Neuromodulation Center and Center for Clinical Research Learning, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 96-13th Street, Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joao Parente
- Neuromodulation Center and Center for Clinical Research Learning, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 96-13th Street, Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kevin Pacheco-Barrios
- Neuromodulation Center and Center for Clinical Research Learning, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 96-13th Street, Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA,Research Unit for the Generation and Synthesis of Evidence in Health, San Ignacio de Loyola University, Lima, Peru
| | - Paulo S. De Melo
- Neuromodulation Center and Center for Clinical Research Learning, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 96-13th Street, Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Paulo E.P. Teixeira
- Neuromodulation Center and Center for Clinical Research Learning, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 96-13th Street, Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kian Jong
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Wolnei Caumo
- Department of Surgery, School of Medicine, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, Brazil,Laboratory of Pain and Neuromodulation at Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Felipe Fregni
- Neuromodulation Center and Center for Clinical Research Learning, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 96-13th Street, Charlestown, Boston, MA, USA
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Graubard R, Perez-Sanchez A, Katta R. Stress and Skin: An Overview of Mind Body Therapies as a Treatment Strategy in Dermatology. Dermatol Pract Concept 2021; 11:e2021091. [PMID: 34631261 DOI: 10.5826/dpc.1104a91] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Stress has multiple and wide-ranging physiologic and clinical impacts on skin disease. This has led to an interest in mind body therapies as potential adjunct treatments for skin disease. The stress response results in the activation of the endocrine, neurologic, and immune systems, with a resulting cascade of impacts, that are both systemic and cutaneous. The 2 main arms of the stress response are the sympathetic nervous system and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. The resultant release of cortisol, catecholamines, and neuropeptides has multiple effects. Clinically, these have been shown to increase skin inflammation, increase itching, impair skin barrier function, impair wound healing, and suppress immunity. Mind body therapies are those that focus on the interaction between the mind and the body, with the goal to influence physical function and impact health. These have been shown to ameliorate some of the harmful physiologic changes attributed to stress or to reduce harmful behaviors. In some cases, such as with biofeedback, they may also result in beneficial physiologic changes. Treatments such as meditation, biofeedback, hypnosis, guided imagery, and others have been evaluated in the treatment of skin disease and have shown some benefits. Although randomized controlled trials are limited, these interventions have shown beneficial effects on itching, psychosocial outcomes, and even skin severity. These interventions have been evaluated in diseases such as atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, trichotillomania, and others. Given the potential benefits, improvements in psychosocial outcomes, and a low risk profile, referral to qualified practitioners or multidisciplinary clinics should be considered for some patients.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Rajani Katta
- Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA.,McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas Houston, USA
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