Mindfulness affects stress, ghrelin, and BMI of obese children: A clinical trial

17Citations
Citations of this article
135Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

Abstract

Childhood obesity is associated with stress. However, most treatment strategies include only dietary and physical activity approaches. Mindfulness may assist in weight reduction, but its effectiveness is unclear. We assessed the effect of mindfulness on stress, appetite regulators, and weight of children with obesity and anxiety. A clinical study was conducted in a pediatric hospital. Eligible children were 10–14 years old, BMI ≥95th percentile, Spence anxiety score ≥55, and who were not taking any medication or supplementation. Participants were assigned to receive an 8-week conventional nutritional intervention (CNI) or an 8-week mindfulness-based intervention plus CNI (MND-CNI). Anthropometry, body composition, leptin, insulin, ghrelin, cortisol, and Spence scores were measured at baseline and at the end of the intervention. Anthropometry was analyzed again 8 weeks after concluding interventions. Log-transformed and delta values were calculated for analysis. Thirty-three MND-CNI and 12 CNI children finished interventions; 17 MND-CNI children accomplished 16 weeks. At the end of the intervention, significant reductions in anxiety score (−6.21 ± 1.10), BMI (−0.45 ± 1.2 kg/m2), body fat (−1.28 ± 0.25%), ghrelin (−0.71 ± 0.37 pg/mL), and serum cortisol (−1.42 ± 0.94 µg/dL) were observed in MND-CNI children. Changes in anxiety score, ghrelin, and cortisol were different between groups (P < 0.05). Children who completed 16 weeks decreased BMI after intervention (−0.944 ± 0.20 kg/m2, P < 0.001) and remained lower 8 weeks later (−0.706 ± 0.19 kg/m2, P = 0.001). We concluded that mindfulness is a promising tool as an adjunctive therapy for childhood obesity. However, our findings need confirmation in a larger sample population.

References Powered by Scopus

Meditation programs for psychological stress and well-being: A systematic review and meta-analysis

1529Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Assessment of the cortisol awakening response: Expert consensus guidelines

755Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Assessing salivary cortisol in large-scale, epidemiological research

704Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Cited by Powered by Scopus

The Good, the Bad and the Unknown Aspects of Ghrelin in Stress Coping and Stress-Related Psychiatric Disorders

33Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Psychometric Properties of the Chinese Version of the Brief-Mindful Self-Care Scale: A Translation and Validation Study

23Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Interventions to Treat Obesity in Mexican Children and Adolescents: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

15Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

López-Alarcón, M., Zurita-Cruz, J. N., Torres-Rodríguez, A., Bedia-Mejía, K., Pérez-Güemez, M., Jaramillo-Villanueva, L., … Martínez-Maroñas, P. (2020). Mindfulness affects stress, ghrelin, and BMI of obese children: A clinical trial. Endocrine Connections, 9(2), 163–172. https://doi.org/10.1530/EC-19-0461

Readers' Seniority

Tooltip

PhD / Post grad / Masters / Doc 43

80%

Researcher 6

11%

Professor / Associate Prof. 4

7%

Lecturer / Post doc 1

2%

Readers' Discipline

Tooltip

Nursing and Health Professions 21

44%

Medicine and Dentistry 11

23%

Psychology 11

23%

Sports and Recreations 5

10%

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free