A Randomized, Controlled Pilot Study of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Healthy Older Adults

Figures & data

Table 1. Participant demographics.

	MBSR	Brain Health
N	23	26
Gender (% Male)	48	42
Age M(SD)	71.7 (7.7)	73.9 (7.4)
Years of Education M(SD)	16.3 (2.2)	17.0 (2.5)
Ethnicity (%)
African American	13	23
Asian American	13	0
European American	74	77

Table 2. Weekly topics for MBSR and brain health classes.

	MBSR	Brain Health
Introduction	Introduction to MBSR	Basic Brain Anatomy
Session 1	Mindfulness overview	Neuroplasticity
Session 2	Perceptions	Movement, vision, language
Session 3	Being present in the moment	Memory, forgetting
Session 4	Coping with stress	Attention, executive functioning
Session 5	Mental reactivity	Sleep, stress
Retreat	Silent retreat: Day of mindfulness	Diet, physical activity
Session 6	Interpersonal mindfulness	Aging
Session 7	Embracing change	Emotions
Session 8	Integrating practice into daily life	Social bonds

Table 3. Anonymous post-intervention questionnaire items with mean scores (SDs).

	Questionnaire Items	MBSR	Brain Health
1	Overall, how do you cope with stress now, compared to before the class?	4.17 (0.6)	3.29 (0.5)
2	Overall, how would you rate your thinking skills, compared to before the class?	3.50 (0.6)	3.52 (0.6)
3	Overall, how is your health now, compared to before the class?	3.17 (0.4)	3.04 (0.5)
4	Overall, how is your attitude toward your health now, compared to before the class?	3.88 (0.7)	3.79 (0.6)
5	How satisfied were you with this class?	4.58 (0.8)	3.82 (1.3)
6	How satisfied were you with the class instructor?	4.79 (0.4)	4.04 (1.3)
7	How likely would you be to recommend this class to a friend?	4.58 (0.8)	3.81 (1.4)
8	How likely are you to continue to study and practice the skills you learned in this class?	4.67 (0.5)	4.15 (1.0)
9	Was the class schedule (one day a week plus an all-day retreat) easy to fit in your schedule?	4.00 (1.1)	4.00 (0.9)
10	Have there been any specific positive changes in your medical condition? If so, please describe.	50% – yes	14% – yes
11	Have you made any changes in your lifestyle? If so, please describe.	90% – yes	58% – yes
12	What was your most significant insight during the class?	n/a	n/a
13	Please write a few sentences about the class instructor.	n/a	n/a
14	Please write any comments or suggestions for the class.	n/a	n/a

Note. Participants were asked to rate items 1–9 on a scale from 1–5, where 5 was better/more likely. Items 10–14 were open-ended questions. n/a = not applicable.

Table 4. Responses to open-ended items on the anonymous questionnaire.

MBSR

“Meditation and yoga give me increasing clarity and perspective, enabling me to get more enjoyment out of each day and have higher quality interpersonal relationships.”“This course will help me fulfill my goal of getting the most out of the remaining years of my life.”“It raised my level of awareness on being in the moment and not being on autopilot.”“Even though I have physical limitations, I can do still do exercises. It also helped me realize that if I carved out a few minutes in the day, I can take care of me.” “I meditate daily now and am more open to how I react to stressful situations and live with trying situations.”

Brain Health

“My most significant insight was that we can learn at any age.”“I have increased awareness about specific areas of the brain and what they control. Also what was significant for me was the materials on what memory loss (changes) are considered normal or not age-related.”“There is hope for positive aging. Attitude, exercise, and diet are important!”“I don’t ever remember anyone telling me much about the brain, specifically that exercise and nutrition affect the brain. I’m exercising more and trying to improve my eating habits for better health.”

Figure 1. Flowchart of study participants by intervention.

Table 5. Mean (SD) preliminary efficacy scores by timepoint and intervention.

	MBSR			Brain Health
	Pre- Intervention	Post- Intervention	3 Mths-Post	Pre-Intervention	Post- Intervention	3 Mths-Post
RBANS
Total	105.0 (12.3)	110.0 (14.9)	-	101.1 (15.2)	106.5 (13.5)	-
Attention	100.0 (16.3)	104.7 (14.7)	-	103.7 (13.7)	104.8 (16.6)	-
Language	100.5 (7.8)	104.5 (12.5)	-	100.7 (11.1)	104.7 (8.9)	-
Visuospatial	108.1 (14.9)	107.2 (15.4)	-	102.8 (16.2)	105.9 (16.9)	-
Immediate Memory	104.7 (13.5)	109.6 (13.2)	-	99.2 (16.4)	103.5 (16.6)	-
Delayed Memory	105.6 (12.4)	108.8 (15.7)	-	96.5 (15.9)	104.7 (15.8)	-
Cognitive Failures (CFQ)	32.1 (10.1)	30.6 (12.0)	28.6 (8.8)	40.2 (10.6)	38.5 (12.4)	36.4 (11.2)
RAND SF-36
Physical Functioning	83.3 (20.0)	84.3 (20.6)	85.0 (21.4)	71.6 (27.9)	74.2 (20.3)	75.0 (18.8)
Bodily Pain	54.8 (14.0)	56.7 (11.3)	57.0 (10.7)	49.0 (13.9)	42.7 (17.3)	46.7 (15.6)
Limitations-Physical Health**	71.7 (37.2)	80.7 (33.6)	88.1 (20.3)	70.0 (42.1)	62.5 (40.8)	61.3 (40.9)
Limitations-Emotional Health	84.1 (33.1)	91.3 (20.6)	87.3 (28.8)	77.3 (38.2)	71.8 (34.9)	76.2 (36.7)
Energy/Fatigue	70.0 (17.1)	68.5 (19.3)	66.9 (16.2)	63.5 (20.9)	62.1 (20.1)	63.3 (24.4)
Emotional Well-being	83.7 (12.2)	86.6 (11.7)	86.1 (11.8)	75.5 (19.0)	74.2 (20.0)	77.9 (20.5)
Social Functioning	85.9 (22.4)	91.8 (15.4)	91.7 (13.3)	80.3 (26.3)	76.0 (27.2)	81.9 (25.5)
Pain	72.8 (20.3)	78.3 (20.4)	78.1 (17.9)	70.8 (19.9)	70.8 (20.0)	68.3 (21.2)
General Health*	69.5 (8.0)	70.4 (7.7)	73.2 (9.0)	68.0 (10.5)	67.9 (10.1)	70.6 (10.7)
Geriatric Depression (GDS)	1.7 (2.2)	1.4 (1.2)	1.4 (1.4)	3.9 (4.0)	2.7 (2.7)	2.4 (3.2)
State-Trait Anxiety (STAI)	25.9 (7.4)	26.6 (7.5)	25.8 (5.6)	32.1 (12.3)	29.6 (11.4)	30.4 (10.7)
Mindful Attention (MAAS)	14.2 (6.8)	13.7 (5.2)	13.7 (5.7)	16.1 (7.8)	15.9 (8.4)	14.6 (7.9)
Satisfaction with Life	1.7 (2.2)	1.4 (1.2)	1.4 (1.4)	3.9 (4.0)	2.7 (2.7)	2.4 (3.2)

Note. On the RAND SF36, higher scores reflect a more favorable health state. ** Significant class x timepoint interaction, such that MBSR participants reported fewer limitations due to physical health over time (p = .003). *Significant class x timepoint interaction, such that MBSR participants reported improved general health over time (p = .041). The three-month follow-up was conducted remotely, and thus examiner-administered measures (i.e., RBANS) were not collected.

Data availability statement

The data presented in this manuscript are not readily available due to Department of Veteran Affairs privacy regulations. Requests to access the datasets should be directed to JB at [email protected].