Lifestyle Related Research from Pubmed

Psychological well-being in rheumatoid arthritis: a review of the literature.

Musculoskeletal Care. 2010 Mar 15;

Authors: Gettings L

The psychological well-being of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an important issue, and the advent of measurement tools has led to a better understanding of the mental aspects associated with this chronic illness. Patients with RA are more likely to suffer from anxiety, depression and low self-esteem, with high levels of associated mortality and suicide. The loss of the ability to carry out daily functions owing to RA is also associated with the onset of depressive symptoms. Furthermore, the psychological effects of RA can extend to the partners, families and carers of sufferers. Conventional treatment has focused on treating the symptoms of RA and containment of disease progression, but may not necessarily address the psychological issues associated with the condition. Furthermore, patient perception of RA and of the support offered to them can cause further unnecessary psychological distress. Access to psychological support for RA patients has been shown to be inconsistent and haphazard. It is now being recognized that what is needed is a multidisciplinary team approach to treat psychological distress in RA alongside conventional treatment, involving alternative therapies tailored to the psychological needs of the patient. The benefits of treatments such as cognitive behavioural therapy, meditation and exercise are clear and these treatments should be actively encouraged, thereby enabling patients with RA to better manage the psychological burden associated with this chronic condition. Copyright (c) 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

PMID: 20232479 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Effectiveness of a Tai chi Qigong program in promoting health-related quality of life and perceived social support in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease clients.

Qual Life Res. 2010 Mar 15;

Authors: Chan AW, Lee A, Suen LK, Tam WW

PURPOSE: This paper evaluates the effectiveness of a 3-month Tai chi Qigong (TCQ) program in promoting the psychosocial functional health of clients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Hong Kong. METHODS: This study employed a single-blind, randomized controlled trial. Two hundred and six COPD clients were randomly assigned into three groups, namely, TCQ group, exercise group, and control group. Subjects in the TCQ group received a TCQ program, consisting of two 60-min sessions each week for 3 months. Subjects in the exercise group were taught to practice breathing techniques combined with walking as an exercise. Subjects in the control group received their usual care. Data collections were performed at baseline, on the sixth week and on the third month. The primary outcomes were health-related quality of life using St. George Respiratory Questionnaire-Hong Kong Chinese version and perceived social support using the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support-Chinese version. RESULTS: The TCQ group showed greater improvements in the symptom (F (4, 404) = 3.351, P = 0.010) and activity domains (F (4, 404) = 2.611, P = 0.035). No differences were detected in perceived social support among the three groups. CONCLUSIONS: Tai chi Qigong promoted health outcomes with respect to clients' perception of their respiratory symptoms. Moreover, TCQ decreased disturbances to their physical activities.

PMID: 20229333 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Dietary fatty acid composition alters magnesium metabolism, distribution, and marginal deficiency response in rats *.

Magnes Res. 2009 Dec;22(4):280-8

Authors: Nielsen FH

Based on dietary intake recommendations, magnesium deficiency commonly occurs throughout the world. However, widespread pathological conditions induced by dietary magnesium deficiency have not been identified. This discrepancy may be caused by other dietary factors ameliorating or exacerbating the response to a marginal magnesium deficiency and/or the length of the deficiency. Thus, a study was performed to determine whether the n-6/n-3 fatty acid composition of the diet affects the response to marginal magnesium deprivation, and whether the effect was dependent upon the length of deprivation. Weanling female rats were fed diets containing 250 mg/kg magnesium in a factorial arrangement with dietary variables of supplemental magnesium at 0 or 250 mg/kg (total of 250 or 500 mg/kg) and fat sources of 75 g/kg corn oil or 65 g/kg fish (menhaden) oil plus 10 g/kg linoleic acid. After 8 and 12 weeks on their respective diets, each rat was placed in a metabolic cage for a 16-hour collection of urine. After 13 weeks, the rats were anesthetized with ether for the collection of plasma and organs. Marginal magnesium deficiency was confirmed by decreased urinary excretion and femur, tibia and vertebrae concentrations of magnesium. Dietary oil influenced the effect of marginal magnesium deficiency on magnesium metabolism, distribution and oxidative stress indicators. Fish oil, but not corn oil, significantly decreased urinary magnesium excretion and increased kidney magnesium concentration. Femur magnesium was significantly decreased by marginal magnesium deficiency in rats fed fish oil but not in rats fed corn oil, and liver magnesium concentration was decreased by fish oil. Marginal magnesium deficiency increased plasma extracellular superoxide dismutase and cysteine (component of glutathione) in rats fed corn oil but not in rats fed fish oil. Urinary prostaglandin E(2) excretion was significantly decreased by marginal magnesium deficiency at 8 weeks, but not at 12 weeks; an increase between weeks 8 and 12 in marginally magnesium-deficient rats fed fish oil caused this change in significance. The findings show that the dietary fatty acid composition affects the response of rats to marginal magnesium deprivation. The findings also indicate that dietary or physiological factors affecting oxidative stress could affect the response to marginal magnesium deficiency, and that a response to a dietary change that takes time to develop, such as an increase in dietary n-3 fatty acids, may result in signs of marginal deficiency being different over time.

PMID: 20228007 [PubMed - in process]

From alpha to gamma: Electrophysiological correlates of meditation-related states of consciousness.

Med Hypotheses. 2010 Mar 11;

Authors: Fell J, Axmacher N, Haupt S

Meditation practice is difficult to access because of its countless forms of appearances originating from the complexity of cultures it has to serve. This makes a suitable categorization for scientific use almost impossible. However, empirical data suggest that different forms of meditation show similar steps of development in terms of their neurophysiological correlates. Some electrophysiological alterations can be observed on the beginner/student level, which are closely related to non-meditative processes. Others seem to correspond to an advanced/expert level, and seem to be unique for meditation-related states of consciousness. Meditation is one possibility to specialize brain/mind functions using the brain's immanent neural plasticity. This plasticity is probably recruited by certain EEG patterns observed during or as a result of meditation, for instance, synchronized gamma oscillations. While meditation formerly has been understood to comprise mainly passive relaxation states, recent EEG findings suggest that meditation is associated with active states which involve cognitive restructuring and learning.

PMID: 20227193 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Influence of a five-day vegetarian diet on urinary levels of antibiotics and phthalate metabolites: A pilot study with "Temple Stay" participants.

Environ Res. 2010 Mar 11;

Authors: Ji K, Lim Kho Y, Park Y, Choi K

Diet is purported to be means of exposure to many environmental contaminants. The purpose of this study is to understand the influence of dietary change on the levels of exposure to several environmental chemicals - in particular, antibiotics and phthalates. For this purpose, we examined the extent to which short-term changes in diet influenced the inadvertent exposure levels to these chemicals in an adult population. We recruited participants (n=25) of a five-day 'Temple Stay' program in Korea and collected urine samples before and after the program. We also conducted a questionnaire survey on participants' dietary patterns prior to their participation. During the program, participants followed the daily routines of Buddhist monks and maintained a vegetarian diet. Urinary levels of three antibiotics and their major metabolites, metabolites of four major phthalates, and malondialdehyde (MDA) as an oxidative stress biomarker were analyzed. The frequency and levels of detection for antibiotics and phthalates noticeably decreased during the program. Urinary MDA levels were significantly lower than before program participation (0.16 versus 0.27mg/g creatinine). Although the exposure to target compounds might be influenced by other behavioral patterns, these results suggest that even short-term changes in dietary behavior may significantly decrease inadvertent exposure to antibiotics and phthalates and hence may reduce oxidative stress levels.

PMID: 20227070 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Positive impact of long-term lifestyle change on erythrocyte fatty acid profile after acute coronary syndromes.

Arch Cardiovasc Dis. 2010 Feb;103(2):106-114

Authors: Caspar-Bauguil S, Garcia J, Galinier A, Périquet B, Ferrières J, Allenbach S, Morin N, Héricotte P, Salvayre R, Baudet M

BACKGROUND: The outcome of coronary diseases is influenced by lifestyle and diet. Among dietary factors, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids reduce mortality from cardiovascular diseases. AIMS: To evaluate the impact of dietary and lifestyle advice by calculation of scores and analysis of plasmatic lipids and the fatty acid composition of erythrocyte membrane phospholipids after 1 year of patient education in 66 patients with acute coronary syndromes. METHODS: The answers given by patients during questioning were transformed into scores (atherosclerosis risk, dietary habits and global scores) at inclusion and after 1 year of follow-up. Classical metabolic risk factors and fatty acid composition of erythrocyte phospholipids were determined at the same time. RESULTS: After 1 year of education, patients improved their different scores, particularly by changing dietary habits. The positive impact was seen in the blood lipid and erythrocyte fatty acid levels: plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were lowered and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid percentages were improved in phospholipids. CONCLUSION: Global score, lipid variables and the nature of the polyunsaturated fatty acids in erythrocyte phospholipids help us to evaluate patients with high coronary artery disease risk and the benefits of long-term dietary and lifestyle advice.

PMID: 20226430 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Stress, inflammation, and yoga practice.

Psychosom Med. 2010 Feb;72(2):113-21

Authors: Kiecolt-Glaser JK, Christian L, Preston H, Houts CR, Malarkey WB, Emery CF, Glaser R

OBJECTIVE: To address the mechanisms underlying hatha yoga's potential stress-reduction benefits, we compared inflammatory and endocrine responses of novice and expert yoga practitioners before, during, and after a restorative hatha yoga session, as well as in two control conditions. Stressors before each of the three conditions provided data on the extent to which yoga speeded an individual's physiological recovery. METHODS: A total of 50 healthy women (mean age, 41.32 years; range, 30-65 years), 25 novices and 25 experts, were exposed to each of the conditions (yoga, movement control, and passive-video control) during three separate visits. RESULTS: The yoga session boosted participants' positive affect compared with the control conditions, but no overall differences in inflammatory or endocrine responses were unique to the yoga session. Importantly, even though novices and experts did not differ on key dimensions, including age, abdominal adiposity, and cardiorespiratory fitness, novices' serum interleukin (IL)-6 levels were 41% higher than those of experts across sessions, and the odds of a novice having detectable C-reactive protein (CRP) were 4.75 times as high as that of an expert. Differences in stress responses between experts and novices provided one plausible mechanism for their divergent serum IL-6 data; experts produced less lipopolysaccharide-stimulated IL-6 in response to the stressor than novices, and IL-6 promotes CRP production. CONCLUSION: The ability to minimize inflammatory responses to stressful encounters influences the burden that stressors place on an individual. If yoga dampens or limits stress-related changes, then regular practice could have substantial health benefits.

PMID: 20064902 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Clinical images: Prayer nodules.

CMAJ. 2010 Jan 12;182(1):E19

Authors: ur Rehman H, Asfour NA

PMID: 19917660 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Neural correlates of focused attention and cognitive monitoring in meditation.

Brain Res Bull. 2010 Mar 8;

Authors: Manna A, Raffone A, Perrucci MG, Nardo D, Ferretti A, Tartaro A, Londei A, Del Gratta C, Belardinelli MO, Romani GL

Meditation refers to a family of complex emotional and attentional regulatory practices, which can be classified into two main styles - focused attention (FA) and open monitoring (OM) - involving different attentional, cognitive monitoring and awareness processes. In a functional magnetic resonance study we originally characterized and contrasted FA and OM meditation forms within the same experiment, by an integrated FA-OM design. Theravada Buddhist monks, expert in both FA and OM meditation forms, and lay novices with 10 days of meditation practice, participated in the experiment. Our evidence suggests that expert meditators control cognitive engagement in conscious processing of sensory-related, thought and emotion contents, by massive self-regulation of fronto-parietal and insular areas in the left hemisphere, in a meditation state-dependent fashion. We also found that anterior cingulate and dorsolateral prefrontal cortices play antagonist roles in the executive control of the attention setting in meditation tasks. Our findings resolve the controversy between the hypothesis that meditative states are associated to transient hypofrontality or deactivation of executive brain areas, and evidence about the activation of executive brain areas in meditation. Finally, our study suggests that a functional reorganization of brain activity patterns for focused attention and cognitive monitoring takes place with mental practice, and that meditation-related neuroplasticity is crucially associated to a functional reorganization of activity patterns in prefrontal cortex and in the insula.

PMID: 20223285 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Experience-Based, Body-Anchored Qualitative Research Interviewing.

Qual Health Res. 2010 Mar 10;

Authors: Stelter R

Two theoretical constructs that lay the foundation for experience-based, body-anchored interviewing are presented: the first-person perspective and the concept of meaning. These theoretical concepts are concretized, first, by means of a methodological framework for experience-based, body-anchored interviewing, and second, by an interview guide that explores a research participant's personal experience with mindfulness meditation. An excerpt from an interview is discussed to illustrate the advantages of this interview form, namely its value as a methodological instrument for qualitative research in areas such as traditional and holistic medicine, Western alternative and complementary medicine, nursing, psychotherapy, coaching, physiotherapy, movement arts, and physical education.

PMID: 20220152 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Treatment of fibromyalgia at the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway. A six-month follow-up study.

Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2009 Sep-Oct;27(5 Suppl 56):S46-50

Authors: Rasmussen LB, Mikkelsen K, Haugen M, Pripp AH, Førre ØT

BACKGROUND: Treatments offered at the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway are based on Maharishi Vedic medicine, which is also known as Maharishi Ayurveda. It is a consciousness based revival of the ancient Ayurvedic medicine tradition in India and is established by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique. OBJECTIVE: To conduct a pilot study of the effect of the treatment program at the Health Centre on fibromyalgia patients. METHODS: Thirty-one women with diagnosed fibromyalgia received an individually designed Maharishi Vedic physiological purification therapy. All subjects received personal advice on diet based on Ayurvedic principles, including a novel approach to food into-lerance, and daily routines. In addition they were offered instruction in TM (for stress and pain management and personal development) (four subjects started), and recommended Ayurvedic herbal food products for home treatment. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: A modified Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire included a visual analogue scale for each of the seven outcomes: working ability, generalised pain, tiredness, stiffness, tiredness on arising, anxiety and depression. Pre-treatment scores were compared with scores at six-month follow-up for levels of statistical significance. RESULTS: Twenty-eight subjects (90%) completed the follow-up. The outcome measures were reduced by 25 to 46% by the study's endpoint: working ability (p<0.002), pain (p<0.001), tiredness (p<0.001), morning tiredness (p<0.001), stiffness (p<0.005), anxiety (p<0.136), and depression (p<0.001). A group of five excellent responders including all four participants who started to practise TM, had almost no symptoms by the endpoint. Compared to the non-meditating control group the TM-subgroup showed statistically significant improvements for all outcome measures except depression. CONCLUSIONS: In this pilot study fibromyalgia patients undergoing treatment at Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre in Norway showed significant improvements six months post treatment. Because fibromyalgia is considered a treatment-resistant condition, these encouraging results warrant further research.

PMID: 20074439 [PubMed - in process]

Patients' Question-Asking Behavior During Primary Care Visits: A Report From the AAFP National Research Network.

Ann Fam Med. 2010 Mar-Apr;8(2):151-9

Authors: Galliher JM, Post DM, Weiss BD, Dickinson LM, Manning BK, Staton EW, Brown JB, Hickner JM, Bonham AJ, Ryan BL, Pace WD

PURPOSE: The Ask Me 3 (AM3) health communication program encourages patients to ask specific questions during office visits with the intention of improving understanding of their health conditions and adherence to treatment recommendations. This study evaluated whether implementing AM3 improves patients' question-asking behavior and increases adherence to prescription medications and lifestyle recommendations. METHODS: This randomized trial involved 20 practices from the American Academy of Family Physicians National Research Network that were assigned to an AM3 intervention group or a control group. Forty-one physicians in the practices were each asked to enroll at least 20 patients. The patients' visits were audio recorded, and recordings were reviewed to determine whether patients asked questions and which questions they asked. Patients were interviewed 1 to 3 weeks after the visit to assess their recall of physicians' recommendations, rates of prescription filling and taking, and attempts at complying with lifestyle recommendations. RESULTS: The study enrolled 834 eligible patients in 20 practices. There were no significant difference between the AM3 and control patients in the rate of asking questions, but this rate was high (92%) in both groups. There also were no differences in rates of either filling or taking prescriptions, although rates of these outcomes were fairly high, too. Control patients were more likely to recall that their physician recommended a lifestyle change, however (68% vs 59%, P=.04). CONCLUSIONS: In a patient population in which asking questions already occurs at a high rate and levels of adherence are fairly high, we found no evidence that the AM3 intervention results in patients asking specific questions or more questions in general, or in better adherence to prescription medications or lifestyle recommendations.

PMID: 20212302 [PubMed - in process]

[Subjective evaluation of DBT treatment by adolescent patients with eating disorders and the correlation with evaluations by their parents and psychotherapists]

Z Kinder Jugendpsychiatr Psychother. 2010 Jan;38(1):51-7

Authors: Schneider N, Korte A, Lenz K, Pfeiffer E, Lehmkuhl U, Salbach-Andrae H

OBJECTIVE: The subjective evaluation of a psychotherapeutic treatment may be an essential aspect of the recovery from an eating disorder. Our study investigates the subjective treatment evaluation by patients with eating disorders and the accordance with their parents' and psychotherapist's evaluation. METHOD: In a sample of 41 eating-disorder patients (M(Age) = 16.3; SD = 1.26), their parents and psychotherapists, we used a questionnaire (FBB) to assess satisfaction with Dialectical Behavioral Therapy treatment. RESULTS: Our results show good ratings, as well as good correlations between patients and parents. CONCLUSIONS: The findings implicate the importance of assessing a subjective therapy rating in addition to objective parameters.

PMID: 20047176 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]