We will present an overview of an NIH-NCCAM P01 center research program
rigorously designed to examine the effects of a mindfulness-enhanced weight loss program in obese adults. We randomized 194 men and women to a diet-exercise program with or without mindfulness-based eating and stress management components. Both arms received 17 group sessions over 22 weeks, and were followed for one and a half years from intervention initiation. We examined autonomic nervous system activity in response to social evaluative threat. We also examined longterm changes in metabolic health outcomes (including weight, insulin resistance, and atherogenic lipid profiles). Finally, we examined changes in gene expression in adipose tissue, with a focus on inflammatory status. We conclude that mindfulness enhancements to diet-exercise programs may improve long-term metabolic health in obese adults.
Elissa Epel, PhD
University of California, San Francisco
Convening Faculty, Fellow, Planning Committee Member, Reviewer
Elissa Epel, Ph.D, is a Professor, and Vice Chair, in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, at University of California, San Francisco. She studies psychological, social, and behavioral pathways … MORE
Rick Hecht, MD
University of California San Francisco
Grantee
Rick Hecht is Research Director of the Osher Center, and Professor of Medicine at UCSF. He received his MD from SUNY Health Science Center at Brooklyn, and completed Internal Medicine … MORE
