Testing a Brief Mindful Eating Program

Study Overview
=================
Brief Summary
-----------------
This project evaluated the effects of a brief manualized mindful eating intervention as a treatment for overeating with individuals with overweight and obesity.

Detailed Description
-----------------
Overeating leads to overweight and obesity. Effective eating regulation largely depends on an individual's responsiveness to internal cues of physiological hunger and satiety; this phenomenon is known as interoceptive awareness and has been shown to be lower in individuals with overweight or obesity. Mindfulness training may improve interoceptive awareness and thus may facilitate more effective regulation of eating through increased sensitivity to cues of hunger and fullness. Mindful eating programs have been shown to increase interoceptive awareness of hunger and satiety cues and decrease weight in individuals with obesity. Although these programs are effective, they involve lengthy group sessions, require extensively trained staff, and are not widely available outside of clinical research. Thus, the reach and impact of these programs are limited. The present study developed and tested a brief mindful eating intervention inspired by Kristeller & Wolever's (2010) Mindfulness-Based Eating Awareness Training program to increase interoceptive awareness in individuals with overweight and obesity as a means to increase mindful and intuitive eating, reduce overeating and facilitate weight loss. The program consisted of 9 weekly 10-15 minute sessions structured around one simple evidence-based mindful eating exercise, and was delivered to adult (ages 18-67) employees from a Canadian university.

Official Title
-----------------
Testing a Brief Mindful Eating Program: Feasibility and Proof of Concept

Conditions
-----------------
Overeating, Overweight, Obesity

Intervention / Treatment
-----------------
* Other: Brief mindful eating intervention


Participation Criteria
=================
Eligibility Criteria
-----------------
Inclusion Criteria: BMI of 25 to 45 kg/m2 (overweight/obese) Willingness to commit to program and complete various assessment measures Exclusion Criteria: Having been pregnant in the past six months or planning on becoming pregnant in the next year Undergoing treatment for cancer Using medications that affect body weight or appetite Being diagnosed with bulimia nervosa, binge-eating disorder, major depressive disorder, or another severe psychiatric disease (including dementia)

Ages Eligible for Study
-----------------
Minimum Age: 18 Years
Maximum Age: 67 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
-----------------
All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
-----------------
Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
=================
How is the study designed?
-----------------

Design Details

Primary Purpose: Treatment
Intervention Model: Single Group Assignment
Interventional Model Description: Pilot feasibility trial
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: Intervention<br>Brief mindful eating intervention | Other: Brief mindful eating intervention<br>* Over the 9-week intervention, participants will be introduced to various mindful eating and intuitive eating practices which are aimed at reducing overeating and facilitating weight loss. Each session will focus on one simple, evidence-based message, aimed at modifying a current weight-relevant eating behavior of the patient. The intervention will focus on two key elements: (1) the mindful awareness of body cues (intuitive eating) and (2) the mindful awareness of external cues (mindful eating).<br>|

What is the study measuring?
-----------------
Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Change in overeating | As measured by the Overeating Questionnaire. Scores can range from 0 to 40, with higher scores indicating a greater tendency to overeat | Baseline, week 9, and 24-week follow-up | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Change in body weight | Change in body weight (lbs) | Baseline, week 9, and 24-week follow-up | 

 Terms related to the study
=================
Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
-----------------
Mindful eating, Overweight, Obesity, Intuitive eating, Overeating, Self-compassion