Bringing the Practice of Mindfulness Into Nature - Preventing Mental Fatigue in Healthcare Professionals.

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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The purpose of the study is to determine whether a five day mindfulness retreat in nature can increase measures of attention and self-compassion, and reduce stress among bachelor students at Danish Universities and University Colleges. Secondary whether the expression of inflammatory markers can be reduced . It is the hypothesis that perceived stress is reduced and the expression of genetic markers of inflammation is reduced after a five day mindfulness retreat.

Official Title
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Enhancement of Presence, Compassion and Resilience Bringing the Practice of Mindfulness Into Nature - Preventing Mental Fatigue in Healthcare Professionals.

Conditions
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Stress, Psychological, Inflammation, Stress, Physiological

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Mindfulness


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Bachelor student at a Danish University or University College A score of 16 or above on the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) Exclusion Criteria: Smoking Psychiatric diagnosis (depression, anxiety, adjustment disorder, PTSD, personality disorder, psychosis). Untreated ADHD, autism, abuse and risk of suicide

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Basic Science
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: Mindfulness in nature<br>A five day mindfulness retreat in nature | Behavioral: Mindfulness<br>* Five days MBSR curriculum with meditation and yoga<br>* Other names: MBSR;|
| Active Comparator: Mindfulness indoor<br>A five day mindfulness retreat indoor | Behavioral: Mindfulness<br>* Five days MBSR curriculum with meditation and yoga<br>* Other names: MBSR;|
| No Intervention: Wait list control<br>A wait list control group, that 6 months later is offered a two-day mindfulness retreat in nature | |

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Perceived Stress Scale | PSS | At the end of five days retreat | 
| Self-compassion | S-C-S Neff2 | At the end of five days retreat | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| Breath Counting | Behavioral measurement of attention | At the end of five days retreat | 
| NF-kB gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-1 gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-6 gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| cRP expression | c reactive protein | At the end of five days retreat | 
| Heart Rate Variability | HRV | At the end of five days retreat | 
| Blood pressure |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| Connectedness to Nature Scale |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| GR gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| RIPK2 gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| TNF-α gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| CCL5 gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-8 gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| TERT gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| TERC gene expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-1β protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-2 protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-4 protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-6 protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-8 protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-10 protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-12p70 protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IL-13 protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| TNF-α protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat | 
| IFN-γ protein expression |  | At the end of five days retreat |