Effect of an 18-month meditation training on cardiovascular risk in older adults: a secondary analysis of the Age-Well randomized controlled trial
Abstract Background Cardiovascular risk factors represent an important health issue in older adults. Previous findings suggest that meditation training could have a positive impact on these risk factors. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of an 18-month meditation-based inter...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
BMC
2024-11-01
|
| Series: | BMC Geriatrics |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-024-05550-9 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| Summary: | Abstract Background Cardiovascular risk factors represent an important health issue in older adults. Previous findings suggest that meditation training could have a positive impact on these risk factors. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of an 18-month meditation-based intervention on cardiovascular health. Methods Age-Well was a randomized, controlled superiority trial with blinded end point assessment, including community-dwelling cognitively unimpaired adults 65 years and older enrolled between November 24, 2016, and March 5, 2018, in France. One hundred and thirty-four participants were included in this secondary analysis. Participants were randomly affected to an intervention group that received an 18-month meditation-based program or to comparison groups (active control group i.e. non-native language training or passive control group i.e. no intervention). The main outcome was change in the Framingham Risk Score (FRS); other outcomes were changes in cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors. Results There was no difference in FRS change after 18 months between trial arms (p = .38). When assessing individual cardiovascular or metabolic risk factors, meditation training was associated with a greater reduction in diastolic blood pressure than the comparison group in participants with intermediate to high cardiovascular risk (FRS > 10%) at baseline (p = .03). Conclusion An 18-month meditation training was not effective to increase overall cardiovascular health in older adults, but improved diastolic blood pressure in a subgroup analysis including at-risk participants. These results suggest a potential benefit of a long-term meditation intervention in older adults at-risk of cardiovascular diseases, and highlights the need for future research in more targeted populations. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02977819. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 1471-2318 |