Excerpt
Effective techniques for stress management are varied. They typically include behaviors that improve physical health, such as nutrition and exercise, but may also incorporate strategies that improve cognitive and emotional functioning. The stress-reduction approach based on mindfulness practices has recently enjoyed an explosion of interest from a variety of healthcare and epidemiological researchers. The concept of mindfulness, which originates from practices of Buddhism, is defined as a focused awareness of one’s experience, and purposeful and nonjudgmental focus on the present moment. Structured interventions, such as the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) program, provide participants with the opportunity to learn breathing meditation, body scanning techniques, and gentle, yoga-inspired physical exercises. With practice, individuals learn to process emotions, thoughts, and sensations as they arise. Individuals learn to modify their reflexive conditioning from automatically reacting or worrying about the future to a more adaptive, measured response with greater awareness of the present moment. The literature is replete with evidence suggesting that, with practice, individuals can become more mindful, increasing their capacity to fully process emotions, thoughts, and sensations as they arise. MBSR interventions have been adapted to a wide variety of individuals, from those suffering from chronic or debilitating health conditions to healthy undergraduate or medical students. Randomized controlled trials of MBSR interventions have demonstrated improvements to psychological and physiological processes with relevance to health outcomes and improved stress management. Some individuals have a greater innate, or trait, capacity for mindfulness. These individuals, who have not participated in mindfulness-training interventions, tend to experience better physical health, report fewer physiological symptoms such as pain, and utilize fewer healthcare resources. Trait mindfulness has been associated with lower ratings of anxiety and depression in a variety of medical and non-medical populations. Trait mindfulness may emerge from a genetic predisposition. A recent epidemiological study of adolescent twins revealed that trait mindfulness was 32% heritable. The same study also revealed that 66% of the variance in trait mindfulness was due to environmental factors, suggesting that is also a skill that can be learned. In fact, an MBSR study in university undergraduates revealed that, while increases in mindfulness and psychological outcomes can be observed in participants as a whole, effects may be more pronounced among individuals higher in trait mindfulness at study entry. These data substantiate the utility of mindfulness training, even for high-trait individuals.

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Sections
Introduction
Issues of Concern
Clinical Significance
Questions
References
PMID: 30020672
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Stress Management.