scholarly journals Differential Effects of Focused Attention and Open Monitoring Meditation on Autonomic Cardiac Modulation and Cortisol Secretion

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuuki Ooishi ◽  
Masahiro Fujino ◽  
Vimala Inoue ◽  
Michio Nomura ◽  
Norimichi Kitagawa

Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been used widely as a useful tool for the alleviation of various stress-related symptoms. However, the effects of MBIs on stress-related physiological activity have not yet been ascertained. MBIs primarily consist of focused-attention (FA) and open-monitoring (OM) meditation. Since differing effects of FA and OM meditation on brain activities and cognitive tasks have been mentioned, we hypothesized that FA and OM meditation have also differing effects on stress-related physiological activity. In this study, we examined the effects of FA and OM meditation on autonomic cardiac modulation and cortisol secretion. Forty-one healthy adults (aged 20–46 years) who were meditation novices experienced 30-min FA and OM meditation tasks by listening to instructions. During resting- and meditation-states, electrocardiogram transducers were attached to participants to measure the R-R interval, which were used to evaluate heart rate (HR) and perform heart rate variability (HRV) analyses. Saliva samples were obtained from participants pre- and post-meditation to measure salivary cortisol levels. Results showed that FA meditation induced a decrease in HR and an increase in the root mean square of successive differences (rMSDD). In contrast, OM meditation induced an increase in the standard deviation of the normal-to-normal interval (SDNN) to rMSSD ratio (SDNN/rMSSD) and a decrease in salivary cortisol levels. These results suggest that FA meditation elevates physiological relaxation, whereas OM meditation elevates physiological arousal and reduces stress.

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 5-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Milana Drumond Ramos Santana ◽  
Eli Carlos Martiniano ◽  
Larissa Raylane Lucas Monteiro ◽  
Maria Do Socorro Santos De Oliveira ◽  
Vitor E. Valenti ◽  
...  

AbstractIntroduction: There is an increase in level of stress in the general population because of the social, personal and professional demands. Currently, there are only simple tools that can safely measure this stress such as levels of cortisol and heart rate variability (HRV). Objective: To analyze the relationship between salivary cortisol and the cardiac autonomic modulation. Methods: A total of fifty-one male and female subjects between 18 and 40 years old were evaluated. Saliva collection was achieved for the salivary cortisol dosage. The collection was performed through the SalivetteR tube. After this collection, the median cortisol levels (0.24 ug/dl) were analyzed and the volunteers were divided into two groups: i) cortisol below the mediane ii) cortisol above the median. After this division, each group consisted of 25 volunteers and then was verified the following information: age, gender, weight, height, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure. Shortly thereafter was assessment of cardiac autonomic modulation por meio da HRV. The Polar RS800cx heart rate receiver was placed on the chest of the volunteers, in the vicinity of the distal third of the sternum. The volunteers were instructed to remain in rest with spontaneous breathing in dorsal position for 20 minutes. HRV analysis included geometric, time and frequency domain indices. Results: There were no statistical differences for the two groups regarding systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, RR intervals or linear and frequency indices for the volunteers. In addition, also there was no correlation the cortisol with the analyzed variables (SAP, p=0.460; DAP, p = 0.270; HR, p = 0.360; RR, p = 0.380; SDNN, p = 0.510; rMSSD, p = 0.660; pNN50, p = 0.820; RRtri, p = 0.170; TINN, p = 0.470; SD1, p = 0.650; SD2, p = 0.500; LF [ms2], p = 0.880; LF [nu], p = 0.970; HF [ms2], p = 0.870; HF [nu], p = 0.960; LF/HF, p = 0.380 Conclusion: Heart rate variability autonomic control was unchanged in healthy subjects with physiological distribution of salivary cortisol levels. There was no association between normal salivary cortisol and resting autonomic regulation of heart rate.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S874-S874
Author(s):  
Eunji Kwon ◽  
Eunhee Cho

Abstract Demented older adults experience many internal and external stress inducers that are thought to be a source of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia(BPSD). The purpose of this study was to compare the stress index among older adults through salivary cortisol levels and physical stress index. This study was cross-sectional design, including 139 participants who recruited until May of this year(104 demented older adults who visited hospital outpatient neurology and 35 non-demented older adults as control group). The physical stress index was measured by heart rate variability and salivary cortisol levels(4 samples/day, 1 days). Salivary cortisol levels were measured at four times after wake up, after breakfast, before dinner and after dinner. The data were analyzed using independent t-test and generalized estimating equations. In salivary cortisol levels measured after wake up, the demented older adults reported about 1.5 times higher than non-demented older adults(p=.042). And the salivary cortisol levels measured after breakfast were about 2.3 times higher in the demented older adults than in control groups(p=.002). Accordingly, the results can be concluded that demented older adults have higher stress levels than control groups in the morning. Also the physical stress index through heart rate variability(HRV) in the demented older adults(6.30±0.65) had higher than control groups(6.00±0.55, t=2.45, p=.016). There are significant differences in salivary cortisol levels and physical stress index between demented older adults and control groups. As stress inducers affects BPSD for the demented older adults, nursing intervention should be tailored to proper way based on their stress inducers.


2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 241-246
Author(s):  
Ana Cristina Resende Camargos ◽  
Pedro Henrique Scheidt Figueiredo ◽  
Sueli Ferreira da Fonseca ◽  
Mariana Aguiar de Matos ◽  
Katherine Simone Caires Oliveira ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundThe salivary circadian diurnal cortisol plays an important role in growth and development. Inappropriate levels may induce changes associated with an increased risk of obesity later in life. It is unknown if there are differences in cortisol secretion pattern between overweight/obese infants when compared with theirs peers in infancy. Thus, this study aimed to compare the salivary cortisol secretion pattern in overweight/obese and normal-weight infants.MethodsThirty-three (overweight/obese = 17 and normal weight = 16) infants between 6 and 24 months of age had saliva samples collected upon awakening (T1), 30 min after waking (T2), at 12:00 am or before the baby’s meal (T3), and prior to bedtime (T4). Highly sensitive enzyme immunoassays were used for cortisol analyses.ResultsSalivary cortisol levels were similar between the groups: T1 (p = 0.22; 95% confidence interval [CI]: −5.65, 1.37), T2 (p = 0.24; 95% CI: −8.23, 2.17), T3 (p = 0.95; 95% CI: −3.16, 2.96), and T4 (p = 0.81; 95% CI: −1.39, 1.08); and no differences were observed between area under the curve (AUC) (p = 0.80; 95% CI: −4.58–13.66). The cortisol level reduced in T4 (95% CI: 1.35–2.96) compared to T1 (95% CI: 5.15–8.49) and T2 in the overweight/obese group (p < 0.001; 95% CI: 6.02–11.04). In the normal-weight group, the cortisol reduced in T3 (95% CI: 2.86–8.18) compared to T1 (95% CI: 5.64–12.28) and decreased until T4 (p = 0.001; 95% CI: 1.25–3.37).ConclusionsThe overweight/obese infant group presented a different pattern of cortisol secretion, although cortisol levels did not differ between the control group.


2012 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 435-443 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thaíla Corrêa Castral ◽  
Fay Fathalee Warnock ◽  
Laiane Medeiros Ribeiro ◽  
Maria Gorete Lucena de Vasconcelos ◽  
Adriana Moraes Leite ◽  
...  

The relationship between maternal factors and the response of preterm infants to pain and stress experienced during heel puncture while in maternal kangaroo care was investigated. This descriptive study included 42 mothers and their preterm infants cared for in a neonatal unit. Data were collected in the baseline, procedure, and recovery phases. We measured the neonates' facial actions, sleep and wake states, crying, salivary cortisol levels, and heart rate, in addition to the mothers' behavior, salivary cortisol levels, and mental condition. The influence of the maternal explanatory variables on the neonatal response variables were verified through bivariate analysis, ANOVA, and multiple regression. The mothers' behavior and depression and/or anxiety did not affect the neonates' responses to pain and stress, though the mothers' levels of salivary cortisol before the procedure explained the variance in the neonates' levels of salivary cortisol after the procedure (p=0.036). Additionally, the mothers' baseline levels of salivary cortisol along with the neonates' age explained the variance in the neonates' heart rate (p=0.001). The ability of mothers to regulate their own stress contributed to the infants' responses to pain and stress.


2001 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 653-676 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. J. LUPIEN ◽  
S. KING ◽  
M. J. MEANEY ◽  
B. S. MCEWEN

It is well known that individuals from more advantaged social classes enjoy better mental and physical health than do individuals within lower classes. Various mechanisms have been evoked to explain the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and health. One mechanism that has received particular attention in recent years is stress. It has been shown that individuals lower in SES report greater exposure to stressful life events and a greater impact of these events on their life than individuals higher in SES. In order to measure whether the development of the relationship between SES and mental health is sustained by exposure to high levels of glucocorticoids, we measured morning salivary cortisol levels as well as cognitive function (memory, attention, and language) in 307 children (from 6 to 16 years of age) from low versus high SES in the Montreal area in Canada. The results revealed that low SES children from 6 to 10 years old present significantly higher salivary cortisol levels when compared to children from high SES. This difference disappears at the time of school transition, and no SES differences are observed in salivary cortisol levels during high school. However, children from low and high SES do not differ with regard to memory or to attentional and linguistic functions. Also, mothers of low SES children reported higher feelings of depression and more unhealthy behaviors, while mothers of high SES children reported higher stress related to work or family transitions. Altogether, these results show that low SES in young children is related to increased cortisol secretion, although the impact of SES on cortisol secretion is absent after transition to high school. These data are interpreted within the context of the equalization process of class patterning. Four social explanatory factors are suggested to explain the disappearance of SES differences in basal cortisol levels after school transition, taking into account the influence of family environment on the child's secretion of stress hormones.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Palacios-García ◽  
M. Villena-Gonzalez ◽  
G. Campos-Arteaga ◽  
C. Artigas-Vergara ◽  
K. Jaramillo ◽  
...  

AbstractAcute psychosocial stress is associated with physiological, subjective and cognitive changes. In particular, attention, which is considered one of the main processes driving cognition, has been related to different stress outcomes, such as anxiety, cortisol levels and autonomic responses, individually. Nonetheless, their specific contributions to and association with attention is still not fully understood. To study this association, 42 male participants were asked to perform an attentional task just before and immediately after being exposed to either an experimental treatment designed to induce psychosocial stress using the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) or a matching stress-free control condition. The salivary cortisol concentration, heart rate, and self-reported anxiety were measured to assess the physiological response to stress and the subjective experience during the protocol. As expected, psychosocial stress induced increases in heart rate, salivary cortisol levels and anxiety. The behavioral analysis revealed that members of the control group performed better on the attentional task after the protocol, while members of the TSST group showed no changes. Moreover, after dividing the stress group into sub-groups of participants with high and low anxiety, we observed that participants in the high-anxiety group not only failed to perform better but also performed worse. Finally, after testing several single-level mediation models, we found that anxiety is sufficient to explain the changes in attention and that it mediates the effects between heart rate and cortisol levels on attention. Our results suggest that the immediate effects of acute psychosocial stress on attention are highly dependent on the participant’s subjective experience, which, in turn, is affected and can mediate stress-related physiological changes.


Endocrine ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosa Maria Paragliola ◽  
Andrea Corsello ◽  
Eliana Troiani ◽  
Pietro Locantore ◽  
Giampaolo Papi ◽  
...  

Abstract Purpose The activity of the hypothalamus–pituitary–adrenal axis plays a crucial role as an endogenous stress-reactive system. Lifestyle and work often interfere with the endogenous circadian rhythms and can modify the physiological patterns of stress-hormones secretion, including cortisol. We evaluated the cortisol circadian rhythm in the “jet-lag syndrome” that is the most known condition associated with the desynchronization of the circadian rhythm. Methods To assess the modifications of cortisol secretion after a long-haul flight, we compared baseline and post-travel salivary cortisol rhythm in a group of 28 healthy eastward travelers (from the U.S.A. or Canada to Italy). The salivary samples were collected about 1 week before the departure at 11 p.m. on day 0 and at 8 a.m., 12 a.m. (midday) and 11 p.m. on day 1 (R0). The same samples were obtained after the landing, the day they flew back home (R1). Results Statistical analysis showed a significant difference between R0 and R1 for each sample considered (p < 0.005). In particular, the post-travel salivary cortisol levels detected at 11 p.m. both on day 0 and on day 1, were significantly higher than at baseline. Post-travel morning salivary cortisol levels were lower compared with basal rhythm and increased during the morning, reaching the acrophase at 12 a.m. Conclusions In eastward travelers, crossing more than five time zones, the cortisol circadian rhythm after the return to the East “remained behind,” being synchronized with the West time. This impaired cortisol secretion can contribute to the pathogenesis of the jet-lag syndrome.


2001 ◽  
Vol 86 (5) ◽  
pp. 2178-2180 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roland Rosmond ◽  
Monique Chagnon ◽  
Claude Bouchard ◽  
Per Björntorp

The objective of the current study was to examine the potential impact of the G→A substitution at position −308 of the tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) gene promoter on obesity and estimates of insulin, glucose, and lipid metabolism as well as circulating hormones including salivary cortisol in 284 unrelated Swedish men born in 1944. The subjects were genotyped by using PCR amplification of the 5′ untranslated region of the TNF-α gene followed by digestion with the restriction enzyme NcoI. The frequencies were 0.77 for allele G and 0.23 for allele A. Tests for differences in salivary cortisol levels between the TNF-α genotypes revealed that there were significantly higher cortisol levels in the morning, before as well as 30 and 60 min after stimulation by a standardized lunch in homozygotes for the rare allele in comparison with the other genotypes. In addition, homozygotes for the rare allele had a tendency toward higher mean values of body mass index, waist to hip ratio, and abdominal sagittal diameter compared with the other genotype groups. The results also indicated a weak trend toward elevated insulin and glucose levels among men with the A/A genotype. In conclusion, a G→A polymorphism in the 5′ untranslated region of the TNF-α gene is associated with elevated morning cortisol levels as well as elevated postprandial cortisol secretion. This increase in cortisol secretion might be the endocrine mechanism underlying the previously observed associations between the NcoI TNF-α polymorphism and obesity as well as insulin resistance. However, to what extent this polymorphism is associated with these conditions is uncertain from the present data.


2019 ◽  
pp. 17-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Naber ◽  
Lena Kreuzer ◽  
Roswitha Zink ◽  
Eva Millesi ◽  
Rupert Palme ◽  
...  

The aim of the study was to analyse interaction processes in equine-assisted therapy (EAT) sessions with ten female clients in the period of emerging adulthood with intellectual disability (ID). Heart rate (HR), heart rate variability and salivary cortisol levels have been analysed in humans and horses before, during and after a standardised therapy session as well as in a control condition. There was a trend of lower cortisol levels and higher variability and parasympathetic tone induced by horses. During challenge however, there was a significant lower HR in the horse condition. Significant correlations in heart rate between therapist, client and horse were found with stronger interaction with a familiar horse. Our findings suggest that EAT may effectively modulate stress in humans with ID. Our results further elucidate synchronisation patterns in HR highlighting the pivotal role of relationship quality and intensity as modulators of synchrony.


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