Brief mindfulness meditation based on Buddhist Anapanasati regulates stress response in young Chinese males.
Xiao-Na Zhou, Jun-Lan Liu, Jia-Hui Guo et al.
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In 30 seconds
This randomized controlled trial evaluated a two-week, 15-minute-daily Brief Mindfulness Meditation intervention based on Buddhist Anapanasati in 85 Chinese men aged 20–30, compared with neutral audio. Assessments covered perceived stress, affect, mindfulness, heart-rate variability and cortisol. Relative to control, meditation reduced perceived stress (-5.00, 95% CI [-9.50, -0.52]) and the LF/HF ratio (-0.65, 95% CI [-1.16, -0.13]), and increased positive affect (7.39, 95% CI [3.81, 10.97]) and Acting with Awareness. Mediation analyses linked improved positive affect to reduced perceived stress and changes in negative affect partly to greater Acting with Awareness.
Key findings
- Compared with control, perceived stress decreased by -5.00 (95% CI [-9.50, -0.52]) in the meditation group.
- The LF/HF ratio decreased by -0.65 (95% CI [-1.16, -0.13]) relative to control.
- Positive affect increased by 7.39 (95% CI [3.81, 10.97]) compared with control.
- Mediation analyses indicated that reduced perceived stress fully mediated the positive-affect effect; increased Acting with Awareness partly mediated the negative-affect effect.
Why it matters
The findings suggest that a brief, structured mindfulness intervention may influence both perceived stress and selected emotional and physiological measures in young men. The mediation results offer possible explanations for how emotional outcomes may relate to stress reduction and mindful awareness, although they do not establish these pathways as causal mechanisms beyond the study’s analyses.
What to keep in mind
The study involved young Chinese men, so the findings may not generalize to other populations. Outcomes were assessed before and after a two-week intervention; longer-term effects are not reported.