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OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of a short-term yoga-based lifestyle intervention on risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and markers of inflammation and endothelial function in overweight and obese men. DESIGN: Nonrandomized prospective lifestyle intervention study with pre-post design. SETTING AND LOCATION: Integral Health Clinic, an outpatient facility providing yoga-based lifestyle intervention programs for prevention and management of chronic diseases. SUBJECTS: Overweight and obese men (n=51) were enrolled in the study. Subjects who were physically unable to participate and those participating in other interventions were excluded from the study. INTERVENTION: A pretested intervention program including asanas (physical postures), pranayama (breathing exercises), group discussions, lectures, and individualized advice. OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome measure was weight loss, and the secondary outcome measures were clinical and laboratory correlates of CVD risk, levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), adiponectin, and endothelin-1 (ET-1). RESULTS: Men (n=51, body mass index [BMI] 26.26±2.42 kg/m(2)) were enrolled and underwent a yoga-based lifestyle intervention for 10 days. Of 51 subjects, 30 completed the study. There was a significant reduction in weight from Baseline to Day 10 (74.60±7.98, 72.69±8.37 kg, p<0.001, respectively), BMI (26.26±2.42, 25.69±2.47 kg/m(2), p<0.001, respectively), and systolic BP (121.73±11.58, 116.73±9.00, p=0.042, respectively). There was a significant reduction in plasma IL-6 from Baseline to Day 10 (median 2.24 vs. 1.26 pg/mL, respectively, p=0.012). There was a significant increase in the plasma adiponectin from Baseline to Day 10 (median 4.95 vs. 6.26 μg/mL, respectively, p=0.014). Plasma ET-1 level remained unchanged. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that even a short-term yoga-based lifestyle intervention may be an important modality to reduce the risk for CVD as indicated by weight loss, reduction in systolic blood pressure, an increase in adiponectin, and decrease in IL-6 in overweight and obese men.
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<p>Objective Evaluate the evidence for clinical applications of yoga among the pediatric population. Methods We conducted an electronic literature search including CINAHL, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), EMBASE, Medline, PsycINFO, and manual search of retrieved articles from inception of database until December 2008. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and non-randomized controlled trials (NRCTs) were selected including yoga or yoga-based interventions for individuals aged from 0 to 21 years of age. Data were extracted and articles critically reviewed utilizing a modified Jadad score and descriptive methodological criteria with summarization in tables. Results Thirty four controlled studies were identified published from 1979 to 2008, with 19 RCTS and 15 NRCTs. Many studies were of low methodological quality. Clinical areas for which yoga has been studied include physical fitness, cardio-respiratory effects, motor skills/strength, mental health and psychological disorders, behavior and development, irritable bowel syndrome, and birth outcomes following prenatal yoga. No adverse events were reported in trials reviewed. While a large majority of studies were positive, methodological limitations such as randomization methods, withdrawal/dropouts, and details of yoga intervention preclude conclusive evidence. Conclusions There are limited data on the clinical applications of yoga among the pediatric population. Most published controlled trials were suggestive of benefit, but results are preliminary based on low quantity and quality of trials. Further research of yoga for children utilizing a higher standard of methodology and reporting is warranted.</p>
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Research in mindfulness-based methods with young people is just emerging in the practice/research literature. While much of this literature describes promising approaches that combine mindfulness with cognitive-behavioral therapy, this paper describes an innovative research-based group program that teaches young people in need mindfulness-based methods using arts-based methods. The paper presents qualitative research findings that illustrate how young people in need (children and youth involved with child protection and/or mental health systems) can benefit from a creative approach to mindfulness that can teach them emotional regulation, social and coping skills, and that can improve aspects of their self-awareness, self-esteem, and resilience.

Interest in the use of mindfulness-based activities with children and youth is growing. The article evaluates empirical evidence related to the use of mindfulness-based activities to facilitate enhanced student learning and to support students’ psychological, physiological, and social development. It also provides an overview of interventions that include mindfulness. There is a need to provide children with a way to combat the stress and pressure of living in today’s highly charged world: mindfulness may be one helpful alternative. The implications of a universal school-based mindfulness intervention are discussed, and directions for future research are offered.
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The current study investigated the feasibility of implementing a 10-week mindfulness-based intervention with a group of incarcerated adolescents. Before and after completion of the 10-week intervention, 32 participants filled out self-report questionnaires on trait mindfulness, self-regulation, and perceived stress. We hypothesized that self-reported mindfulness and self-regulation would significantly increase, and perceived stress would significantly decrease, as a result of participation in the treatment intervention. Paired t-tests revealed a significant decrease (p < .05) in perceived stress and a significant increase (p < .001) in healthy self-regulation. No significant differences were found on self-reported mindfulness. Results suggest that mindfulness-based interventions are feasible for incarcerated adolescents. Limitations and future research are discussed.
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Neuroimage phenotyping for psychiatric and neurological disorders is performed using voxelwise analyses also known as voxel based analyses or morphometry (VBM). A typical voxelwise analysis treats measurements at each voxel (e.g., fractional anisotropy, gray matter probability) as outcome measures to study the effects of possible explanatory variables (e.g., age, group) in a linear regression setting. Furthermore, each voxel is treated independently until the stage of correction for multiple comparisons. Recently, multi-voxel pattern analyses (MVPA), such as classification, have arisen as an alternative to VBM. The main advantage of MVPA over VBM is that the former employ multivariate methods which can account for interactions among voxels in identifying significant patterns. They also provide ways for computer-aided diagnosis and prognosis at individual subject level. However, compared to VBM, the results of MVPA are often more difficult to interpret and prone to arbitrary conclusions. In this paper, first we use penalized likelihood modeling to provide a unified framework for understanding both VBM and MVPA. We then utilize statistical learning theory to provide practical methods for interpreting the results of MVPA beyond commonly used performance metrics, such as leave-one-out-cross validation accuracy and area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Additionally, we demonstrate that there are challenges in MVPA when trying to obtain image phenotyping information in the form of statistical parametric maps (SPMs), which are commonly obtained from VBM, and provide a bootstrap strategy as a potential solution for generating SPMs using MVPA. This technique also allows us to maximize the use of available training data. We illustrate the empirical performance of the proposed framework using two different neuroimaging studies that pose different levels of challenge for classification using MVPA.
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Interest in mindfulness as a tool to improve health and well-being has increased rapidly over the past two decades. Limited qualitative research has been conducted on mindfulness and health. This study utilized in-depth interviews to explore the context, perceptions, and experiences of a sub-set of participants engaged in an acceptability study of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) among urban youth. Content analysis revealed that all in-depth interview participants reported experiencing some form of positive benefit and enhanced self-awareness as a result of MBSR program participation. Significant variation in the types and intensity of changes occurring was identified, ranging from a reframing and reduction of daily stressors to transformational shifts in life orientation and well-being. Variations in perceptions of and experiences with mindfulness should be studied in further depth in the context of prospective intervention research, including their potentially differential influence on mental and physical health outcomes.

“Rebel Music” by Hisham D. Aidi, describes the eagerness of young Muslims in every culture to find musical expression that feels like a safe haven in a combative world.

“Rebel Music” by Hisham D. Aidi, describes the eagerness of young Muslims in every culture to find musical expression that feels like a safe haven in a combative world.