title: Efficacy of Healing meditation in reducing anxiety of individuals at the phase of weight loss maintenance: A randomized blinded clinical trial.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To verify the efficacy of Healing Meditation in reducing anxiety levels in individuals on a weight loss maintenance program.
  
  
  METHODS
  A randomized, controlled, evaluator-blinded clinical trial, conducted between January and October 2014, with a follow-up of 12 weeks.
  
  
  METHODS
  A weight loss secondary care facility in Salvador, Brazil., of 41 patients at the weight maintenance phase (Mean initial BMI 33.6±4.7kg/m2, who had attained a mean BMI of 24.5±1.6kg/m2in a median period of 7 months).
  
  
  METHODS
  An 8-week Healing Meditation program (n=20), consisting of a 1h weekly meeting, or for a control group on the waiting list (n=21), in addition to the standard clinical program.
  
  
  METHODS
  Total anxiety was measured by the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAM-A), before and after the intervention. Secondary analyses included comparison of the effect of meditation on the somatic and psychic components of the scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Through an intention to treat analysis, we detected a difference in the mean variation between the intervention and control groups in the total anxiety scores of 7.7 (95% CI 6.3-9.2; Cohen's d=3.41). Means and standard deviations for pre and post intervention anxiety scores were 15.5 (3.4) and 7.8 (2.0) for the intervention group and 14.8 (3.4) and 14.9 (3.4) for the control.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Healing meditation significantly reduced the anxiety of obese individuals, in the phase of weight maintenance, suggesting this to be an effective auxiliary resource for weight loss maintenance.
authors.affiliation: Bahiana School of Medicine and Public Health, Bahia Foundation for the Development of Sciences, FBDC, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. Electronic address: cysampaio@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Cynthia Vieira Sanches
authors.initials: CV
authors.lastname: Sampaio
authors.affiliation: Bahiana School of Medicine and Public Health, Bahia Foundation for the Development of Sciences, FBDC, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. Electronic address: manuelalima@bahiana.edu.br.
authors.forename: Manuela Garcia
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Lima
authors.affiliation: Bahiana School of Medicine and Public Health, Bahia Foundation for the Development of Sciences, FBDC, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. Electronic address: anamarice@bahiana.edu.br.
authors.forename: Ana Marice
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Ladeia
mesh_terms: D001007:Anxiety / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology*; D001938:Brazil; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019122:Meditation / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015431:Weight Loss / Q000502:physiology*; D061217:Weight Reduction Programs / Q000379:methods
keywords: Anxiety; Healing; Meditation; Obesity; Weight loss; Weight maintenance