Hair cortisol reduction and social integration enhancement after a mindfulness-based intervention in children

CARRO, NATALIA; CAROLINA IBAR; PAOLA D´ADAMO; DIEGO GONZALEZ; GABRIELA BERG; BIBIANA FABRE; LOZADA, MARIANA

child care health and development

Wiley

Año: 2023

Background: Over recent decades, chronic stress at an early age has become a worryinghealth problem in children. We seek to evaluate an intervention involvingmindfulness-based practices and prosocial activities in 7- to 8-year-old children.Methods: Stress levels were determined using hair cortisol concentration (HCC), andsocial integration was measured by means of a sociogram. The program had previouslyproven to be effective in decreasing salivary cortisol levels and in favouringsocial integration in children. A total of 35 children participated in the study: 18 constitutedthe intervention group and 17 the wait-list group. In both groups, HCC andsocial integration were evaluated before and after the intervention conductedthroughout an entire school year.Results: The experimental group showed a significant reduction in HCC, as well assignificant enhancement of social integration levels, whereas no changes wereobserved in the wait-list group.Conclusions: This is the first research to show that HCC, a reliable neuroendocrineindicator, decreased as a result of a mindfulness-based program. This successful outcomeadds new evidence to previous findings regarding the reduction of chronicstress in children following participation in this program.