Rethinking mindfulness in health promotion

Abstract

This PhD research critically explored the use of mindfulness to help people change their eating behavior and relationship with food. Researchers often describe mindfulness as bringing awareness to our thoughts, feelings, and sensations, and being accepting and open to what we are noticing in the present moment. Two systematic overviews of the literature showed that it is difficult to know how well mindfulness works to change eating behaviors because of great variations in how it is defined, measured, and used in programs. This dissertation also found that people differ greatly in what mindfulness skills they already have. Some people are aware but self-critical of their eating behavior, others are accepting of how and what they eat but not aware of even feeling hungry, and some fall in between. These groups differ in their opinions about whether or not mindfulness could help them change their eating behavior, their motivation, and actual eating behavior. The findings suggest that mindfulness-based programs work best when they are specific to a behavior and context as well as tailored to people’s individual skills, beliefs, and needs.