BMC Geriatrics (Nov 2024)

Effect of an 18-month meditation training on cardiovascular risk in older adults: a secondary analysis of the Age-Well randomized controlled trial

  • Antoine Garnier-Crussard,
  • Julie Gonneaud,
  • Francesca Felisatti,
  • Cassandre Palix,
  • Eglantine Ferrand Devouge,
  • Anne Chocat,
  • Géraldine Rauchs,
  • Vincent de la Sayette,
  • Denis Vivien,
  • Harriet Demnitz-King,
  • Antoine Lutz,
  • Gaël Chételat,
  • Géraldine Poisnel,
  • the Medit-Ageing Research Group

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-024-05550-9
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 24, no. 1
pp. 1 – 10

Abstract

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Abstract Background Cardiovascular risk factors represent an important health issue in older adults. Previous findings suggest that meditation training could have a positive impact on these risk factors. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of an 18-month meditation-based intervention on cardiovascular health. Methods Age-Well was a randomized, controlled superiority trial with blinded end point assessment, including community-dwelling cognitively unimpaired adults 65 years and older enrolled between November 24, 2016, and March 5, 2018, in France. One hundred and thirty-four participants were included in this secondary analysis. Participants were randomly affected to an intervention group that received an 18-month meditation-based program or to comparison groups (active control group i.e. non-native language training or passive control group i.e. no intervention). The main outcome was change in the Framingham Risk Score (FRS); other outcomes were changes in cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors. Results There was no difference in FRS change after 18 months between trial arms (p = .38). When assessing individual cardiovascular or metabolic risk factors, meditation training was associated with a greater reduction in diastolic blood pressure than the comparison group in participants with intermediate to high cardiovascular risk (FRS > 10%) at baseline (p = .03). Conclusion An 18-month meditation training was not effective to increase overall cardiovascular health in older adults, but improved diastolic blood pressure in a subgroup analysis including at-risk participants. These results suggest a potential benefit of a long-term meditation intervention in older adults at-risk of cardiovascular diseases, and highlights the need for future research in more targeted populations. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02977819.

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