Mindfulness meditation reduces depression, anxiety and fatigue in MS patients. Swiss study reported in USA Today.

“Previous research has suggested that half of MS patients suffer from depression during their lives and that anxiety disorders affect one in four. About two-thirds say they feel fatigued, with up to 50% saying fatigue is their most disabling symptom.

Researchers at University Hospital Basel randomly assigned 150 patients to either take part in an eight-week meditation program based on “mindfulness” or receive regular medical care. The study defined the meditation, which included yoga, as “nonjudgmental awareness of moment-to-moment experience.”

The participants in the mindfulness meditation program reported lower levels of fatigue and depression for up to six months than those receiving standard care. And the meditation participants had better quality of life, according to the study findings, published late last month in the journal Neurology.

Those in the meditation program, in fact, improved in almost all the measures of fatigue, depression, anxiety and quality of life, while those who received usual medical care declined slightly on most of the measures. For instance, those who took mindfulness training saw their depressive symptoms drop by more than 30% than those study participants who took no training.” (emphasis mine)  Read more…