Inflammation, sleep, and trait mindfulness in pregnancy

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Health
• Psychoneuroimmunology
• Maternal-Fetal Medicine

Background:

• Excessive systemic inflammation during pregnancy poses risks to birth outcomes.
• Maternal sleep quality is linked to systemic inflammation.
• Mindfulness practices may offer a modifiable pathway to influence inflammation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the associations between inflammation, sleep quality, and mindfulness in pregnant individuals.
• To explore the interaction between sleep quality and mindfulness in relation to inflammation.

Main Methods:

• A cohort study included 122 pregnant individuals in their second or third trimesters.
• Interleukin-6 (IL-6) measured inflammation; Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index assessed sleep quality.
• The Three Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire evaluated mindfulness facets, with linear regression analyzing relationships.

Main Results:

• Lower IL-6 inflammation correlated with higher "acting with awareness" mindfulness.
• A significant interaction indicated mindfulness may buffer the link between poor sleep and higher inflammation.
• Poor sleep quality was associated with higher inflammation in women with lower "acting with awareness."

Conclusions:

• Mindfulness interventions may be a viable strategy to reduce inflammation via improved sleep in pregnant women.
• Targeting mindfulness could potentially mitigate adverse birth outcomes associated with pregnancy inflammation.
• The "acting with awareness" facet of mindfulness showed a protective effect against inflammation in the context of poor sleep.