Developing a Mindfulness Program for Families in a Pediatric Weight Management Clinic

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Health
• Behavioral Science
• Mindfulness Interventions

Background:

• Pediatric obesity is a significant public health issue globally.
• Obesity is linked to toxic stress, making mindfulness a potential intervention.
• Mindfulness may support healthy eating and stress management in children.

Purpose of the Study:

• Evaluate the acceptability and feasibility of a brief mindfulness program for overweight/obese pediatric patients.
• Assess exploratory outcomes related to mindful eating and general mindfulness.
• Examine the program's potential as a scalable behavioral intervention.

Main Methods:

• Pilot study involving 19 child-caregiver dyads (ages 8-17, BMI ≥ 85th percentile).
• Four 30-minute telehealth mindfulness sessions.
• Qualitative feedback collected during and post-program.
• Mindful eating and general mindfulness measures assessed at baseline and 1, 3 months post-program.

Main Results:

• High attendance (89%) and participant engagement.
• Generally positive qualitative feedback.
• No significant changes in mindful eating or general mindfulness scores at 1 or 3 months post-program.

Conclusions:

• The mindfulness program demonstrated feasibility and acceptability for pediatric obesity treatment.
• The intervention can be considered a scalable behavioral approach.
• Larger, controlled studies are necessary to validate effects on mindful eating, general mindfulness, and obesity-related outcomes.