This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on Web of Science (3)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in JAMA  Topic Collections  • Complementary and Alternative Medicine  • Patient-Physician Relationship/ Care  • Patient-Physician Communication  • Psychiatry  • Depression  • Alert me on articles by topic  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

David S. Ludwig, MD, PhD; Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD

JAMA. 2008;300(11):1350-1352.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

Mindfulness refers to a meditation practice that cultivates present moment awareness. In the past 30 years, interest in the therapeutic uses of mindfulness has increased, with more than 70 scientific articles on the topic published in 2007. Meditation practices, including mindfulness, have come to the attention of neuroscientists investigating consciousness and affect regulation through mental training and to psychotherapists interested in personal development and interpersonal relationships. In this Commentary, we define mindfulness, consider possible mechanisms, explore clinical applications, and identify challenges to the field.

Mindfulness and Its Relationship to Medicine

Mindfulness involves attending to relevant aspects of experience in a nonjudgmental manner. Historically a Buddhist practice, mindfulness can be considered a universal human capacity proposed to foster clear thinking and open-heartedness. As such, this form of meditation requires no particular religious or cultural belief system. The goal of mindfulness is to maintain awareness moment by moment, disengaging oneself . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Author Affiliations: Department of Medicine, Children's Hospital, Boston (Dr Ludwig)and Department of Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester (Dr Kabat-Zinn).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Issues in Complementary and Alternative Nutrition Treatments
Mullin
Nutr Clin Pract 2009;24:543-548.
FULL TEXT  

Association of an Educational Program in Mindful Communication With Burnout, Empathy, and Attitudes Among Primary Care Physicians
Krasner et al.
JAMA 2009;302:1284-1293.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Mindfulness Research Update: 2008
Greeson
Complementary Health Practice Review 2009;14:10-18.
ABSTRACT