Journal of Health Psychology
May 1, 1999
Jean L. Kristeller, C. Brendan Hallett
681 citations
A 6-week meditation-based group intervention for Binge Eating Disorder (BED) was tested in 18 obese women. Binges dropped from an average of 4.02 per week to 1.57 per week, and binge severity also decreased. Scores on the Binge Eating Scale, depression, and anxiety inventories all fell significantly, while participants' sense of control increased. More time spent on eating-related meditation exercises predicted greater reductions on the Binge Eating Scale. The findings suggest that meditation training may be a useful component in treating BED.
Eating Disorders
December 21, 2010
Jean L. Kristeller, Ruth Q. Wolever
573 citations
Mindfulness-based eating awareness training (MB-EAT) is a group intervention for binge eating disorder (BED), which involves emotional, behavioral, and physiological dysregulation around food and self-identity. The training uses mindfulness meditation and guided practices to help individuals control responses to emotions, make conscious food choices, recognize hunger and satiety cues, and cultivate self-acceptance. Current evidence indicates that MB-EAT reduces binge episodes, improves self-control over eating, and lessens depressive symptoms.
Handbook of Positive Psychology, Religion, and Spirituality
January 1, 2023
Seth Zuihō Segall, Jean L. Kristeller
7 citations
Buddhism is a diverse religious and philosophical tradition with a positive vision of human potential for ending suffering and leading happy, good lives. Ideas from Buddhism have entered Western psychology, informing new understandings of well-being. These include mindfulness, radical acceptance, loving-kindness, self-compassion, self-transcendence, and disengaging from unwholesome thought processes. The chapter describes the diversity of Buddhist belief and practice in Asia and the West, reviews core concepts common to distinct Buddhist traditions, analyzes how these relate to key principles of positive psychology, reviews research on Buddhist insights and interventions, and discusses contemporary clinical applications.