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Sun S, Sheridan MA, Tyrka AR, et al. Addressing the biological embedding of early life adversities (ELA) among adults through mindfulness: Proposed mechanisms and review of converging evidence. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2022;134:104526doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104526.
Sun, S., Sheridan, M. A., Tyrka, A. R., Donofry, S. D., Erickson, K. I., & Loucks, E. B. (2022). Addressing the biological embedding of early life adversities (ELA) among adults through mindfulness: Proposed mechanisms and review of converging evidence. Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews, 134104526. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104526
Sun, Shufang, et al. "Addressing the biological embedding of early life adversities (ELA) among adults through mindfulness: Proposed mechanisms and review of converging evidence." Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews vol. 134 (2022): 104526. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104526
Sun S, Sheridan MA, Tyrka AR, Donofry SD, Erickson KI, Loucks EB. Addressing the biological embedding of early life adversities (ELA) among adults through mindfulness: Proposed mechanisms and review of converging evidence. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2022 Jan 05;134:104526. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104526. Epub 2022 Jan 05. PMID: 34998833.
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Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2022 Jan 05;134:104526. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104526. Epub 2022 Jan 05.

Addressing the biological embedding of early life adversities (ELA) among adults through mindfulness: Proposed mechanisms and review of converging evidence.

Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews

Shufang Sun, Margaret A Sheridan, Audrey R Tyrka, Shannon D Donofry, Kirk I Erickson, Eric B Loucks

Affiliations

  1. Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Brown University School of Public Health, United States; Mindfulness Center at Brown University, United States. Electronic address: [email protected].
  2. Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States.
  3. Initiative on Stress, Trauma, and Resilience, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University Alpert Medical School, United States.
  4. Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.
  5. Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States; Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States; Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.
  6. Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Brown University School of Public Health, United States; Mindfulness Center at Brown University, United States.

PMID: 34998833 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104526

Abstract

Early life adversities (ELA) are prevalent and have a profound and adverse impact across the lifespan, including on age-related health outcomes, yet interventions to remediate its adverse impact are scarce. This paper presents evidence for mindfulness training to reduce the elevated mental and physical health risks linked to ELA among adults by targeting biological mechanisms of ELA leading to these adverse health outcomes. We first provide a brief overview of ELA, its adverse health impacts, and mechanisms that might be responsible. Next, we review converging evidence that demonstrates that mindfulness training influences key biological pathways involved in ELA-linked negative health consequences, including (a) brain networks involved in self-regulation, (b) immunity and inflammation, (c) telomere biology, and (d) epigenetic modifications. Further, we review preliminary evidence from mindfulness-based trials that focused on populations impacted by ELA. We discuss limitations of this review and provide recommendations for future research. If effective, a mindfulness-based approach could be an important public health strategy for remediating the adverse mental and physical health consequences of ELA.

Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Aging; Early life adversity; Mechanism; Mindfulness; Reversibility

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