Impact of a Workplace Stress Reduction Program on Blood Pressure and Emotional Health in Hypertensive Employees
Rollin McCraty, Ph.D., Mike Atkinson, and Dana Tomasino, B.A. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 2003; 9(3): 355-369.
Abstract Objectives: This study examined the impact of a workplace-based stress management program (HeartMath) on blood pressure (BP), emotional health, and workplace-related measures in hypertensive employees of a global information technology company.
Design: Thirty-eight (38) employees with hypertension were randomly assigned to a treatment group that received the stress-reduction intervention or a waiting control group that received no intervention during the study period. The treatment group participated in a 16-hour program, which included instruction in positive emotion refocusing and emotional restructuring techniques intended to reduce sympathetic nervous system arousal, stress, and negative affect, increase positive affect, and improve performance. Learning and practice of the techniques was enhanced by heart rate variability feedback, which helped participants learn to self-generate physiological coherence, a beneficial physiologic mode associated with increased heart rhythm coherence, physiologic entrainment, parasympathetic activity, and vascular resonance. BP, emotional health, and workplace-related measures were assessed before and 3 months after the program.
Results: Three months post-intervention, the treatment group exhibited a mean adjusted reduction of 10.6 mm Hg in systolic BP and of 6.3 mm Hg in diastolic BP. The treatment group also demonstrated improvements in emotional health, including significant reductions in stress symptoms, depression, and global psychological distress and significant increases in peacefulness and positive outlook. Furthermore, the trained employees demonstrated significant increases in the work-related scales of workplace satisfaction and value of contribution.
Emotional Self-Regulation Program Enhances Psychological Health and Quality of Life in Patients with Diabetes
Rollin McCraty, Ph.D., Mike Atkinson, and Lee Lipsenthal, M.D.
HeartMath Research Center, Institute of HeartMath, Publication No. 00-006. Boulder Creek, CA, 2000.
Summary Aims: This pilot study was designed to assess changes in psychological status, quality of life and hematologic measures predictive of long-term health and well-being in patients with diabetes following a stress reduction and emotional self-regulation program.
Methods: Twenty-two patients with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes mellitus participated in a 2-day HeartMath workshop, a research-based program developed to reduce stress and negative affect, increase positive affect and reduce inappropriate autonomic nervous system activation. Self-report measures of stress, psychological status and quality of life were administered before and six months following the intervention. Hemoglobin A1c, cholesterol and triglycerides, and blood pressure were also assessed.
Results: Participants experienced significant reductions in psychological symptomatology and negative emotions, including anxiety, depression, anger and distress, following the intervention. Significant increases in peacefulness, social support and vitality were also measured, as well as reductions in somatization, sleeplessness and fatigue. Participants showed reduced sensitivity to daily life stressors after the intervention, and quality of life significantly improved. Regression analysis revealed a significant relationship between self-reported practice of the techniques learned in the program and the change in HbA1c levels in patients with Type 2 diabetes. Increased practice was associated with reductions in HbA1c.
Conclusions: Results suggest that the HeartMath emotional self-regulation intervention reduces stress, improves psychological health, enhances quality of life and may improve glycemic control in individuals with diabetes. Replication of this study with a non-treatment control group is necessary to confirm these findings.
An Inner Quality Approach to Reducing Stress and Improving Physical and Emotional Wellbeing at Work
Bob Barrios-Choplin, Ph.D., Rollin McCraty, Ph.D., and Bruce Cryer, M.A. Stress Medicine 1997: 13(3): 193-201
Summary
This exploratory field study examined the impact of an Inner Quality Management program (IQM) on three groups of Motorola employees. IQM is a training program designed by HeartMath to help people increase productivity through improved health, communication, goal clarity, positive mood and job satisfaction, and through the reduction of tension, burnout, physical symptoms of stress and negative mood. Both psychological and physiological measures were assessed in the 6-month study. The study involved three groups: managers, engineers and factory workers. Results showed that contentment, job satisfaction and communication significantly increased after the training, while sleeplessness, tension, anxiety, nervousness and physical symptoms of stress significantly decreased. Blood pressure in hypertensive individuals decreased, and there was reduction in sympathetic nervous activity. Implications for workplace wellbeing are discussed.
Impact of the Power to Change Performance Program on Stress and Health Risks in Correctional Officers
Rollin McCraty, Ph.D.*, Mike Atkinson*, Lee Lipsenthal, M.D.*, and Lourdes Arguelles, Ph.D.**
*HeartMath Research Center, Institute of HeartMath, Boulder Creek, CA
**Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA
HeartMath Research Center, Institute of HeartMath, Report No. 03-014. Boulder Creek, CA, November 2003.
Summary This study investigated the impact of HeartMath’s Power to Change Performance stress and health risk reduction program on physiological and psychological stress and health risk factors in a sample of correctional peace officers. Eighty-eight officers from three facilities were randomized to an experimental group and a wait-list control group. The experimental group participated in the stress and health risk reduction program, which was delivered over two consecutive days. The program included instruction on health risk factors as well as training in positive emotion-focused stress reduction techniques intended to reduce negative emotional arousal, improve physiological balance, increase positive affect, and enhance performance. Learning and practice of the techniques was enhanced by heart rate variability feedback, which helped participants learn to self-generate physiological coherence, a beneficial mode associated with increased efficiency and synchronization in the functioning of physiological systems. Measures of physiological and psychological stress and health risk were assessed before the program and again 3 months afterward. The measures included in the health risk assessment were the Personal Wellness Profile self-report survey, which assesses a broad range of health-related information, behaviors, and attitudes; and four biometric markers: height, weight, blood pressure, and total cholesterol levels. Additional measures reflective of physiological stress and overall health included cortisol and DHEA, secretory immunoglobulin A (an immune system marker), HDL and LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, fasting glucose levels, a 10-minute resting electrocardiogram, and measures of heart rate variability (an indicator of autonomic function). Three self-report psychological surveys were also included to assess emotional stress and work-related variables.
An analysis of baseline data revealed that officers in this study were under greater stress and at greater health risk in comparison to a reference sample of working adults. A within-group analysis of pre-post changes showed that 3 months after the intervention program, employees in the experimental group demonstrated significant reductions in stress and health risk factors, as well as significant improvements in work-related parameters. Physiological changes in the experimental group included significant reductions in total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol levels, the total cholesterol/HDL ratio, fasting glucose levels, mean heart rate, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Psychological changes included significant reductions in overall psychological distress, anger, fatigue, hostility, interpersonal sensitivity, speed and impatience, and global Type A behavior, and increases in gratitude and positive outlook. There were also improvements in key organizationally relevant measures in the experimental group after the program, including significant increases in productivity, motivation, goal clarity, and perceived manager support. Finally, the reduction in health risk factors achieved in this study are projected to lead to reductions in both health care and absentee costs, yielding a total projected annual cost savings of $699 per employee.
In conclusion, the results of this study indicate that the Power to Change Performance program was effective in significantly reducing stress and health risk factors in a population of correctional peace officers, while enhancing employee productivity and psychological well-being. These changes were realized with minimal intervention and in a relatively brief period of time, and should result in significant cost savings to the organization if the program is expanded to larger employee populations. Thus, by reducing the physiological, psychological, performance-related, and financial impact of high stress and health risks in the crucial and demanding profession of corrections work, this program promises significant benefits both to the employees as individuals and to the organization as a whole.
For detail information on HeartMath’s business case studies (Put the pdf here—The Impact of Healthcare—business one.)
A Controlled Pilot Study of Stress Management Training of Elderly Patients with Congestive Heart Failure
Frederic Luskin, PhD, Megan Reitz, BA, Kathryn Newell, MA, Thomas Gregory Quinn, MD, William Haskell, PhD
Preventive Cardiology 2002;5(4):168-172, 176.
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of stress management training on quality of life, functional capacity, and heart rate variability in elderly patients with New York Heart Association class I-III congestive heart failure (CHF). While substantial research exists on stress management training for patients with coronary heart disease, there are few data on the value of psychosocial training on patients with CHF. Thirty-three multiethnic patients (mean age, 66±9 years) were assigned through incomplete randomization to one of two treatment groups or a wait-listed control group. The 14 participants who completed the treatment attended eight training sessions during a 10-week period. The training consisted of 75-minute sessions adapted from the Freeze-Frame stress management program developed by the Institute of HeartMath. Subjects were assessed at baseline and again at the completion of the training. Depression, stress management, optimism, anxiety, emotional distress, and functional capacity were evaluated, as well as heart rate variability. Significant improvements (p<0.05) were noted in perceived stress, emotional distress, 6-minute walk, and depression, and positive trends were noted in each of the other psychosocial measures. The 24-hour heart rate variability showed no significant changes in autonomic tone. The authors noted that CHF patients were willing study participants and their emotional coping and functional capacity were enhanced. This program offers a simple and cost-effective way to augment medical management of CHF. Given the incompleteness of CHF medical management and the exploding interest in complementary medical intervention, it seems imperative that further work in psychosocial treatment be undertaken.
