The Ultimate List of Mindfulness Facts
It’s no secret: mindfulness is linked to many, many benefits.
That’s why we spent hours compiling the most exhaustive list of mindfulness facts to date.
Here, you’ll find scientific mindfulness facts to use in your research or to share with friends and family.
Let’s dive in.
Mindfulness fact #1: Mindfulness can reduce pain by 50%
Mindfulness has been associated with the perceived reduction of pain in participants by upwards of 50%. The practice of mindfulness helps us gain control over our thoughts and emotional reactions, which can shift our relationship with pain. This can be an especially useful tool for people who experience chronic pain.
Mindfulness fact #2: Mindfulness can change our brains’ anatomies
Mindfulness is more than just a coping strategy or wellness practice--it actually can change the physical makeup of our brains. Researchers found that over time participants who practiced meditation and mindfulness increased the gray matter in brain regions associated with memory, learning, and focus.
Mindfulness fact #3: Mindfulness can improve decision making
Mindfulness has been associated with improved decision making.
When we practice mindfulness, we learn how to make observations without getting wrapped up in thoughts or feelings. When applied to decision making, this skill can help us weigh options more rationally.
Additionally, having this skill can help us feel better equipped to make sound decisions. This decreases the likelihood of putting off or refraining from decision making altogether.
Mindfulness fact #4: Mindfulness can boost creativity and problem solving
Creativity and mindfulness are commonly linked. Furthermore, studies have shown that practicing mindfulness can actually increase a person’s capacity for creative thinking.
If you’re interested in trying mindfulness but feel daunted by the idea of dedicating a lot of time to your practice, don’t worry--even short meditation sessions can enhance creativity.
Mindfulness fact #5: Mindfulness can reduce anxiety
To no one’s surprise, mindfulness helps reduce anxiety. It can also help improve positive self-talk in people with anxiety.
Mindfulness fact #6: Mindfulness can reduce subconscious bias
In one study, participants listened to a mindfulness audio or a control audio and then completed an assessment, the “race and age IATs.” The participants who listened to the mindfulness audio had less implicit race and age bias.
Mindfulness fact #7: Mindfulness cognitive behavioral therapy can help depression
People with depression who practiced mindfulness reported decreased rates of depression.
Some studies have found that mindfulness-based cognitive therapy may be more effective in preventing a recurrence of symptoms than other treatments.
Mindfulness fact #8: Mindfulness can improve body image
Women who practiced compassion meditation training reported “significantly greater reductions in body dissatisfaction, body shame, and contingent self-worth based on appearance, as well as greater gains in self-compassion and body appreciation.”
Mindfulness fact #9: Mindfulness can improve attention
Mindfulness has been linked to improved attention across a variety of studies.
Many people may cite their difficulty with attention as a reason why they cannot practice mindfulness. However, these are the people who can often benefit the most from this skill.
Mindfulness fact #10: Mindfulness can decrease distractions around us
Similar to improved attention, mindfulness can decrease the perceived presence of distractions.
Of course, mindfulness does not make things in our environment magically disappear. However, with continued practice we can actually decrease the brain waves that detect sensory information.
This is another example of how mindfulness can actually change our brain function in real, measurable ways.
Mindfulness fact #11: Mindfulness can improve romantic relationships
Mindfulness can improve a romantic relationship’s quality, particularly in EFT (or emotionally focused therapy) counseling. In the context of EFT, couples learn mindfulness skills that help them observe their emotions instead of blindly reacting to them. This can improve a couple’s communication, which likely increases their satisfaction with their relationship.
Mindfulness can increase a couple’s satisfaction with their relationship. It can also help reduce couples’ stress levels, while also helping them feel better equipped to deal with whatever stress arises.
Mindfulness fact #12: Mindfulness can improve our perception of health
Mindfulness can improve our perception of healthiness and decrease our perception of negative symptoms. This effect has been noted with multiple forms of meditation practice, including yoga, seated meditations, and exercises such as body scans.
Mindfulness fact #13: Mindfulness can increase spirituality
Since mindfulness has ancient roots in Eastern meditative spirituality, it’s not surprising that meditation is associated with increased spirituality for individuals. This is an encouraging fact on its own, but it’s also exciting to note that research suggests increasing a person’s spiritual experiences can also improve their quality of life. Increased spirituality can provide mental health benefits as well.
Mindfulness fact #14: Mindfulness can improve empathy
In a 2007 study, “a greater tendency for mindful observation was associated with more engagement in empathy.” As we have discussed, mindfulness increases a person’s ability to thoughtfully observe emotions instead of automatically reacting. When people grow this skill by practicing mindfulness, they are better equipped to manage their emotions toward others. Instead of indulging their first reaction to someone’s situation, they have an increased ability to think critically about their feelings. This, in turn, can allow time and reflection for insight around the other person’s situation.
Mindfulness fact #15: Mindfulness can reduce social anxiety and improve social interaction
Participants who reported heightened mindfulness levels also reported less social anxiety and felt freer to express themselves in social situations.
When people practice mindfulness, they learn how to observe their thoughts and feelings in a nonjudgmental way. This can be extremely beneficial for people with social anxiety, who often feel self-conscious. By increasing self-compassion, a person’s social anxiety can improve.
Mindfulness fact #16: Mindfulness can help us accept ourselves
In a 2006 Harvard study, researchers found that mindfulness helps grow self-worth through self-acceptance. When we grow our self-acceptance through practicing mindfulness, we can experience mental health benefits such as decreased anger and depression.
There are many different ways to incorporate mindfulness in a way that helps to increase self-acceptance. For example, it can be helpful to think of ourselves as a “work in progress.”
This shift in mindset allows us to make peace with where we are in life while still being open to personal growth and progress.
Keeping a journal is another way to mindfully increase self-acceptance. When we practice reflecting on the day’s events in a thoughtful way, we can increase our ability to be mindful in the moment as well, which can enhance acceptance.
Mindfulness fact #17: Mindfulness can increase job satisfaction
Mindfulness can even increase our job satisfaction while helping us regulate our emotions and exhaustion related to our jobs. This is especially true for people in emotionally demanding job roles. These individuals can especially benefit from increased mindfulness as they need emotional control to succeed in their jobs.
Mindfulness fact #18: Mindfulness can be used to treat trauma
As a therapy technique, mindfulness has been shown as an effective way to treat individuals suffering from trauma. People who have experienced trauma have often learned to shut themselves out from their emotional experiences as a way of protecting themselves. However, practicing mindfulness can help these individuals observe their thoughts and feelings rather than become completely overwhelmed by them.
Similarly, mindfulness can also increase a person’s ability to stay present, which is often difficult for trauma survivors given what they’ve experienced.
Mindfulness fact #19: Mindfulness can help us regulate our emotions
Mindfulness can help us regulate our emotions. Mindfunless can help us regulate our emotions. In particular, this helps people with bipolar disorder and/or borderline personality disorder who struggle with regulating their emotions.
In addition to increasing emotion regulation, practice mindfulness can actually help people become less reactive altogether. People who practice mindfulness may also find that they experience less mood swings than those who don’t.
Mindfulness fact #20: Mindfulness can be used to manage stress
As its primary use in our daily routines, meditation can be used to manage stress.
Mindfulness fact #21: Mindfulness can help us let go of automatic negative thoughts
Many of us struggle with automatic negative thoughts. In a 2007 study, those who practiced mindfulness experienced a decrease in negative thoughts and an increased ability to let them go. Since mindfulness empowers people to observe their thoughts without getting absorbed by them, it makes sense that practicing mindfulness can help people release their negative thoughts more easily.
Mindfulness fact #22: Mindfulness can help treat substance abuse
Mindfulness and meditation have been associated with decreased alcohol use, marijuana use, and crack cocaine use in drug addicts. Mindfulness-based treatment programs may be of interest to people in recovery because there is less stigma associated with this approach than traditional methods.
Society often has a negative view of people who use substances, but mindfulness encourages self-acceptance and a nonjudgmental approach. This may be refreshing to people who have experienced shame around their addiction.
It’s also important to remember that substance use often co-occurs with mental health struggles. Mindfulness can be helpful in addressing both.
Mindfulness fact #23: Mindfulness can improve performance in sports
Athletes who practice mindfulness report more remarkable performance in sports, resulting in self-reported “flow.” Since practicing mindfulness can improve focus and attention, it may help athletes concentrate on perfecting their skill and technique. It can also help athletes be more mindful of their bodily sensations, which, of course, is important for their physical performance.
Mindfulness fact #24: Mindfulness can help chronic pain
Some people with chronic pain struggle to find ways to manage it. Mindfulness led to participants reporting reduced rates of pain, symptoms, mood disturbance, negative body image, and more.
The mind and body are intrinsically linked--physical symptoms impact our mental wellbeing and vice-versa. As a result, people with chronic pain often experience emotional problems. That’s why it’s encouraging that mindfulness can treat both.
Mindfulness fact #25: Mindfulness can help survivors of childhood sexual assault
Due to trauma, child abuse survivors often face psychological issues. Child abuse survivors who practiced an 8-week mindfulness program reported a 65% decrease in the rate of things like depressive symptoms, PTSD, anxiety, and more.
Specifically, these individuals noted a reduction in numbing themselves to emotional experiences, avoidance of certain situations, and feeling hyper-aroused.
These positive changes sustained for several weeks after the program concluded as well.
Mindfulness fact #26: Mindfulness can help manage ADHD
A full clinical trial is needed, but participants of a 2007 study reported improved ADHD symptoms and performed better on tasks measuring attention. Many people with ADHD experience difficulty with self-regulation--a skill that can be increased with the help of mindfulness practice.
Additionally, many individuals with ADHD also experience anxiety and depression. Practicing mindfulness can help improve these mental health symptoms in people with ADHD as well.