Effect of Mindfulness- based Cognitive Therapy on Health Promoting Behaviors in Students with Premenstrual Syndrome: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Background and purpose: Adolescence is an important and vital stage of life that is associated with physical, emotional, and evolutionary changes. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based counseling approach on health promoting behaviors in adolescents with premenstrual syndrome (PMS). Materials and methods: A quasi-experimental study was conducted in 86 students with PMS selected from high schools in Meybod, Iran 2019. They were randomly divided into intervention group (n= 43) and control group (n= 43). The intervention group attended counseling sessions based on mindfulness approach for 8 sessions/2 hours/ a week. Demographic characteristics were recorded and Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile II (HPLP-II) and premenstrual symptoms screening tool (PSST) were administered. The scales were completed in both groups at beginning of the study, and at weeks eight and 12 after the intervention. Data analysis was performed in SPSS V19 applying independent t-test, repeated measures test, and LSD test. Results: There was no significant difference between the two groups in demographic variables (P>0.05). Before the intervention, there was no difference between the two groups in mean scores for health-promoting behaviors (P= 0.161), but, compared to the control group, the mean scores for health-promoting behaviors in intervention group showed significant increase immediately and one month after the intervention (P<0.001). Conclusion: Mindfulness- based cognitive therapy was found to be effective in improving health promoting behaviors in students with PMS which could create effective and fundamental changes in adolescents’ behaviors towards achieving a healthy society.   (Clinical Trials Registry Number: IRCT20200308046720N1)