Mindfulness-based Lifestyle Modification Programme for Caregivers of People With Neurological Disorders

Over 80% of caregivers for individuals with neurodegenerative diseases (ND) engage in significant risk behaviors, particularly physical inactivity, which increases the risk of cardiometabolic diseases (CMD) by 30% and reduces life expectancy by 4-8 years. Despite the health benefits of maintaining healthy behaviors, awareness of behavioral risk management among healthcare professionals and the public is low, and research on this topic for ND caregivers is limited. Given that physical activity (PA) is the most prevalent modifiable risk factor, timely intervention is essential. International guidelines prioritize PA as a key strategy for caregiver health. However, existing PA interventions often struggle with low compliance due to the physical and emotional challenges caregivers face. Mindfulness-based lifestyle modification might help caregivers better manage physical discomfort, stress, and self-limiting beliefs, thereby supporting sustained PA by improving attentional regulation and psychological flexibility. The World Health Organization advocates for non-communicable disease (NCD) prevention through brief lifestyle interventions, such as ecological momentary interventions (EMI), which use mobile messaging (e.g., WhatsApp) to deliver personalized health content. This method is particularly valuable for caregivers who find it difficult to access traditional services due to their responsibilities. A pilot RCT was conducted to compare B-Mindful-Life to brief lifestyle education program in Chinese neurodegenerative disease caregivers, demonstrating promising acceptability, engagement, and effect for increasing PA (NCT06583018). Therefore, this full-power randomized clinical trial aims to rigorously examine its effectiveness and broader impact on this underserved population with several advancement: (i) broaden the population into all neurological disorder caregivers to test for the generalizability of the B-Mindful-Life program; (ii) conduct a 12-month follow-up to assess long-term effects of B-Mindful-Life intervention in real-life settings; (iii) modify outcome measures for targeted assessment. The primary outcome will measure the change in accelerometer-determined, 10-minute bout moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) over a 7-day period from baseline to post-intervention.