A relaxation technique enhances psychological well-being and immune parameters in elderly people from a nursing home: A randomized controlled study

Background: The aging process involves a decline in immune functioning that renders elderly people more vulnerable to disease. In residential programs for the aged, it is vital to diminish their risk of disease, promote their independence, and augment their psychological well-being and quality of life. Methods: We performed a randomized controlled study, evaluating the ability of a relaxation technique based on Benson’s relaxation response to enhance psychological well-being and modulate the immune parameters of elderly people living in a geriatric residence when compared to a waitlist control group. The study included a 2-week intervention period and a 3-month follow-up period. The main outcome variables were psychological well-being and quality of life, biomedical variables, immune changes from the pre-treatment to post-treatment and follow-up periods. Results: Our findings reveal significant differences between the experimental and control groups in CD19, CD71, CD97, CD134, and CD137 lymphocyte subpopulations at the end of treatment. Furthermore, there was a decrease in negative affect, psychological discomfort, and symptom perception in the treatment group, which increased participants’ quality of life scores at the three-month follow-up. Conclusions: This study represents a first approach to the application of a passive relaxation technique in residential programs for the elderly. The method appears to be effective in enhancing psychological well-being and modulating immune activity in a group of elderly people. This relaxation technique could be considered an option for achieving health benefits with a low cost for residential programs, but further studies using this technique in larger samples of older people are needed to confirm the trends observed in the present study. Trial registration: International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number Register ISRCTN85410212.

Psychological Homelessness and Enculturative Stress among US-Deported Salvadorans: A Preliminary Study with a Novel Approach

The purpose of this study was to examine the construct psychological homelessness—feelings of not belonging in one’s home country—within the context of deported Salvadorans’ enculturation to El Salvador. Participants (n = 66) who had been deported from the United States completed a set of questionnaires related to their deportation experience. Results indicated that deportees, in various degrees, experienced the phenomenon of psychological homelessness and enculturative stress related to living in El Salvador. As hypothesized, enculturative stress related to re-adapting to life in El Salvador significantly correlated with psychological homelessness after controlling for time spent in the United States, acculturation, and enculturation. Additional analyses revealed that maladaptive cognitions related to the deportation experience also predicted psychological homelessness. Our findings suggest psychological homelessness appears to be a valid construct and is experienced by many undocumented immigrants.

Percepciones de los hombres sobre las complicaciones asociadas a la mutilación genital femenina

Objetivo: Explorar el conocimiento de los hombres procedentes de países donde se realiza la mutilación genital femenina sobre las consecuencias negativas en la salud de las mujeres afectadas. Métodos: Metodología cualitativa con enfoque etnometodológico, a través de entrevistas semiestructuradas individuales y grupales a 25 hombres, en relación con la mutilación genital femenina, seleccionados mediante triple muestreo. Se entregó una carta de presentación del estudio a los participantes y la declaración del consentimiento informado, y se les solicitó permiso para grabar la entrevista en audio. El análisis de los datos se realizó con el software informático Atlas. Ti7. Resultados: Los participantes contrarios al corte son conscientes de la diversidad de complicaciones físicas, obstétricas, psicológicas, sobre la sexualidad y sociales en las mujeres sometidas a mutilación. Sin embargo, los hombres que tienen un posicionamiento favorable muestran en general un desconocimiento de los problemas secundarios a esta práctica. Conclusiones: Los participantes procedentes de países donde se realiza la mutilación genital femenina, contrarios a mantener esta práctica, muestran un mayor conocimiento de las consecuencias negativas que los que se manifiestan a favor. El diseño de herramientas y programas de sensibilización destinados a la lucha contra la mutilación genital femenina debe visibilizar las complicaciones sobre la salud de las mujeres y las niñas, e incluir intervenciones familiares que impliquen a los hombres en el proceso de erradicación de esta práctica.