Moderation of mindfulness on the relationship between anxiety and somatization symptoms in middle-aged and elderly female patients with hypertension：A cross-sectional analysis

Purpose: To explore the moderation of mindfulness on the relationship between anxiety and somatization symptoms in middle-aged and elderly female patients with hypertension, and provide foundation for the development of more effective mindfulness intervention strategies. Methods: : A total of 109 middle-aged and elderly female patients with hypertension were participated in this cross-sectional study from April to July 2022, who were valid responses to the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), the General Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (GHAD), and the Somatization symptom self-rating scale (SSS). The moderating effect of mindfulness was determined using multi-distance linear regression. Results: : The average quantification of all participants: mindfulness was 123.86 ± 10.49, anxiety was 7.41 ± 3.62, and somatization symptoms was 41.2 ± 9.44. In contrast to the improved level of mindfulness, anxiety (P=0.000) and somatization symptoms (P=0.001) were significantly reduced. Anxiety was positively correlated with somatization symptoms (r=-0.606, P=0.000), while mindfulness level was negatively correlated with both anxiety (r=-0.468, P=0.000) and somatization symptoms (r=-0.439, P=0.000). Moreover, mindfulness had a significant moderating effect on the relationship between anxiety and somatization symptoms (N=109) (B=-0.166, t=2.125, P=0.036). The regulation of mindfulness on anxiety and somatic symptoms was more significant in participants with low mindfulness levels (N=56) (B=0.144, t=2.805, P=0.008), but not in participants with high mindfulness levels (N=53) (B=0.037, t=-0.864, P=0.393). Conclusion: The moderating effect analysis based on regression analysis showed that mindfulness level had a significant moderating effect on anxiety and somatization symptoms, especially in low mindfulness level.