Project Summary
African-Americans have disproportionate rates of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the US. African-Americans
with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) have twice the risk than non-Hispanic whites for developing CVD. Poorer sleep
and greater chronic psychological stress may contribute to this additional risk. Consequently, African-
Americans have worse glycemic control among those with diabetes and higher CVD risk. One promising
approach to improving CVD risk in African-Americans is mindfulness meditation (MM). MM can potentially
reduce cardiovascular risk through attention control, emotional regulation, and self-awareness. The overall
purpose of this K01 training grant is for Dr. Alana Biggers to obtain research training and develop skills needed
to become an independent investigator, and use those skills to adapt and evaluate an established MM
curriculum (Mindfulness Based Therapy for Insomnia, or MBT-I). The specific aims are to: (1) adapt and refine
the MBT-I curriculum for African-Americans with T2DM and incorporate text messaging; (2) conduct an 8-
week, pilot randomized, controlled trial of the adapted curriculum with 68 African-Americans with T2DM; and
(3) explore the impact of the intervention on cardiometabolic risk factors (blood pressure, glycosylated
hemoglobin, and lipid profile) and inflammatory biomarkers (C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and tumor
necrosis factor a). Primary outcomes will include sleep quality and perceived stress evaluated at baseline, 8,
and 16 weeks. The proposed research design consists of a pilot study, utilizes mixed-methods research, and
involves both primary data collection and analysis. This K01 training grant will provide Dr. Biggers career-
building activities to further develop skills and a knowledge base in quantitative and qualitative methodology,
health disparities research, and mobile health (mHealth)/behavioral health strategies in minority populations.
With the guidance of an interdisciplinary mentorship team and institutional support, Dr. Biggers will receive the
necessary assistance and training to work toward her long-term career goal of being an independent
researcher with expertise in health disparities, mixed-methods, and mHealth behavioral research.
