How should you breathe to achieve the desired effect?

A study conducted by Northwestern University on 50 people showed that taking a deep breath helped them make quicker and more accurate decisions.

We've all probably experienced those moments when we "need to take a deep breath" to calm down and reduce stress. This is probably the most unpleasant thing you don't want to do, especially when you're at the height of anger. But the latest scientific research has explained exactly why and how a deep breath has such amazing effects on the body.

According to research, taking a deep breath through your nose can boost brain power and sharpen your memory. The crucial factor determining the effectiveness of breathing here is whether you are inhaling or exhaling, and whether you are breathing through your nose or mouth.

Sixty participants in the study were asked to identify a frightening face. If they encountered the face while taking a deep breath, they recognized it more quickly than when exhaling. Their ability to remember the object also increased in the same situation. This effect disappeared if the participants inhaled through their mouths.

Lead researcher Christina Zelano, an assistant professor of neurology at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine, said: “One of the key findings of this study is the stark difference in brain activity in the amygdala (located in the brainstem, where emotions are processed) and the hippocampus (part of the forebrain involved in information storage and memory formation) during inhalation versus exhalation. When you inhale, we found that you are stimulating neurons in the olfactory cortex, amygdala, and hippocampus, as well as the entire limbic system (related to emotions, memory, fear, homeostasis, and smell).”

Returning to the study, 60 participants were asked to make quick decisions about facial expressions in a laboratory setting while their breathing was recorded. Participants had to decide as quickly as possible what emotions the facial images they were shown were expressing—fear, surprise, etc. When exposed to images while inhaling, participants perceived faces with fearful expressions faster than when exhaling. This was no longer true in the case of faces expressing surprise.

Performing the same task, but when participants are exposed to a facial image while inhaling through the mouth, the rapid recognition effect also disappears. Thus, the effect is only effective with the stimulus of a frightening face transmitted through nasal inhalation.

In another experiment aimed at assessing memory function—which is closely related to the hippocampus—60 subjects were also shown images of objects on a computer screen and asked to memorize them. The researchers found that recall was better when participants were exposed to the images while inhaling.

According to Zelano, the study's results suggest that rapid breathing can be considered an advantage when someone is in a dangerous situation. “If you are in a state of panic and fear, your breathing becomes rapid and shallow. As a result, you spend more time inhaling than when you are calm. Therefore, the body's innate response to fear, along with faster breathing, has a positive impact on brain function and leads to a more timely response to dangerous stimuli in the environment.”

Another interesting finding from the study is the underlying mechanism of meditation – or, in other words, of intentional, proper breathing. Zelano observes: “When you inhale, you are in a state where the fluctuations of brain activity exhibit synchronization across the entire limbic system.”

According to Giadinh.net