How Breathing Can Benefit Your Brain
Recent research from Ireland suggests that practicing breathing exercises during meditation affects levels of the brain chemical noradrenaline, which can help the brain build new connections. The study, from Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience and the Global Brain Health Institute, was designed to identify a neurophysiological link that could help explain age-old claims that breath-focused meditation and yogic breathing practices strengthen our ability to focus. The researchers were especially interested in the locus coeruleus, a small brain area where noradrenaline is made. They found that activity in this area increases slightly when we inhale, and decreases as we breathe out. Practically speaking, the finding suggests, “using our breath to control one of the brain’s natural chemical messengers, noradrenaline…helps the brain grow new connections between cells,” explained Ian Robertson, Co-Director of the Global Brain Health Institute and the study’s principal investigator. He added that the results provide “one more reason for everyone to boost the health of their brain, using a whole range of activities from aerobic exercise to mindfulness meditation.”
Source:
Michael Melnychuk et al, “Coupling of respiration and attention via the locus coeruleus: Effects of meditation and pranayama.” Psychophysiology, doi/epdf/10.1111/psyp.13091
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