Breathing is a specific activity of living things. Some breathe through the nose, others through the mouth and others alternate between the mouth and nose, each breathing and doing it differently. If we stopped to observe our breathing, we would realize that we have no equal breaths. Today we will examine the effects of breathing on our brains.
Breathing is so important that it acts as a monitor of our body, which alerts us to our physical and emotional state at all times.
- So.
- If you breathe fast.
- Are you likely to find yourself in a situation of stress.
- Fear.
- Irritation.
- Joy?However.
- When your breathing is slower and deeper.
- Is your condition more likely to be of relaxation.
- Calmness.
- Peace?.
Diaphragm movement is a good variable for identifying what state we are in, we can use it to analyze the effects of breathing on the brain.
“The quality of your breath expresses your deepest feelings. “- T. K. V. Desikachar-
Normal breathing, commonly known as unconscious breathing or chest breathing, is an autonomous and unconscious process that performs the function of hematosis, ensuring cellular metabolism by oxygenation.
Therefore, breathing is intrinsically linked to the autonomous nervous system, which is responsible for regulating the autonomous functions of the organism (Canet, 2006).
On the other hand, conscious breathing or diaphragmatic breathing is an action that not only accelerates and improves the respiratory process, but also affects the brain and helps create spaces of peace and tranquility of mind (Benson, 1975).
The first difference we see when keeping breathing conscious or controlled is the replacement of chest breathing with diaphragmatic breathing and its physiological implications (Lodes, 1990).
Diaphragmatic respiration increases the volume and pressure of oxygen that enters the body, satiating all lung capacity, taking advantage of all the pulmonary alveoli and releasing a greater amount of carbon dioxide from the body, in addition to causing the activation of the parasympathetic nervous system, in charge of the states of relaxation and calm of our body (Everly, 1989).
“Feelings come and go, like clouds in the sky. Is conscious breathing my anchor?.
Breathing has many effects on the brain. Conscious breathing is able to satisfy all lung capacity, causing greater cellular oxygenation, better tissue oxygenation, increasing tissue pressure control and thus allowing greater synthesis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), enabling cellular life (Baigorri, Lorente, 2005).
This is due to increased cardiovascular pressure, which is necessary through conscious breathing, in addition, this type of breathing promotes better brain irrigation, in turn improving the functioning of different parts of the brain and promoting connections between neurons (Brassard, Ainslie,
In addition, it should be noted that there are studies that have shown that when conscious breathing is used as a facilitator of meditation, neuroimaging tests reveal that the size of the brain increases.
Specifically, these respiratory effects in the brain refer to changes in the prefrontal cortex, in areas associated with the attention and processing of sensory information.
“The air is your food and your medicine. ” -Aristotle-
Conscious breathing also stimulates the vagus nerve. It increases the activity of the parasympathetic nervous system (every time we exhale or expel air) and decreases the activity of the sympathetic nervous system.
This variation causes an oscillation of levels of Acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that sends timely signals to synaptic mediation in the body, promoting calm (Manoj et al. , 2013).
In general, conscious breathing helps maintain homeostasis in our body. With it we can improve the functioning of neuroendocrine, digestive, circulatory, neurochemical and different nerve systems, highlighting mainly the central, autonomous and peripheral systems.