Deep breathing (also called diaphragmatic, belly, or abdominal breathing) is an ancient practice rooted in yoga and martial arts that is still taught today in therapy and healthcare facilities. Some research suggests that deep breathing impacts the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for the rest-and-digest response—resulting in health benefits like stress management, better sleep, and more.
1. Stress Management
Deep breathing can help reduce stress by triggering a "relaxation response" within the body and helping focus the mind away from distracting thoughts. Daily deep breathing exercises have also been shown to reduce blood pressure, a physical sign of lowered stress.
2. Better Sleep
There is some evidence that deep breathing before bed can improve sleep quality. In one study, 30 days of a 15-minute pre-sleep deep breathing program resulted in participants experiencing higher-quality sleep than those who used social media for 15 minutes before sleep.
3. Improves Lung Function
There is low-level evidence that deep breathing can improve lung function, particularly when paired with exercise programs such as walking or upper-body exercises.
4. Increase Energy and Motivation
Deep breathing can increase your energy levels by more efficiently delivering oxygen-rich blood to your organs. It has also been shown to reduce stress, so it may also improve motivation. When you're feeling more relaxed and less stressed, you have more energy left for the things you want and need to do.
5. Improve Concentration
Diaphragmatic breathing may help improve concentration and attention. In one study, participants completed 20 sessions of deep breathing over eight weeks. The deep breathing group had significantly improved sustained attention compared to the control group.
6. Decrease Muscle Tension
Deep breathing can also decrease muscle tension as part of the relaxation response. For an even greater effect, you can pair breathing with progressive muscle relaxation, contracting your muscles with each inhale and releasing them with each exhale.
7. Strengthen Immune System
It's even possible that deep breathing could strengthen the immune system. Research has found that the breathing movements in our lung walls trigger a protective immune response that eradicates viruses and inflammation in lung tissue.
8. Improve Your Body’s Ability to Tolerate Exercise
Exercise tolerance refers to your ability to continue exercising until you are fully exerted. A small body of research has examined the benefits of deep breathing for improving exercise tolerance, particularly for individuals with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
What Conditions Could Deep Breathing Help With?
With all the benefits mentioned above, deep breathing can be helpful for anyone. However, people with specific health concerns may find that deep breathing has particular advantages.
- Stress and anxiety: Studies have found that deep breathing can reduce blood pressure and cortisol (stress hormone) levels, which are stress markers.
- COPD: Breathing exercises—particularly pursed lip or belly breathing—can help rebuild strength and flexibility around the lungs and help with energy conservation during daily tasks in people with COPD.
- Asthma: According to one systematic review, breathing exercises can help people with asthma improve their quality of life, lung function, and hyperventilation symptoms.
Are There Any Downsides to Deep Breathing?
Deep breathing can lead to hyperventilation—rapid breathing, leading to low carbon dioxide levels in the blood—when done improperly. It can make you feel dizzy and lightheaded. In severe cases, this can cause loss of consciousness.
Some research has found that deep breathing can worsen chest wall motion, reduce ventilation efficiency, and increase the general breathing workload for those with COPD. If you have COPD, talk to a healthcare provider before starting a deep breathing program. They may have you monitor your oxygen levels and avoid specific techniques or positions.
How to Get Started With Breathing Techniques
It can be helpful to understand your anatomy before starting a breathwork practice.
Everyone has a diaphragm, a large, dome-shaped muscle beneath the lungs. When the diaphragm flattens, it pulls the lungs down, and they expand, filling with air. You can visualize this as the belly expanding outward when you inhale.
You can inhale without using your diaphragm; the lungs' upper lobes fill with air. During this type of inhale, the upper chest may rise, but the belly remains flat. This type of breathing does not employ as many muscles nor fill the lungs as fully and can leave stale air in the lungs.
Supine Diaphragmatic Breathing
Supine is a technical term for lying flat on your back. So, supine diaphragmatic breathing is a way to practice diaphragmatic breathing while lying down—on your bed, the floor, or anywhere you are comfortable.
Many people find learning diaphragmatic breathing and engaging their muscles from this position easier than from sitting or standing positions. This is the perfect place to start if you've never done diaphragmatic breathing.
- Lie flat on your back.
- Place one hand on your chest and one hand on your belly.
- Inhale deeply using your diaphragm, letting your hand on your belly lift, but the hand on your chest stay still.
- Exhale and let your hand on your belly lower, again with your chest staying still.
- Repeat.
If you have difficulty activating your diaphragm with just your hand, you can also place a heavy book or other item on your belly to help with sensory feedback.
Pursed Lip Breathing
Pursed lip breathing is frequently recommended for people with COPD or others who require help with pacing and energy conservation. It is a breathing technique that encourages you to slow your breathing pace, open your lungs for longer, and increase oxygen flow.
- Inhale through the nose.
- Exhale through your lips, with them positioned as if they were pursed around a straw.
- Try to keep your exhales twice as long as your inhales. For example, count to four on your inhale and eight on your exhale.
Pursed lip breathing is particularly helpful during times of exertion or recovery.
Box Breathing
Box breathing is an easy-to-learn breathing technique often recommended for people looking for stress or anxiety relief.
- Inhale through your nose for a count of four.
- Hold your breath for a count of four.
- Exhale through your mouth for a count of four.
- Hold your breath for a count of four.
- Repeat.
You can add a visual component to this exercise by following your gaze around a square or rectangular object, such as a window or book.
4-7-8 Breathing
4-7-8 breathing is another technique that is particularly useful for people suffering from stress and anxiety. This breathing technique helps slow the breath pace and calm the mind.
- Inhale through the nose for four seconds.
- Hold your breath for seven seconds.
- Exhale through the mouth for eight seconds.
Breathing Techniques Just About Anyone Can Try
Who Can Help Me With Diaphragmatic Breathing?
Certain health professionals are qualified to help you learn diaphragmatic breathing and advise on specific techniques for your unique situation. These include mental health professionals, occupational, physical, or respiratory therapists, cardiac specialists, primary care physicians, and more.
Other skilled workers, such as yoga teachers, tai chi, and martial arts instructors, can also teach deep breathing techniques.
Summary
Deep breathing can improve stress levels, sleep, lung function, energy, concentration, and more. It's a technique that's been taught for thousands of years and is still used today, with research supporting its benefits for people with COPD, asthma, anxiety, and more.
