Impacts of Rhythmic and Hypoxic Breathwork on EEG, Mood, Sleep, and Physiology
University of California, San Diego
Summary
This project will study changes that occur during a short period of intensive daily slow-paced breathing and breath hold practice (i.e., "breathwork"). On the first and last days of the week-long practice, investigators will conduct high-density EEG recordings during breathwork to evaluate spectral power, coherence, and causality dynamics of the brain when it is naïve to breathwork and after adaptation to a breathwork practice. Breath, blood, urine, saliva, stool samples, biometric data, and sleep EEG will be collected before the start of daily breathwork practice and again after 1 week of breathwork practice to examine the effect of breathwork on full body biochemistry, molecular biology, and sleep. Investigators will also use questionnaires to assess the impact of breathwork on stress and sleep quality.
Description
Breathwork. Breathwork simply means consciously manipulating the breath to achieve a desired result. There are many kinds of breathwork for different goals. An entire segment of yoga, called pranayama, harnesses the power of breath manipulation for various health benefits. The current study does not use a specific technique from ancient traditions but combines two basic techniques grounded in Western literature: slow-paced breathing and hypoxic breath-hold training. Breathwork: slow-paced breathing. The study of slow-paced breathing (SPB) emerged from the observation that heart rate follows t…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18–45 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria: * Persons, aged 18-45 * Availability for the duration of the study * In good general health as revealed by self-report * Stated willingness and capability to adhere to the breathwork regimen * Agreement to adhere to Lifestyle Considerations (see section 5.3) throughout study duration * Provision of signed and dated informed consent form Exclusion Criteria: 1. Current or past regular breathwork practice 2. Current use of psychoactive medications (e.g., anti-depressants or anxiolytics) 3. Pregnancy 4. Bedtime past 11:30pm or regularly getting less than 6 hours of sleep per…
Interventions
- BehavioralHypoxic breathwork plus music and messaging
Hypoxic breathwork consists of about 5 min of rhythmic breathing in a 4-in/4-out pattern followed by a breath hold on the exhale for about 1-2 min. This is repeated 1-2 times with increasing breath rate up to 2-in/2-out. The audio track also includes dynamic music that accompanies the different stages as well as positive messaging encouraging self-determination.
- BehavioralHypoxic breathwork only
Hypoxic breathwork consists of about 5 min of rhythmic breathing in a 4-in/4-out pattern followed by a breath hold on the exhale for about 1-2 min. This is repeated 1-2 times with increasing breath rate up to 2-in/2-out. Other than breathing instructions and pacing, the audio track is silent.
- BehavioralMusic and messaging meditation
Music and messaging meditation consists of dynamic music that is engaging and aids focus, as well as positive messaging encouraging self-determination.
Location
- UC San DiegoLa Jolla, California