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10 Amazing Health Benefits of Deep Breathing

It is a good habit to take deep breath. In addition to relaxation, it is also an effective way to remove toxins and even improve your digestive system. Regular deep or slow breathing is a communication of peace and wellness in our body and mind. Breathing techniques plays a crucial role in the practice of yoga or meditation. So, today we will tell you about Health Benefits of Deep Breathing.

But apart from the classic relationship of these practices with Buddhism and meditation, deep breathing is not an unusual thing in our everyday life. That is why we rarely consider our way of breathing.

However, a study by scientists at Stanford University has shown how deep breathing can effective for our overall health.

Mark Krasnow, biochemist and senior author of the study, has even pointed out that he has identified a small group of neurons that combine deep breathing with relaxation, attention and even efficiency to control emotions and reduce anxiety.(1)

This simple-accessible strategy should put all of us into practice. You just have to open your mouth and fill the deep, steady and slow breath.

Are you doing the same now? This is a wonderful thing!

10 Amazing Health Benefits of Deep Breathing.

The 10 amazing health benefits of deep breathing are:

  • Remove Toxins.
  • Improve Lymphatic System.
  • Control Stress and Anxiety.
  • Improve Posture.
  • Reduce Pain.
  • Improve Digestion.
  • Control Nervous System.
  • Improve Heart Health.
  • Control Obesity.
  • Increase Focus.

Deep Breathing to Remove Toxins.

The design of our body is conducive to removing many toxins when breathing out. Carbon dioxide produced as a result of our body’s metabolic processes is a natural toxin. It should be regularly pulled out of our body.

But when our lungs become accustomed to fast breathing, we are not able to get rid of all those toxic substances. That is why you must be aware of it. We should practice deep breathing for at least 10 minutes for 2 or 3 times a day.(2)

Read Now: 5 Top Yoga Poses To Cure Erectile Dysfunction.

Deep Breathing to Improve Lymphatic System.

Your lymphatic system is an important part of your body’s immune system. It is a complex network of lymphatic vessels, tissues, organs and lymph nodes that play a variety of roles. Lymphatic fluid has one of the roles to exclude dead cells and other faecal substances from our body.

With the help of deep breathing, you are able to work more efficiently by allowing the plasma in your blood to flow properly.(3)

Deep Breathing to Control Stress and Anxiety.

stress
Stress

Breathing is an involuntary action of our body. By dragging oxygen inside, our cells get energy. We remove the carbon dioxide that is produced as a fruit of the respiratory process of our cells through the breath. This magical process that is slow, rhythmic and deep-breathing benefits us immensely.

But most of us understand that when we are scared or angry, our breathing becomes unstable and fast. As a result our heart is “flapping” because of our broken breath.

Fortunately, the ability to regulate our parasympathetic nervous system to relax us through deep breathing. As a result, our heart and mind become calm and peaceful. It provide oxygen to our entire body, regularly and equally avoids stiffness of the muscles. This happens when our sympathetic system stops giving our body a high amount of cortisol and adrenaline. (4),(5)

Read Now: 10 Essential Yoga Poses for Anxiety and Depression

Deep Breathing to Improve Posture.

Yoga Postures For Thyroid
Posture

By filling the air in your lungs, you will be able to bring your spine into a curvier, balanced and achieve a healthy posture.(6)

Deep Breathing to Reduce Pain.

Natural Herbs To Relief Pain Health Benefits of Deep Breathing
Pain

When there is pain, we often inadvertently take our breath. It is a natural reaction to our mind when you stumble from something or cause an injury.(7),(8)

But if you have permanent and regular pain due to your arthritis, lupus or fibromyalgia, you should make deep breathing instead of stopping your breath. Take a deep, slow breath and try to hold your breath for a few seconds. Doing so, your body starts to produce a natural analgesic called endorphins.

Read Now: 7 Yoga Poses for Cervical Spondylosis and Neck Pain

Deep Breathing to Improve Digestion.

digestion Health Benefits of Deep Breathing
Digestive System

Deep breathing also improves your digestion. It gives your body oxygen at a more regular rate, it also gives proper oxygen supply to your digestive organs. Consequently, it increase efficiency of the digestive system. Also, it improve blood circulation.

Deep Breathing to Control Nervous System.

brain Health Benefits of Deep Breathing
Nervous System

Here we cannot ignore the fact that deep breathing controls your nervous system. By making you feel calmer than before, it also makes your digestive tract calm and effective. Even improve the better absorption of the nutrients.(9)

Deep Breathing to Improve Heart Health.

heart Health Benefits of Deep Breathing
Heart

Aerobic exercise deposited fat into energy. On the other hand, non-aerobic exercise (strength training) uses glucose to get energy.

However, regular habit of deep breathing “exercise” is a great cardio routine. This improves your cardiovascular health and helps you to burn fat cells.(10)

Deep Breathing to Control Obesity.

obesity
Obesity

Deep breath helps to control weight. If you lose weight, deep breathing gives tissues and cells a sufficient amount of oxygen and helps you to maintain an ideal body weight. If you are overweight, the proper level of oxygen works to reduce your fat. When you take small breaths, it causes glycogen (a complex carbohydrate) to be destroyed rather than the fat of the body.(11)

Read Now: What is Obesity: Symptoms, Causes, Treatment and Exercises

Deep Breathing to Increase Focus.

Breathing long calm your mind and soul, as a result it improve your focus and attention.

How To Take Proper Deep Breathing?

To achieve the benefits of deep breathing, you have to understand the right method, because you get full benefit when you breathe deeply with the right way. Here are the correct method;

  • At first, you have to lie down on the ground or bed on the back. While doing so, you should put pillows on your head and knees. If you do not want to lie down, you can also sit and start this exercise, but keep in mind that while sitting, sit on a chair that supports your back, shoulders and neck.
  • After sitting comfortably or lying down, you should slowly breathe from the nose and fill your stomach with air.
  • Then gradually remove the air from the nose.
  • While doing this action, place one hand on the abdomen and the other hand on the chest.
  • Feel the action of filling the air in the abdomen while breathing slowly. While breathing deeply, place the hand on the abdomen should goes up and down more than the hand placed on the chest.

Points To Ponder While Deep Breathing.

  • The pictures that emerge in your mind while breathing deeply help you relax.
  • Keep your eyes closed during the whole process.
  • Take some deep and long breath at the beginning.
  • Experience peace while breathing and feel the same for your whole body. Feel the breath out, strain and anxiety as well as exiting with the air.
  • There should be a similar time to breathe and release. For this, you may count up to 5 in mind while breathing and do so when you leave. This helps to equal the time of breathing and ejecting.
  • Do not put too much power while breathing and leaving. Wear loose clothes while doing this exercise.
  • Keep repeating this process for about 10 to 20 minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions.

1. Can deep breathing lower blood pressure?

Yes, deep breathing lower blood pressure. Deep breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system which decreases the dilates blood vessels and heart rate thus lowers the blood pressure.

Bottom Line.

Irregular routines and bad habits cause many health problems. If you can spare some time in a day for deep breathing exercise, you can protect the body from many diseases. Apart from above mentioned health benefits of deep breathing, this exercise can also helps to relieve stress and relax your brain and body.

At the same time, deep breathing also improve your sleep quality. Taking a deep breath with the right technique overall gives you several health benefits.

+11 Sources

Freaktofit has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, educational research institutes, and medical organizations. We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and up-to-date by reading our editorial policy.

  1. Study shows how slow breathing induces tranquility; https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2017/03/study-discovers-how-slow-breathing-induces-tranquility.html
  2. Advantages of deep breathing exercises; https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/fitness/advantages-of-deep-breathing-exercises/articleshow/19213960.cms#:~:text=When%20we%20take%20deep%20breaths,body%20promoting%20better%20blood%20flow.&text=Deep%20breathing%20brings%20fresh
  3. 4 Ways to Keep Your Lymphatic System Healthy;  https://www.iahe.com/docs/articles/4-ways-to-keep-your-lymphatic-system-healthy.pdf
  4. The Effect of Diaphragmatic Breathing on Attention, Negative Affect and Stress in Healthy Adults; https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5455070/
  5. How Breath-Control Can Change Your Life: A Systematic Review on Psycho-Physiological Correlates of Slow Breathing; https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6137615/
  6. The effect of deep and slow breathing on pain perception, autonomic activity, and mood processing–an experimental study; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21939499/
  7. The Effect of Deep and Slow Breathing on Pain Perception, Autonomic Activity, and Mood Processing—An Experimental Study; https://academic.oup.com/painmedicine/article/13/2/215/1936333
  8. The Science of Breathing; https://www.unm.edu/~lkravitz/Article%20folder/Breathing.html
  9. The role of deep breathing on stress; https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311750288_The_role_of_deep_breathing_on_stress
  10. Effect of 12 weeks of slow breathing exercise practice on anthropometric parameters in healthy volunteers; https://www.researchgate.net/publication/328189915_Effect_of_12_weeks_of_slow_breathing_exercise_practice_on_anthropometric_parameters_in_healthy_volunteers

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This content is based on scientific research and written by experts.

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This article contains scientific references. The numbers in the parentheses (1,2,3) are clickable links to peer-reviewed scientific researches.

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