Researchers have identified the network of neurons involved in the feeling of calm induced by deep breathing.
To calm down, the agitated human being instinctively has the same reflex: take a deep breath. In fact, this ancestral recommendation does indeed rest on a scientific basis. A team of researchers has just provided the neurological explanation behind the soothing effect of a deep sigh.
Published in the journal Science, the study highlights the circuit of neurons involved in the connection between breathing and the feeling of calm. The researchers thus show that the fact of inhaling and exhaling deeply stimulates a subset of neurons, which in turn transmit signals to a brain region responsible for stress and attention, whose activity it inhibits – hence the “zen” feeling that emerges.
Two genes
The authors, from Stanford University, also looked at the expression of these neurons and isolated two proteins involved in the transmission of these signals. These proteins would be controlled by two different genes, potential targets for therapeutic treatments, they explain.
But even in the absence of medication, this work shows, with supporting scientific evidence, that it is possible to act in the brain to reduce stress levels, simply by breathing.
Work confirmed by the literature: recently, a team of researchers has shown that meditation acts structurally on the brain and reduces a biological marker of inflammation, interleukin-6.
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