Prompt Cast
The Neuroscience of Breathing: How Breathing Patterns Impact Our Brain and Body
TLDR Dr. Jack Feldman's research on the neuroscience of breathing has revealed that breathing patterns can predict focus, sleep patterns, and overall mental and physical health. Manipulating our breathing can potentially impact our internal state and has been shown to have positive effects on motor and cognitive function.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
Breathing is not only essential for bringing oxygen to our brain and body, but it also predicts our focus, sleep patterns, and overall mental and physical health, and Dr. Jack Feldman's pioneering work on the neuroscience of breathing has identified the brain centers that control different breathing patterns and how we can leverage these patterns for our benefit.
05:57
Dr. Jack Feldman explains the mechanics of breathing, including the role of the diaphragm and intercostal muscles, and the brain regions responsible for generating the rhythm of breathing.
14:04
The diaphragm and intercostal muscles are involved in breathing, while smooth muscles in the airways can contract or relax, causing problems like asthma; there are brain centers that control both inhalation and exhalation, with a second oscillator involved in active expiration.
22:29
The diaphragm is mechanically efficient in allowing oxygen to pass from the air-filled alveolus into the bloodstream, and the surface area of the alveoli in our lungs is about a third the size of a tennis court, which allows for a significant increase in oxygen levels in the bloodstream and supports normal metabolism.
30:51
Sighing occurs every five minutes in order to maintain the health of our lungs by preventing the collapse of alveoli, and it is related to the release of bombocin-related peptides during stress.
39:37
Injecting bombocin into the pre-buts in a complex of rats significantly increased their sigh rate, and injecting bombocin conjugated to saprin into the same area caused the rats to sigh less and their lung function to deteriorate, ultimately leading to their sacrifice.
47:49
Breathing is closely connected to our emotional and brain states, and manipulating our breathing can potentially impact our internal state.
56:50
Manipulating breathing in mice through a breath practice protocol resulted in decreased fear response, suggesting a potential link between breathing and fear processing in the brain.
01:05:12
Volitional changes in breathing can affect emotional state, while brain state can also influence breathing, as demonstrated by studies on mice and individuals with locked-in syndrome.
01:13:22
Volitional and emotive control of breathing are different, as demonstrated by studies on actors and the effects of breathing on emotion, and there are multiple sources of respiratory modulation in the brain, including the olfactory bulb, the vagus nerve, and changes in carbon dioxide levels.
01:21:55
Breath holds, whether with lungs full or lungs empty, can have an impact on brain state and CO2 levels, and episodic hypoxia, where oxygen levels are varied, has been shown to have positive effects on motor and cognitive function.
01:29:53
Episodic hypoxia, achieved through breath holds or cyclic hyperventilation, has been shown to have positive effects on motor and cognitive function, and there is interest in testing these protocols in the context of golf and other neuromuscular performance activities.
01:37:22
Breathing has a strong central component and can have effects on various aspects of behavior and physiology, including olfaction, pupil size, fear response, reaction time, and motor function.
01:46:03
Breathing oscillations help coordinate signals across neurons and can unify signals coming from different parts of the brain, and breath practices can disrupt and weaken circuits in the brain, providing relief from conditions like depression.
01:54:25
Box breathing for short periods of time, such as five to 20 minutes, can provide tremendous benefits for mental and physical health.
02:02:30
Increasing the level of magnesium in the bathing solution of hippocampal neurons can strengthen long-term potentiation (LTP) and improve cognitive function, as shown in studies with mice and humans.
02:11:46
Dr. Jack Feldman discusses the potential cognitive enhancing effects of magnesium and the positive impact it can have on sleep.
Categories:
Health & Fitness
Science
