Deep Slow Breathing Reduces Blood Pressure - Experts

With the number of Nigerians suffering hypertension (also known as high blood pressure) being on the rise, medical experts said learning how to regulate breathing could be the cure if the condition is diagosed early enough.

According to a new study published in the journal ‘Scientific Reports’, researchers at the University of Melbourne and Macquarie University, in Australia, stated that the neurons, which control breathing also control blood pressure and, therefore, breathing deeply can help to lower blood pressure levels Hypertension has been labelled a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, diabetes and stroke.

High blood pressure is a common disease in which blood flows through blood vessels (arteries) at higher than normal pressures.One in three adults worldwide is affected by high blood pressure and implicated in over 18 per cent of death globally, but according to the World Health Organisation WHO, the number of Nigerians living with high blood pressure is estimated at about 56 million.

“It causes blindness, irregular heartbeat or eventual heart failure. It can be countered by reducing high salt intake and high calorie food and avoiding sedentary (inactive) lifestyle.”
The researchers said it was vital that effort is placed into identifying people at risk early before it’s too late. The ‘mailonline’ reports that breathing and blood pressure are functionally linked through the sympathetic nervous system, which sends signals to the heart and blood vessels.

 The researchers discovered that when neural activity was interrupted in young adults, they could control blood pressure. The altered neural activity leads to increased fluctuations in blood pressure with every breath taken.

“By interrupting the activity between these two groups of neurons during adolescence, we were able to dramatically reduce development of high blood pressure in adulthood,’ said lead researcher Professor Andrew Allen of the University of Melbourne. Professor Allen added that the research paralleled what professional athletes and eastern philosophies have long understood about the link between breathing and heart rate.

“Biathletes have to regulate their breathing to slow down their heart rate before rifle shooting, and eastern meditative practices such as yoga and pranayama have always emphasised the interaction between the two,’ he said.

Biathletes are people engaging in winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting.