If you have high blood pressure, asthma, and/or anxiety you may want to read this post:
I was reading a great book last night and it went into great detail about how important breathing is, other than the obvious. So, I thought I’d share it. The following information comes form the book, “Decoding the Dao: Nine Lessons in Daoist Meditation” by Tom Bisio:
“The effect of regular practice of breathing exercises had been shown to have a broad range of physiological effects:”
~Qi Gong breathing exercises were shown to lower the risk of stroke in Hypertensive patients.
~Those with Asthma who practiced breathing exercises or Qi Gong regularly were able to reduce their medication and took less sick leave due to respiratory issues.
~Breathing exercises have been proven to benefit the cardiovascular system by increasing cardiac output, oxygen uptake and adaptation to higher altitudes.
~”Diaphragmatic breathing rhythmically massages the internal organs and stimulates the brain” (Bisio, 25).
~”Slow, deep breathing has been shown to calm the mind, reducing anxiety and stress and reducing insomnia” (Bisio, 25)
“It has been clinically shown that slow, regular breathing at a rate of less than ten breaths per minute not only modulates blood pressure, but reverses the vascular pathology associated with hypertension. Regular practice of slowed breathing actually produced a drop in BP of 20-30 points” (Bisio, 25).