What happens in Alzheimer’s disease?
According to the National Institute of Health in the US, Alzheimer’s disease is a brain ailment that gradually erodes memory and thinking abilities and the capacity to do even the most basic tasks. The majority of Alzheimer’s patients have their initial symptoms later in life.
Recent studies have identified a straightforward breathing technique that, if used regularly, may lower your risk of acquiring Alzheimer’s.
Reduce your risk by practicing breathing exercises
This workout entails inhaling for five counts, followed by an equal amount of exhalation time. The level of amyloid beta in the participants’ blood was shown to be lowered after four weeks of practicing this breathing exercise for 20 minutes twice daily. For those who are unfamiliar, the term “amyloid” refers to the aberrant protein-rich, extracellular fibrous deposits that are seen in organs and tissues.
In what ways does it help?
Clusters of these dangerous proteins have been revealed to be strongly associated with Alzheimer’s and may even be its primary cause, according to research.
According to researchers, this breathing exercise has such an impact on amyloid because breathing patterns affect heart rates. This impacts how our neurological system functions and how toxins are produced and eliminated by the brain.
Regarding the study
The Leonard Davis School of Gerontology at the University of Southern California employed that simple breathing exercise in their research. The results were released in the Nature Portfolio journal. One hundred-eight people between 18 and 80 were a part of the study. They were instructed to perform this breathing exercise for 20 minutes twice daily while being linked to a laptop and cardiac monitor.
Half of the participants were instructed to focus on relaxing thoughts while breathing. Additionally, they were told to monitor the pulse rate line on the laptop’s screen to make sure it was as constant as possible. The other half of the group was instructed to synchronize their breathing to a pacer on the laptop screen monitor to raise their heart rate variability (HRV), or the variation in the time intervals between adjacent heartbeats.
What was discovered?
Regarding the results, High blood levels of amyloid beta have been shown to indicate a higher likelihood of getting Alzheimer’s disease, according to analysis.
The researchers discovered that the group that tried to enhance their heart rate variability by increasing oscillations while breathing slowly also had less amyloid in their blood.
The advice of scientists
scientists recommend that a low-cost and low-risk method to lower plasma amyloid beta levels and maintain them low throughout adulthood, according to Professor Mara Mather, director of the Emotion & Cognition Lab at the Leonard Davis School of Gerontology, is to practice deep breathing via HRV biofeedback regularly.
