TY - JOUR
T1 - Effects of voluntary slow breathing on heart rate and heart rate variability
T2 - a systematic review and a meta-analysis
AU - Laborde, S.
AU - Allen, M. S.
AU - Borges, U.
AU - Dosseville, F.
AU - Hosang, T. J.
AU - Iskra, M.
AU - Mosley, E.
AU - Salvotti, C.
AU - Spolverato, L.
AU - Zammit, N.
AU - Javelle, F.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors would like to thank Serena Backschat, Paula Beck, Jonas Kraus, Helen Hammelberg, Zeinab Ghiami, Madita Schröder, Frederik Seiter, Simone Sparascio, Gordon Thomas, Alina Utecht, David Voß, and Katharina Weber for their help in the realization of this paper.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2022/7
Y1 - 2022/7
N2 - Voluntary slow breathing (VSB) is used as a prevention technique to support physical and mental health, given it is suggested to influence the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). However, to date, no comprehensive quantitative review exists to support or refute this claim. We address this through a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of VSB on heart rate variability (HRV). Specifically, we focus on HRV parameters indexing PNS activity regulating cardiac functioning, referred to as vagally-mediated (vm)HRV: (1) during the breathing session (i.e., DURING), (2) immediately after one training session (i.e., IM-AFTER1), as well as (3) after a multi-session intervention (i.e., AFTER-INT). From the 1842 selected abstracts, 223 studies were suitable for inclusion (172 DURING, 16 IM-AFTER1, and 49 AFTER-INT). Results indicate increases in vmHRV with VSB, DURING, IM-AFTER1, and AFTER-INT. Given the involvement of the PNS in a large range of health-related outcomes and conditions, VSB exercises could be advised as a low-tech and low-cost technique to use in prevention and adjunct treatment purposes, with few adverse effects expected.
AB - Voluntary slow breathing (VSB) is used as a prevention technique to support physical and mental health, given it is suggested to influence the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS). However, to date, no comprehensive quantitative review exists to support or refute this claim. We address this through a systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of VSB on heart rate variability (HRV). Specifically, we focus on HRV parameters indexing PNS activity regulating cardiac functioning, referred to as vagally-mediated (vm)HRV: (1) during the breathing session (i.e., DURING), (2) immediately after one training session (i.e., IM-AFTER1), as well as (3) after a multi-session intervention (i.e., AFTER-INT). From the 1842 selected abstracts, 223 studies were suitable for inclusion (172 DURING, 16 IM-AFTER1, and 49 AFTER-INT). Results indicate increases in vmHRV with VSB, DURING, IM-AFTER1, and AFTER-INT. Given the involvement of the PNS in a large range of health-related outcomes and conditions, VSB exercises could be advised as a low-tech and low-cost technique to use in prevention and adjunct treatment purposes, with few adverse effects expected.
KW - Abdominal breathing
KW - Cardiac coherence
KW - Deep breathing
KW - Diaphragmatic breathing
KW - Heart rate variability biofeedback
KW - Parasympathetic nervous system
KW - Slow breathing
KW - Vagus nerve
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85131119531&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104711
DO - 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104711
M3 - Review article
C2 - 35623448
AN - SCOPUS:85131119531
SN - 0149-7634
VL - 138
JO - Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews
JF - Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews
M1 - 104711
ER -