Our breathing pattern affects how much we remember?

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Article link: http://neurosciencenews.com/memory-fear-breathing-5699/

The study done at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine showed that the rhythm in which we breathe produces electrical activity in the brain. This allows us to judge emotions and remember things more accurately. For example, the study showed results of inhaling through your mouth to increase the speed of identifying a fearful face. If a memory was produced during an inhaled breath, it was more likely recalled. This is because neurons are stimulated in the amygdala (emotion) and hippocampus (memory) during an inhaled breath.


This topic interested me because I never think about how my breathing patterns benefit or hurt me. Breathing is a natural thing that every human does 24/7. In the gym or during anxious situations, the correct way to breathe is to breathe in through your nose and breathe out through your mouth. This type of breathing is intended to increase circulation, blood oxygen levels, and slow heart rate. The article has given me tip for studying. While trying to memorize terms I will make sure I breathe in during my studies. Not only is this an interesting discovery, but this technique can also be very useful and beneficial to high school students as well.

Comments

  1. Eddie HanleyMay 1, 2017 at 10:44 PM

    As I read the original title of this article I felt as though, from my basic understanding of biology combined with the lectures from this semester, that this would be the case. Evolutionary psychology can easily explain this phenomenon, as increased breath is associated with a "fight-or-flight" activation of the sympathetic nervous system. One could see why it is an evolutionary advantage for a human to remember everything that happens when at an aroused state as the events that occur within these states are often most important for survival, including surviving fear or even having sex.

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  2. UnknownMay 1, 2017 at 11:16 PM

    I thought this article was really interesting especially when you think about it in terms of situations when breathing patterns and memory recollection can be extreme. For example in a true fight or flight or a traumatic moment it is likely that you are not going to be breathing correctly and in many cases the memories of those things can be hard to recollect than if you were meditating and were breathing deeply. I never really thought of it before but from now on I will have to make sure I am in control of my breathing patterns when trying to remember things better.

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