A Randomized Controlled Trial of Ujjayi Breath and Paced Breath has no Effect on Cardiovascular Reactivity to Mental Stress in Young Adults

Colicchio, Maggie

A Randomized Controlled Trial of Ujjayi Breath and Paced Breath has no Effect on Cardiovascular Reactivity to Mental Stress in Young Adults

Persistent URL

http://hdl.handle.net/10456/42767

Author(s)

Colicchio, Maggie

Date Issued

April 3, 2017

Abstract

The cardiovascular reactivity hypothesis proposed hyperactivity of the sympathetic nervous system to acute stress as a nontraditional, psychosocial risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease - the leading cause of mortality in the United States. Pranayama has been observed to increase parasympathetic activity, in turn decreasing sympathetic activity, reducing the risk for CVD. The present study compared cardiovascular reactivity to a mental stressor in participants who practiced the pranayama techniques of Ujjayi breathing (n=15) or paced breathing (n=15), to normal breathing (n=15). Heart rate, systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure were recorded while participants performed a validated stress task. No significant differences of cardiovascular reactivity were observed between groups, in opposition to what was predicted. Unexpectedly, the subjective measures of the stress task demonstrated that the Ujjayi breathing and paced breathing groups perceived the stress task as significantly more difficult, stressful and negative, as well as rated their performance as being more poor when compared to the control group. These differences of subjective measures did not accord with the physiology between groups. This suggested that there is some stress relieving benefit to regulating breath because there were no differences between the conditions on any cardiovascular parameter during the mental stress task, even though the two breathing groups rated their perceptions of the task as significantly more difficult, stressful, and negatively impactful. This study supported the notion that pranayama has the potential to reduce cardiovascular reactivity in response to a mental stressor, if the novelty of the breathing practices is eliminated through practice.

Major

Neuroscience

Honors

Neuroscience, 2017

First Reader(s)

Conklin, Sarah M.