The simple 5-minute breathing exercise that will make you happy (and it’s even better than mindfulness!)

From HIIT to breaking into a dance class, exercise has long been known to do wonders for the mind.

But researchers have now discovered another way to boost your mood – through deep breathing exercises.

And they can be even better than mindfulness, which the NHS has already shown to help us enjoy life more.

Experts from Stanford University found that people who did breathing exercises for five minutes every day for a month improved their anxiety and mood more than those who meditated alone.

The experiment asked 108 participants to do one of three breathing exercises or mindfulness meditations for 5 minutes a day at home, at a time that suits them best.

The first exercise – cyclic sighing – was performed by 30 people. It was all about inhaling slowly before taking shorter breaths to fully inflate their lungs and then exhaling as long as possible.

About 21 participants tried breathing instead. This meant: Breathe in, hold your breath, breathe out and hold the breath out again.

The last exercise – cyclic hyperventilation – asked 33 people to take a deep breath and take 30 shorter breaths before exhaling completely.

The final 24 participants were enrolled in Moor Standard awareness. They did not practice specific breath control, instead observing their breathing to bring their attention to the present.

After a month, the participants filled in two questionnaires to assess the effects of the exercises on their anxiety levels.

The results were compared with two questionnaires that they all completed before the 28-day trial period.

In the journal Cell Reports Medicine, researchers write that the effects in the breathing work groups are “significantly higher”.

The NHS defines mindfulness as “paying more attention to the present moment – to your own thoughts and feelings and to the world around you”.

Deep breathing exercises can be one type of exercise practiced.

Anxiety is intense, excessive and persistent worry and anxiety about everyday situations. This often results in a rapid heartbeat, rapid breathing, sweating and a feeling of exhaustion.

According to Mind, a mental health charity, six per cent of people in the UK suffer from generalized anxiety disorder (GAD).

It is estimated that about 6.8 million adults in the U.S.—or 3.1 percent of the population—also have GAD.

Stanford researcher Dr. Commenting on the study’s findings, Melis Yilmaz Balban said: “Our understanding of the effects of breathing on the brain and body should enable us to design specific science-based breathing practices to improve stress tolerance, improve sleep energy, focus and creativity and.” to regulate emotional and cognitive states.’

Breathing exercises that emphasize exhaling over inhaling each breath are “more effective for reducing anxiety and improving well-being,” she added.

Researchers also assessed whether study participants noticed changes in their sleep patterns.

But after the Stanford University team looked at the number of hours they slept, their sleep efficiency and overall sleep score, they found no significant changes in either group.

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