uni nostril breathing and scientific evidence

[Guest guest]

Dear Terri:

 

 

There is lots of research on meditations and breathing with particular

emphasis on stress release and specific performance.

 

 

I am not aware of scientific evidence that relates left nostril breathing

with awakening the right brain and right nostril breathing with the left

brain. That does not mean it does not exist. You can do a quick search in a

college library to see the volume of research on yogic techniques.

 

 

You can also trying searching on the internet.

 

 

My personal approach when I have nurses or doctors in my classes or anyone

who is scientifically inclined is to tell them this: "Yogic teachings tell

us that [fill what you mean to say]. I invite you to practice for yourself

and convince yourself. If someone in the audience is in the position to test

any of this I'd be glad to see it."

 

 

And continue your class. No one will object.

 

 

Blessings,

 

Awtar S.

 

Rochester, NY

[Guest guest]

Hi, Terri,

there are indeed some studies on right or left nostril breathing, like  these:

 

"Yoga breathing through a  particular nostril increases spatial memory scores

without lateralized  effects," by Naveen KV; Nagarathna R; Nagendra HR;

Telles S., of the  Vivekananda Kendra Yoga Research Foundation, Bangalore, India,

in Psychol Rep,  1997 Oct, 81:2, 555-61. 

Abstract  

Uninostril breathing  facilitates the performance on spatial and verbal

cognitive tasks, said to  be right and left brain functions, respectively. Since

hemispheric memory  functions are also known to be lateralized, the present

study assessed the  effects of uninostril breathing on the performance in verbal

and spatial  memory tests. School children (N = 108 whose ages ranged from 10

to 17  years) were randomly assigned to four groups. Each group practiced a 

specific yoga breathing technique: (i) right nostril breathing, (ii) left 

nostril breathing, (iii) alternate nostril breathing, or (iv) breath  awareness

without manipulation of nostrils. These techniques were  practiced for 10 days.

Verbal and spatial memory was assessed initially  and after 10 days. An

age-matched control group of 27 were similarly  assessed. All 4 trained groups showed

a significant increase in spatial  test scores at retest, but the control

group showed no change. Average  increase in spatial memory scores for the

trained groups was 84%. It  appears yoga breathing increases spatial rather than

verbal scores,  without a lateralized effect. 

 

 

"Pranayama increases grip  strength without lateralized effects," Raghuraj P;

Nagarathna R; Nagendra HR;  Telles S of the Vivekananda Kendra Yoga Research

Foundation, Bangalore, India,  in the Indian J Physiol Pharmacol, 1997 Apr,

41:2, 129-33. 

Abstract  

The present study was  conducted to determine whether breathing through a

particular nostril has  a lateralized effect on hand grip strength. 130 right

hand dominant,  school children between 11 and 18 yrs of age were randomly

assigned to 5  groups. Each group had a specific yoga practice in addition to the

regular  program for a 10 day yoga camp. The practices were: (1) right-, (2)

left-,  (3) alternate- nostril breathing (4), breath awareness and (5) practice

of  mudras. Hand grip strength of both hands was assessed initially and at the 

end of 10 days for all 5 groups. The right-, left- and alternate-nostril 

breathing groups had a significant increase in grip strength of both  hands,

ranging from 4.1% to 6.5%, at the end of the camp though without  any

lateralization effect. The breath awareness and mudra groups showed no  change. 

 

Furthermore, I had a feedback from a body-therapist working mostly with 

people suffering from a stroke. She told me that with alternating  nostril

breathing, people were recovering much more easily and regained  their speech and

hand coordination much quicker.

 

 

I personally presume that lateral breathing arouses a nerve plexus at  the

bridge of the nose and thus induces impulses for the brain. As far as I  know,

right nostril breathing activates left brain hemisphere and  vice-versa. I

tried to have a tooth-operation just with left nostril  breathing - and it

functioned well. The pain was absolutely  tolerable.

 

 

Hope that helps.

 

 

Much love and light

 

 

Sadhana K.,  Germany