We can all agree that breathing is essential and one of the most important life-sustaining functions, if not the most important. We can go without eating, drinking and sleeping for days and only minutes without breathing. Besides the apparent gas exchange function, breathing also regulates our pH and can quickly influence our autonomic nervous system. Thus, knowing how to breathe well can positively affect our health and well-being, decrease stress and increase our mental and physical performance. When done well, altering our natural breathing pattern, which is what we do when practising pranayama or other breathwork techniques, can be very beneficial. However, altering our breathing patterns can be detrimental if the technique is not for us, is too advanced, or is based on misconceptions and pseudoscience.
Unfortunately, many people who teach various breath-altering techniques such as pranayama or yogic breathing do not understand the physiology of breathing and do not take an individual approach, which in this case is crucial. That is why there are so many misconceptions about breathing everywhere, and amateurish posts on social media have only perpetuated them. We live in an era of easy access to information. However, that does not mean all the information we find is correct or accurate, and we must be wise when choosing what information to believe and from which sources.
Deliberate hyperventilation
One of the most common misconceptions about altering our natural breathing pattern is related to hyperventilation or deliberate overbreathing. If you have never studied the physiology of breathing, it might seem logical that breathing more will increase oxygen in our bodies. However, that is not the case. Even though it might sound counterintuitive, it actually does the opposite in terms of oxygen delivery to tissues. Unless you suffer from chronic lung disease or sleep apnea, your blood is already highly saturated with oxygen (95–100%) when you breathe normally and optimally. Overbreathing will not increase that percentage.
However, exhaling too much carbon dioxide (CO₂) reduces cerebral blood flow and increases haemoglobin’s affinity for oxygen, impairing its release to the brain and other tissues. This can cause symptoms such as lightheadedness, dizziness, weakness, a feeling of not being able to catch your breath, increased heart rate, muscle spasms, and tingling. I am sure you agree that none of these symptoms have health benefits. Furthermore, deliberate hyperventilation can trigger anxiety, panic, and exacerbate other mental health conditions.
So, why does anyone practise or teach hyperventilation? One reason is the misconception of increased oxygen. For example, a popular surf-coaching Instagram account that I follow(ed) recently posted a video in which a pro surfer is practising a hyperventilating technique before going into the water. The caption stated that this can “hyper-oxygenate your blood” and enhance performance. Besides this statement being wrong, deliberate hyperventilation can be dangerous, especially before entering the water, as it increases the risk of shallow-water blackout. Even though some knowledgeable people pointed this out in the comments, the post is still out there, gaining visibility (1.2 million views and almost 81k likes at the time of writing).
What about Yogic Pranayama?
Translated from Sanskrit, pranayama means to “extend the vital force.” Yogic sages who lived in a time when people did not understand human anatomy and physiology nevertheless seemed to have intuited that efficient breathing generally means breathing less, not more. A few yogic breathing techniques, such as Kapalabhati and Bhastrika, do involve rapid, forceful breathing and therefore physiological hyperventilation. Traditionally, however, they are classified as kriyas, cleansing or preparatory practices, rather than as pranayama.
Kapalabhati is often translated as “skull-shining breath.” To unpack the terms, kapal means “skull” and bhati can mean “light” or “shining.” The lightheadedness and altered state of consciousness often experienced during this practice are not mystical phenomena but the result of changes in blood gases, pH, and cerebral blood flow associated with hypocapnia. For many, this can be unsettling and anxiety-provoking.
One of the ideas behind these kriyas may have been to prepare the respiratory musculature and system to extend the breath rather than shorten it. In this respect, they were not entirely wrong: techniques involving forceful exhalation can indeed strengthen the expiratory muscles. However, today we have more precise and safer ways to train the respiratory system that provide similar benefits without the same counterindications. Ancient yogic sages were ingenious in many ways, but that does not mean they were always physiologically correct.
Final Thoughts
In summary, many forms of breathwork involve deliberate hyperventilation. Unfortunately, a number of these techniques are still justified by faulty theories arising from misconceptions and a lack of understanding of respiratory physiology. While certain breathing practices, often those that reduce rather than increase overall ventilation, can be beneficial when applied appropriately, any deliberate alteration of breathing can disrupt homeostasis. It is therefore essential to know what you are doing before practising or teaching such methods.
Unless someone suffers from the conditions mentioned earlier, most people today tend to chronically overbreathe. In such cases, the therapeutic approach is generally to reduce minute ventilation rather than increase it, typically by slowing the breathing rate and normalising tidal volume, often through slower nasal breathing rather than simply taking “deeper” breaths.
