Andrea Zaccaro
Psychophysiologist whose systematic review is the reason anyone can claim a mechanism for slow breathing at all.
Who they are
Zaccaro and colleagues reviewed the psychophysiological literature on slow breathing techniques, defined as fewer than ten breaths per minute, in healthy subjects.
The review is honest about the state of the question in a way that the commercial material built on it is not.
Key papers
Zaccaro, A., Piarulli, A., Laurino, M., Garbella, E., Menicucci, D., Neri, B., & Gemignani, A. (2018). How breath-control can change your life: a systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 12, 353.
Key ideas
The psycho-physiological changes observed in most meditative and relaxing practices rely on voluntarily slowing the breath.
The mechanisms linking breath control to those effects remain under debate, which the review states as its reason for existing.
Any article citing this work carries both halves.
Concepts on this site
Sources
- doi:10.3389/fnhum.2018.00353