The effects of unilateral nostril breathing on brain functional network activity: a pilot study

Unilateral nostril breathing (UNB) has a history linked to ancient yogic traditions where it is believed to affect both physical and mental states however the mechanism(s) by which this technique potentially influences brain electrical activity remains poorly explored.

In this pilot study we investigated the influence of pressurised device-regulated UNB on brain functional network activity in healthy awake individuals to test its suitability for later use in hypothesis-driven clinical trials. Baseline bilateral EEG data were acquired, and then dominant/nondominant nostril UNB protocols were used to assess changes in brain network functional connectivity signal coherence, and phase lag index.

Changes in functional connectivity were detected only when comparing right to left UNB, with the following networks demonstrating changes: the Default Mode Network which included reduced alpha and increased beta wave activity; the Salience Network, which included increased gamma wave activity; the Auditory Network, which included increased gamma and delta wave activity; and the Left Brain Region, which included reduced delta wave activity.

This study revealed that device-regulated pressurised left/right UNB changed brain FC in awake healthy individuals in several brain networks. Nasal cycle dominance was found to play no role in UNB influencing brain FC; rather, nasal morphology (left/right side) seems to be the controlling factor. Further investigations are needed to verify our results and apply them to clinical populations.