German researchers have just shown that the body is not a mere executor of the brain's decisions: it is a full-fledged actor. By voluntarily lengthening the exhale, the heart rate slows down and certain brain areas activate differently, altering our evaluation of risks and benefits.
For a long time, neuroscience considered that decision-making emerged from a single calculation performed by the cortex. Yet anyone who has felt palpitations before an important choice knows that the physiological state muddies the waters. The novelty of this study, published in the journal
Neuron, is to demonstrate a causal link: by voluntarily controlling one's breathing, one can steer this bodily bias and use it as a lever to modify behavior, without any particular mental effort.
Unsplash illustration image The body, forgotten compass of our choices
Risky decisions are rarely the result of pure logic. The team of Professor Soyoung Q. Park, at the
German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke, recruited 41 volunteers to observe this phenomenon under controlled conditions. Each participant had to make a decision involving risk-taking, while following an imposed breathing rhythm. Half breathed normally, the other half followed a precise rhythm: two seconds to inhale, eight to exhale.
The results show that this simple lengthening of the exhale is enough to slow the heart and increase the variability of intervals between beats. This physiological parameter is a marker of nervous system flexibility. Above all, in participants with a long exhale, brain activity changed in two key regions: the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the precuneus. These areas are known for their role in reward evaluation and emotion regulation.
Volunteers who adopted this breathing then made riskier decisions, but not out of recklessness. Contrary to what one might think, they did not underestimate potential losses. In reality, their brain simply gave more weight to possible gains. The perception of risk remained intact, but the appeal of the reward became stronger, as if the brain changed its weighting system without the subject being aware of it.
A breath to better regulate oneself
These findings fit into a broader conception of cognition, called "neurovisceral," where the body's state constantly influences higher mental processes. Researchers speak of a "transformative role" of breathing techniques. Unlike medications or lengthy therapies, this method is accessible to everyone, costs nothing, and can be learned in minutes. It could become a daily regulation tool for those who struggle to take the plunge or, conversely, to curb their impulses.
Potential applications go beyond the mere context of professional life or financial choices. The authors even suggest extending this work to populations suffering from anxiety or depressive disorders. In these pathologies, heart rate variability is often reduced and reward perception altered. Using breathing as a non-medication complement could restore some of this physiological flexibility and improve response to treatments.
The next step will be to verify whether these effects are reproduced in overweight people, in particular. Professor Park recalls that food decisions are closely dependent on reward evaluation and bodily state. If breathing can influence this mechanism, it would then become a simple ally to better manage cravings or impulses. A promising research avenue, at the crossroads of neuroscience and behavioral medicine.
Author of the article: Cédric DEPOND