A new study suggests that deliberately changing the rhythm of your breathing can influence how you make decisions by altering activity in both the heart and brain. Researchers from the German Institute of Human Nutrition Potsdam-Rehbruecke (DIfE) and Charité — Universitätsmedizin Berlin found that longer exhalations increased heart rate variability and made the brain more responsive to rewards, which was associated with bolder choices. The findings were published in Neuron.
Fast breathing and an elevated heart rate are often linked with rapid decision-making. Under pressure, people may become more cautious in an effort to avoid losses, whether they are making an investment, handling a tense workplace situation, or choosing a meal quickly. Slower breathing and a calmer cardiovascular state, by contrast, may encourage a more positive assessment of potential outcomes and make people more willing to take risks.
How Breathing Connects the Body and Brain
Decision-making has traditionally been viewed as a process centered mainly in the brain. The new research examined a broader possibility: that signals from other parts of the body can change brain activity and influence the choices people make.
The study was led by Prof. Soyoung Q Park in collaboration with researchers from institutions including the Neuroscience Research Center at Charité — Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, and the German Naval Institute of Maritime Medicine.
“Our decisions are rarely determined solely by external information. Rather, our judgment emerges from the interplay between cognitive processes and our current bodily state. It was previously unknown how the conscious regulation of our body, for example through targeted breathing, could actively control our decision-making process. We wanted to create a physiological shift using a slow breathing pattern to change the quality of our decisions,” explains Soyoung Q Park, head of the Department of Decision Neuroscience and Nutrition at DIfE, summarizing the research question.
Testing Whether Longer Exhales Change Decisions
The researchers studied 41 healthy participants while they made risky choices under carefully controlled breathing conditions. Participants followed visual breathing instructions and either breathed at their normal individual pace or slowed their breathing while extending the exhalation phase (2:8 inhale-exhale ratio).
As the participants completed a series of risk-related decisions, the research team measured several aspects of their physical and neurological responses. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to track brain activity, while breathing patterns, heart activity, skin conductance, and pupil responses were monitored at the same time.
This combination of measurements allowed the researchers to test whether extending the exhale did more than simply lower heart rate. They also wanted to determine whether the breathing pattern directly changed how the brain processed potential rewards.
Longer Exhalation Shifted Choices Toward Reward
The results showed that extended exhalation slowed heart rate and was associated with riskier choices. Importantly, the change appeared to come from greater attention to possible rewards rather than reduced concern about potential losses. Participants still responded to losses in a similar way.
The researchers also detected stronger activity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and the precuneus. These brain regions are involved in reward processing and in regulating the timing between heartbeats, a measure known as heart rate variability.
“Our study thus underscores the transformative role of breath-based interventions. The interplay between breathing and cardiac dynamics makes the brain more receptive to rewards,” explains lead author Wenhao Huang, interpreting the results.
What the Findings Could Mean for Breathing Techniques
The work adds to a growing field focused on body-brain communication and supports neurovisceral models, which propose that a person’s physical state can strongly shape cognitive processes.
Park explains: “Breathing techniques have accompanied humanity for millennia across various religions and cultures. With this study, we provide scientific proof that it is a reliable and targeted method capable of controlling our decisions.”
Because controlled breathing is simple, inexpensive, and relatively easy to learn, the researchers say it could have value as a tool for everyday self-regulation. It may also have potential as a supportive, non-pharmacological approach in clinical settings, particularly for conditions such as anxiety disorders or depression, which can involve disrupted autonomic regulation and altered responses to reward.
Could Breathing Influence Eating Behavior?
Future studies will need to determine whether the same effects appear in broader clinical populations, including people with overweight. The researchers are particularly interested in whether breathing techniques could influence food-related decisions, since eating behavior is strongly affected by both reward processing and a person’s physical state.
“Since dietary decisions are strongly influenced by reward assessment and physical state, targeted breath regulation could also play a role in consciously perceiving and more effectively managing eating behavior,” Park summarizes for future research activities.
This study was supported by the Federal Ministry for Research, Technology and Space [Grant 01GP2210C (DecEnt-Project), Grant 01EE2301E for the conceptual development of the German Center for Mental Health; Grant 82DZD03D03 (German Center for Diabetes Research)], the Ministry for Science, Research and Culture of the State of Brandenburg (MWFK). Ignacio Rebollo was supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action (MSCA) BRAINSTOM (grant agreement no. 101028203).
