Daily mindfulness practice with and without slow breathing has opposing effects on plasma amyloid beta levels.
Kaoru Nashiro, B Rael Cahn, Paul Choi, Hye Rynn J Lee, Shaakhini Satchi, Jungwon Min, Hyun Joo Yoo, Christine Cho, Noah Mercer, Lorena Sordo, Elizabeth Head, Jeiran Choupan, Mara Mather
medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences March 11, 2025 preprint DOI: 10.1101/2025.03.10.25323695 via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA week of daily mindfulness meditation with slow breathing lowered blood levels of amyloid beta, a protein linked to Alzheimer's disease, while the same practice with normal breathing raised those levels. A control group that did not meditate showed no change. The results suggest that slow breathing may be a mechanism through which meditation influences biological pathways relevant to Alzheimer's disease.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial |
|---|---|
| Duration | One week |
| Citations | 2 |
| Key finding | Slow breathing during mindfulness meditation decreased plasma amyloid beta levels, whereas normal breathing during meditation increased them, and a no-intervention control group showed no changes. |
Abstract
Prior research suggests that meditation may slow brain aging and reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, we lack research systematically examining what aspect(s) of meditation may drive such benefits. In particular, it is unknown how breathing patterns during meditation might influence health outcomes associated with AD. In this study, we examined whether two types of mindfulness meditation practices - one with slow breathing and one with normal breathing - differently affect plasma amyloid beta (Aβ) relative to a no-intervention control group. One week of daily mindfulness practice with slow breathing decreased plasma Aβ levels whereas one week of daily mindfulness practice with normal breathing increased them. The no-intervention control group showed no changes in plasma Aβ levels. Slow breathing appears to be a factor through which meditative practices can influence pathways relevant for AD.