A brain-imaging study presented at the ECNP Congress in Munich and detailed by European College of Neuropsychopharmacology reveals that intensive breathwork reduces global grey-matter cerebral blood flow by up to 45% while altering neural communication across key brain networks, inducing psychedelic-like states of consciousness in experienced practitioners.
Cerebral Blood Flow Reduction During High-Ventilation Breathwork
Thirty healthy, experienced breathwork practitioners performed high-ventilation breathing exercises inside an MRI scanner. Global grey-matter cerebral blood flow dropped significantly during the sessions, plunging on average from 16.24 to 9.81 ml/100g/min. Participants reported strong altered states of consciousness. They described these shifts as a predominantly oceanic state—a deep feeling of connection to the universe—resembling the effects of a moderate to high dose of LSD or psilocybin, though accompanied by less pronounced visual phenomena.
Neural Network Alterations in the Default Mode Network
The imaging data showed that the intensity of the subjective experience was not driven solely by reduced blood flow. Instead, the degree of altered consciousness might track more closely with changes in communication within the brain’s default mode network, a system heavily involved in self-reflection and self-related thinking. Individuals reporting the strongest altered states exhibited the most pronounced communication shifts within this network.
Lead researcher Dr Christian Schmitz from the Central Institute of Mental Health in Mannheim, Germany, noted the gap in previous literature:
Many people who practice intensive breathwork report profound changes in perception and self-experience, yet the underlying brain mechanisms remain poorly understood. Our study suggests that these experiences are linked not only to marked changes in cerebral blood flow, but also to alterations in how key brain networks communicate. Central Institute
Implications for Non-Pharmacological Mental Health Interventions
Co-Coordinator Hana Adolphi pointed out the practical accessibility of the practice:
Breathwork is a legal, inexpensive and non-pharmacological intervention that may provide a valuable tool for studying altered states of consciousness. Understanding these mechanisms could also help inform future research into novel approaches for mental health treatment. Nevertheless, this was a relatively small study, and the findings should be considered preliminary. Larger studies will be needed to determine whether these brain changes have clinical relevance. Hana Adolphi
Independent commentary from Dr Guy Fincham of the Brighton and Sussex Medical School in the UK highlights the broader translational potential:
This study is intriguing as it is starting to extend findings from recent breathwork research that intensive breathing practices may yield altered states of consciousness which individuals describe in ways analogous to psychedelic compounds, and under brain-imaging conditions. These findings are important because such altered subjective experiences may be harnessed for the improvement of mental health, and an accessible non-pharmacological route such a breathwork could prove invaluable for many. We should note that the study was uncontrolled and the sample was made up of experienced practitioners, so replication of this in breathwork-naïve participants using a randomised-controlled design will help determine whether these findings can translate more widely and produce therapeutic benefit.
Professor David Nutt of Imperial College, London, who was also not involved in the research, added:
Breathwork is a non-pharmacological bridge to our research into psychedelics, so research which helps us understand how it functions is welcome.
