Senobi Breathing Stretch May Reduce Need for Emergency Asthma Treatment

I wrote earlier in the year about using the Senobi breathing method for aiding with obesity and now another study has been performed looking at eliminating emergency asthma symptoms using the same method.  Researchers from the Department of Internal Medicine at Meirin Junior College in Niigata Japan explored the senobi technique for asthma.  As asthma rates are increasing worldwide (pollution, poor diet, and lack of exercise) ways to reduce these symptoms are becoming very important.

The researchers used heart rate variability measurements to determine levels of parasympathetic (rest and digest) nerve dominance.  Higher levels of parasympathetic control are thought to lead to asthma symptoms as the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) is in control of opening the airway passages.  The senobi stretch is thought to active the sympathetic nervous system thus opening airway passages.

Asthmatic patients were asked to engage in the senobi stretch exercise regularly for 1 month.  At the conclusion of this month the majority of patients showed a decrease in use of their inhalers and showed an increase in expiratory volume.

From our earlier article, the senobi method is as follows:  "can be performed seated or standing and with fingers intertwined or hands apart.  Basically you extend your hands above your head, palms away (with either fingers intertwined or not), lean back (neck arched towards back) - this posture imposes abdominal breathing.  You then inhale for 5 seconds and exhale for 5 seconds - repeating 3 times (total of 30 seconds)".