Key result
A combined 14-day intervention of breathing techniques and cold exposure significantly reduced perceived stress compared to a control group (MD 0.583, p=0.013).
Why the study?
The study was conducted to evaluate the potential of a pranayama-inspired breathing technique, cold exposure, and their combined application to reduce perceived stress in adults compared to a control group.
Does combined breathing technique and cold exposure reduce perceived stress in adults?
RCT (n=86)
Block randomization
Does combined breathing technique and cold exposure reduce perceived stress in adults?
Mean Difference: 0.583 (95% CI 0.09–1.07)
Absolute Event Rate: 2.16% vs 2.74%
p-value: p=0.013
A 14-day intervention combining a pranayama-inspired breathing technique and cold exposure significantly reduced perceived stress in adults compared to no intervention.
May support adjunctive stress reduction in adults; leaves open efficacy pending larger randomized trials.
A pranayama-inspired breathing technique, cold exposure, and their combined application were assessed for their potential to reduce perceived stress in adults and compared to a control group. An experiment involving four groups was conducted, yielding separate cells for breathing technique-only and cold exposure-only, as well as a combined treatment and a control group. Eighty-six individuals participated in the study. Perceived stress is measured employing the 10-item version of the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) and the 20-item version of the Perceived Stress Questionnaire (PSQ). The instruments exhibit a substantial correlation (r = 0.842, p < 0.001). The combined group exhibited a medium to large positive effect on perceived stress compared to the control group. The breathing technique and cold exposure on their own were not found to yield substantial effects, indicating synergies between both exercises. Combinations of breathing techniques and cold exposure may be employed to decrease individuals' perceived stress.
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Kopplin et al. (2022) conducted an RCT in Perceived stress (n=86). Combined breathing techniques and cold exposure vs. Control group (no training), breathing technique only, cold exposure only was evaluated on Perceived stress measured by the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) (MD 0.583, 95% CI 0.09-1.07, p=0.013). A combined 14-day intervention of breathing techniques and cold exposure significantly reduced perceived stress compared to a control group (MD 0.583, p=0.013).
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