Do blood pressure responses to slow breathing differ between men and women, and what are the autonomic contributors to these changes?
Slow-Breathing Pacer Device, studied in 10, participants (J Appl Physiol 2019, PMID 31436511) — overall, slow breathing reduced systolic blood pressure by 3.2±0.8 mmHg. Cardiovagal baroreflex sensitivity improved during slow breathing (21.0 vs. 36.0 ms/mmHg), with no effect of sex.
Source: J Appl Physiol 2019, PMID 31436511 ↗ · Research map · How Magellan grades evidence · evidence confidence: high
J Appl Physiol · 2019 · PMID 31436511 · DOI 10.1152/japplphysiol.00442.2019
Device-guided slow breathing effectively reduces blood pressure and sympathetic activity in both young normotensive men and women.
The question
Do blood pressure responses to slow breathing differ between men and women, and what are the autonomic contributors to these changes?
What they tested
An acute bout of slow breathing would induce larger decreases in blood pressure in males than in females, given that males typically have higher resting blood pressure.
How they did it
Normotensive females (n=10, age: 22±2 y) and males (n=12, age: 23±3 y) were tested at baseline and during the last 5 minutes of a 15-minute RESPeRATE-guided slow breathing session. Measurements included blood pressure, muscle sympathetic nerve activity, and spontaneous cardiovagal and vascular sympathetic baroreflex sensitivity.
What they found
Overall, slow breathing reduced systolic blood pressure by 3.2±0.8 mmHg. Females had lower systolic blood pressure, but there was no interaction between sex and slow breathing. Slow breathing also reduced muscle sympathetic nerve activity burst incidence by -5.0±1.4 bursts/100 heartbeats, with no interaction between sex and slow breathing. Cardiovagal baroreflex sensitivity improved during slow breathing (21.0 vs. 36.0 ms/mmHg), with no effect of sex.
| Systolic BP Reduction | 3.2 | |
|---|---|---|
| MSNA Burst Incidence Reduction | 5 | |
| Cardiovagal BRS Baseline | 21 | |
| Cardiovagal BRS During SLOWB | 36 |
Slow breathing reduced systolic blood pressure by 3.2 mmHg and muscle sympathetic nerve activity burst incidence by 5.0 bursts/100 heartbeats. Cardiovagal baroreflex sensitivity improved from 21.0 ms/mmHg at baseline to 36.0 ms/mmHg during slow breathing.
What it means
Slow breathing is equally effective in reducing blood pressure in both males and females, even in young, normotensive individuals, despite females having lower overall blood pressure. The RESPeRATE device is effective for reducing blood pressure in both sexes.
Limitations
The study was conducted on young, normotensive individuals, which may limit generalizability to other populations, such as those with hypertension.
The paper at a glance
| Title | Device-guided slow breathing reduces blood pressure and sympathetic activity in young normotensive individuals |
|---|---|
| Journal | J Appl Physiol |
| Year | 2019 |
| PMID | 31436511 ↗ |
| DOI | 10.1152/japplphysiol.00442.2019 ↗ |
| Topic | Cardiovascular & vascular aging |
Read the source: PubMed record (authors, abstract, full citation) ↗ · Publisher via doi.org ↗
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Slow-Breathing Pacer Device
Non-drug blood pressure reduction. Research relevant to this mechanism is indexed on PubMed and linked below; it describes the mechanism rather than this specific product.
Molecules & mechanisms in this paper
Each of these is named in the paper’s own words above. Open the monograph for the full mechanism and its other citations.
Cite this page
These citations point at this summary. To cite the original paper with its full author list, use the PubMed record or doi.org.
Magellan Longevity. (2026). Do blood pressure responses to slow breathing differ between men and women, and what are the autonomic contributors to these changes? [Plain-English summary of J Appl Physiol 2019, PMID 31436511, DOI 10.1152/japplphysiol.00442.2019]. Magellan Longevity. https://magellanlongevity.com/study/d31436511.html@misc{magellan_d31436511,
title = {Do blood pressure responses to slow breathing differ between men and women, and what are the autonomic contributors to these changes?},
author = {{Magellan Longevity}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {\url{https://magellanlongevity.com/study/d31436511.html}},
note = {Plain-English summary of PubMed PMID 31436511; DOI 10.1152/japplphysiol.00442.2019; J Appl Physiol 2019. Reviewed by Gabriel Radu, DO},
urldate = {2026-08-11}
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