Moon Breath
Breathwork5 minStartingPranayamaPranayamaPremium
Breathe in through the left nostril and let a long exhale leave through the right. Known in pranayama as Chandra Bhedana — the cooling moon breath — it is a quiet way to downshift before sleep. Skip it when your nose is congested.
Available durations
Breathing pattern
The research behind this practice
Left-Nostril Breathing Lowers Heart Rate and Blood Pressure
A study of 22 patients with essential hypertension examined a single five-minute session of chandra nadi pranayama — 27 rounds of left-nostril breathing at six breaths per minute. The session produced a statistically significant decrease in heart rate and systolic blood pressure, along with a significant reduction in rate-pressure product, an index of cardiac workload. Diastolic pressure also trended downward. The authors attribute the effect to increased parasympathetic activity driven by slow, left-nostril-dominant breathing, and suggest the practice as a simple, low-effort way to settle the cardiovascular system.
Source: Bhavanani et al., 2012, International Journal of Yoga
Read the studyPractice this in the Still You app
We're launching soon.
