The nervous system is the body's communication superhighway, with around 80% of vagus nerve traffic flowing from the body to the brain. The brain uses these nerves to collect information from your senses and organs, shaping thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.
Because of the bidirectional nature of nerve fibers, changing the body - through breath, posture, or movement - can profoundly influence your mood and health.
Breathing patterns and rates respond almost instantaneously to changes in the autonomic nervous system. Controlled by both the sympathetic (fight-or-flight) and parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) branches, breathing patterns shift rapidly with stress or relaxation.
For example, stress induces rapid, shallow breathing, while calm states produce slower, deeper breaths. Research shows that breathing rate can reflect nervous system changes within seconds, faster than other metrics like heart rate or cortisol levels.
This makes it an invaluable real-time indicator of physiological and emotional states.
HRV-BF has been clinically studied for it’s positive impacts on health, performance, and emotional wellbeing.
Any tool that is designed to improve your health should be based in science and evidence, not guesswork. At Ohm, we believe that your well-being deserves the same rigorous foundation as any other aspect of healthcare. That’s why every feature, every function, and every benefit of our tool is rooted in peer-reviewed research and clinical studies. By grounding our design in proven methods, we ensure that what we offer isn’t just helpful—it’s truly effective for your health.
Research demonstrates that HRV-BF is an effective tool for supporting heart health. Specifically, HRV-BF has been found to reduce blood pressure and improve heart rate variability indices through cardiac vagal activation.
This study, conducted on 43 individuals with pre-hypertension, demonstrated that 10 sessions of HRV-BF over 5 weeks reduces blood pressure, increases baroreflex sensitivity, and increases heart rate variability for up to 3 months post-test. HRV-BF also significantly decreased galvanic skin response (a measure of stress).
This meta-analysis of 988 participants across 20 studies found that biofeedback leads to a significant improvements in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
This systematic review found positive clinical effects of HRV-B on disease outcomes in terms of short and long-term effects in cardiovascular disease rehabilitation programs. High levels of evidence for the benefits of HRV-BF were found in CHD and hypertension.
This study analyzed the health outcomes of 210 participants with coronary artery disease (CAD). HRV-BF training significantly improved heart rate variability and cardiovascular prognosis post-intervention and at a one year follow up compared to the control group.
This study on 65 hypertensive participants found that practicing HRV-BF at home (6 one hour sessions across two months) significantly decreases systolic blood pressure and increases HF power compared to control groups.
This systematic review of 1127 participants across 29 studies found that biofeedback leads stress reduction and positive emotion enhancement and maintained long-term persistent benefits. HRV-BF was also found to positively affect BP in hypertensive subjects and cardiovascular prognosis in cardiac patients
This study, conducted as three individual RPI biofeedback sessions on 22 participants across three weeks, found that biofeedback has a significant effect on elevating systolic and diastolic low blood pressure, as well as reducing high blood pressure.
This meta-analysis across 12 studies (9 of which were RCTs) found that HRV-BF was associated with significantly lower rates of all-cause readmissions for individuals with CHD. Additionally, HRV-BF was associated with a reduction in systolic and diastolic blood pressure in pre-hypertensive patients.
Research demonstrates that HRV-BF is an effective tool for supporting mental health and emotional wellbeing. Specifically, HRV-BF has been found to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression by strengthening the body’s parasympathetic response.
This meta-analysis of 794 participants across 14 randomly controlled trials (RCT) found that HRV-BF improves depressive symptoms and should be considered as a valid technique to increase psychological well-being.
This meta-analysis of 484 participants across 24 studies found that HRV-BF was associated with a large reduction in self-reported stress and anxiety, with an effect size (g = 0.83) equivalent to gold standard treatments such as SSRIs.
This study, conducted on 62 participants over the course of 6 months found that HRV-BF training resulted significant improvements in depression scores compared to control groups (usual care) during post-stroke rehabilitation.
This pilot study, conducted with 21 participants across 5 weeks, found that HRV-BF reduces chronic stress levels, reduces risk of PTSD, lowers symptoms of anxiety and depression, and increases heart rate variability.
This study found that heart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback increased the activity of the autonomic nervous system and significantly improved symptoms of depression and insomnia in patients with major depressive disorder. The findings suggest that HRV biofeedback could be an effective, non-invasive approach to managing these conditions by promoting the body's natural ability to regulate stress and relaxation.
This systematic review of 58 studies found that HRV-BF has a significant effect on improving anxiety and depression, and that these effects are similar to standard treatment options.
This randomized wait-list controlled pilot study, conducted as three HRV-BF sessions found that depression and heart rate variability indices (SDNN) significantly improved, whereas no improvements were found in the control group.
This study, conducted as six 30 minute HRV-BF sessions on 18 participants across three weeks, found that biofeedback has a significant effect on lowering depression, state anxiety, and trait anxiety.
This meta-analysis of 428 participants across 9 studies found that HRV-BF significantly improves depression and anxiety. Several participants also reported improved stress management and sleep quality.
This meta-analysis of 176 participants across 8 studies found that HRV-BF can be successful used in the treatment MDD, with an effect size (g = 0.72) equivalent to or better than gold standard antidepressants.
This study, conducted on 32 participants over 6 weeks, found that adding HRV-BF to traditional psychotherapy increase heart rate variability and results in a larger decrease in depressive symptoms compared to psychotherapy alone.
This meta-analysis across 40 randomized controlled trials (RCT) found that breathing interventions yielded significantly greater improvements (moderate to large effect) in anxiety symptoms than controls. The study concludes that evidence supports the clinical utility of breathing interventions as either an independent anxiety treatment, or as an adjunct to other interventions.
