What is box-breathing? Know health benefits of THIS technique

Stress has become a part of life now. The hectic life schedule and the immense pressure of work lead to numerous health diseases such as heart conditions and mental health issues.

There is no getting away from stress for most of us be it work place or at home. A study revealed that people who experience chronic stress show signs of accelerated immune ageing. While stress is linked to about 20 per cent higher risk of death.

Psychologists say, to manage stress and anxiety feeling calmer is extremely important and is a matter that we take for granted. Breathing is an automatic body function for which we have voluntary control over it. In a recent health podcast Actor Samantha Ruth Prabhu discussed box breathing.

In the podcast, a Toronto-based fitness expert Alkesh talked about box breathing, he said it is a breathing practice in which we have to breathe in with a count of 8, hold the breath for a count of 8 and release the breath for a count of 8 and again redo the process. As per Alkesh, this helps in digestion and detoxification.