Concept · Library
Concept · Neuroscience · 1990s to present
The vagus nerve and heart-rate variability
Also known as heart rate variability · vagus nerve · calming my nervous system · slow breathing · polyvagal · rest and digest
What studies found, within the limits those studies state.
The vagus nerve carries parasympathetic signals to the heart, and heart-rate variability is a measurable index of how that regulation is working. Resting variability is associated with emotional regulation and cardiovascular health in large studies, and slow breathing raises it acutely. Polyvagal theory's wider claims about vagal states driving social behaviour are contested among physiologists.
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