Harmless Although It Can Be Contagious, This Is The Benefit Of Yawning

Illustration of the benefits of yawning for the body when stressed (iStockphoto)

YOGYAKARTA – Yawning is experienced by humans and animals, especially vertebrates. This activity is considered mysterious, because people yawning is not just a sign of tiredness. But there are facts related to human biology.

Citing a review by Dustin W. Ballard, MD., MBE., a clinical physician and researcher, there are three benefits of yawning. First, Apolo Ohno believes that yawning can improve athletic performance. He told Yahoo Sports, "(yawning) gets oxygen in and nerves out."

Obviously Ballard, that's not entirely true. As far as clinical tracing goes, yawning does not increase overall oxygen levels. Another opinion from Tyler Huston, as a nurse, paramedic and respiratory specialist, says that Ohno suffers from asthma. As an athlete, he needed breathing exercises. There is an immediate beneficial CO2 release rate that can be achieved with three large respiratory cycles. That is, yawning may help the rate of release of carbon dioxide for people with asthma.

Second, based on brain scan studies, yawning increases the activity of a small area of the brain called the precuneus. This area plays an important role in spatial orientation, memory, and awareness. Launching Psychology Today, Tuesday, August 2, yawning might help increase focus and attention.

Illustration of the benefits of yawning for the body when stressed (iStockphoto)

This opinion is supported by neurologist and author Dr. Andrew Newberg. Even when we are not tired, we yawn. Newberg's advice, yawn as much as possible in a day. When you wake up, at work, until you get ready for bed. Including when you feel angry, anxious, or stressed.

The third benefit of yawning has to do with social functioning. It may be socially necessary to avoid yawning, but it depends on the situation. In an important moment, like a meeting, it's impossible to let go of your alertness to yawn. This means, hold for a while so as not to infect other colleagues in the same room.

In a study published in the 2021 journal Animal Cognition, the alert effect of yawning was demonstrated. Participants who witnessed yawning were more likely to detect an infectious threat than those who did not. Yawning is not a contagious disease, but it can affect the harmony in a room.

When one person yawns, it means that the other person yawns too. Even if you refer to previous opinions, yawning can be a sign of tiredness, stress, anxiety.

Normally, yawning lasts for 5-10 seconds. Abnormal yawning has been associated with pituitary tumors, severe migraine symptoms, clinical depression, and major stroke.