29/12/2025
Thomson, H. (2025, December 22). What I’ll be doing to help detox my brain in the new year. New Scientist.
Djalilian, H. (2022). Diaphragmatic breathing and cerebrospinal fluid dynamics. Journal of Applied Physiology.
The brain continually produces metabolic waste, including proteins linked to neurodegenerative diseases, and relies on the recently discovered glymphatic system to flush these out via cerebrospinal fluid and the lymphatic system.
Because accumulation of such waste is associated with cognitive decline, dementia, and conditions like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, researchers are increasingly focused on how to optimize glymphatic function. Current evidence highlights sleep as the most robust way to enhance this clearance, with studies in animals showing markedly increased cerebrospinal fluid flow during sleep and hints that sleeping position, particularly side-sleeping, may further support drainage. Although human data are still limited, factors known to impair glymphatic function—poor sleep, sedentary lifestyles, and disrupted drainage—are all linked to worse brain health.
Beyond sleep, there’s growing evidence that lifestyle interventions such as regular aerobic exercise, specific breathing techniques, and possibly facial or neck massage could improve glymphatic activity. Long-term exercise programs have been associated with increases in glymphatic drainage in humans, while animal studies suggest exercise can roughly double clearance compared with sedentary behavior. Researchers have also identified superficial lymphatic vessels in the face and neck of animals, where gentle stroking dramatically increased cerebrospinal fluid flow, raising the possibility that massage may one day be harnessed to support brain detoxification. Yogic diaphragmatic breathing appears particularly promising, as it has been shown to increase cerebrospinal fluid velocity enough to potentially trigger a “rinse cycle.”
