Re:The brain can recall and reawaken past immune responses
by thevagrant on Tuesday November 09, 2021 @01:54AM
(#29158560)
That's in response to cold. He has also been tested for effects on immune response:
"It was shown that this individual was able to voluntarily activate the sympathetic nervous system through a self-developed method involving meditation, exposure to cold, and breathing techniques. This resulted in increased catecholamine and cortisol release and a remarkably mild innate immune response during experimental endotoxemia compared with more than 100 subjects who previously underwent experimental endotoxemia."
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4034215/
Perhaps it is bunk science? I'm not qualified to say. I personally did find the methods have been helpful.
" . . . forceful respiration results in increased sympathetic innervation and glucose consumption in intercostal muscle, generating heat that dissipates to lung tissue and warms circulating blood in the pulmonary capillaries. Our results provide compelling evidence for the primacy of the brain (CNS) rather than the body (peripheral mechanisms) in mediating the Iceman's [Wim Hof's] responses to cold exposure.[28]"
By hyperventillating you are just flexing your intercostal muscle and that's warming your body. If you sat there flexing your quads or your core over and over you would probably get a similar sensation.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wim_Hof