This simple breathing exercise can help coronavirus sufferers: how the benefits of prone position are being rediscovered

In the prone position, more space is created for the lungs to expand, thereby increasing oxygenation

Pronal breathing has been practised for thousands of years, in yoga as well as Chinese medicine

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Prone-position breathing has been around for thousands of years, in yoga as well as Chinese medicine, and its benefits are being rediscovered now during the coronavirus crisis. Photo: Getty Images

Published: 4:15am, 20 May 2021Updated: 1:08am, 27 Dec 2023

It is not surprising that in India, which has had more than 25 million coronavirus infections and where beds and oxygen tanks are currently in short supply, a recent video on breathing while lying on the stomach, known as the prone position, went viral on Twitter.

India’s health ministry followed with a statement recommending Covid-19 patients recovering at home use this method. This type of breathing, to help boost oxygen levels in the blood in patients with breathing difficulties, was discussed as far back as 1974 in the American Review of Respiratory Disease.

Studies worldwide since then have shown that the pronal position can have a significant positive impact, and experts suggest pronal breathing exercises to make breathing easier, especially in patients experiencing mild Covid-19 symptoms.

Pronal breathing, also known as proning, has been practised for thousands of years, in yoga as well as Chinese medicine, and its benefits are being rediscovered now during the drawn-out pandemic.

In his bestselling book Breath , American journalist James Nestor talks about his experience with respiratory problems and how breathing techniques helped him. In an interview with America’s National Public Radio, Nestor noted that doctors have found Covid-19 patients could breathe a lot better when they lie on their sides or on their stomachs.

The reason? More of the lungs are near the back than the chest. On their stomachs, people’s lungs can expand more efficiently.

This simple breathing exercise can help coronavirus sufferers: how the benefits of prone position are being rediscovered

In the prone position, more space is created for the lungs to expand, thereby increasing oxygenation Pronal breathing has been practised for thousands of years, in yoga as well as Chinese medicine

In the prone position, more space is created for the lungs to expand, thereby increasing oxygenation

Pronal breathing has been practised for thousands of years, in yoga as well as Chinese medicine