A Bite-Size Read for Your Health and Your Waistline
How many times has this happened to you? You are chatting with family and friends or sitting at your desk or riding the subway, and someone lets out a yawn. Suddenly, you feel it coming on, too. It is like you caught their yawn without even thinking about it. As someone who lives and breathes health and wellness, I notice these moments all the time, and I cannot help but get curious about what is really going on in the body.
For years, the go-to theory was that yawning helps manage oxygen and carbon dioxide levels in the blood. A yawn pulls in more oxygen and pushes out more carbon dioxide. Research from the 1980s questioned this idea and suggested that shifting these levels does not change how often we yawn. While that study raised important questions, I still think the oxygen explanation plays a role and deserves a spot in the bigger picture since so much of our energy depends on how we use oxygen.
Another theory points to yawning as a tool for regulating body temperature and specifically the temperature of the brain. The idea is that a yawn helps cool us down, relieve pressure, and soothe that weird breathless feeling. This same theory suggests a yawn can snap us out of boredom or help us feel less tired because it wakes up the brain. When boredom hits, the brain gets less stimulation and temperature shifts. When we are tired, the slowing of the brain can do the same thing. Thinking about this further, I cannot help but link it back to oxygen once again because body temperature and oxygen use live in constant partnership.
More recent research adds another angle. This theory suggests that the act of yawning stretches the lungs and the tissues around them, which helps the body move blood toward the face and brain. This shift increases alertness and may support a boost in energy. That makes sense to me and once again pulls us back to the idea that oxygen is involved since movement and circulation depend so much on it.
There is also an interesting study from the NIH that looked at excessive yawning linked to acute anterior circulation stroke. According to that work, most of us yawn about 20 times a day. Anywhere from zero to 28 is considered normal. Age, circadian rhythm, stress, caffeine, day-to-day activities, and other personal factors can influence that range. Yawning is labeled excessive at around three yawns within fifteen minutes. At that point, I would say get some rest or check in with a doctor. A 2007 study also shared that deep nasal breathing can decrease yawning because that type of breathing almost eliminated contagious yawning for participants. Yet again, oxygen pops up as a contributing piece.
Some recommendations say that adding activity can help reduce yawning. Moving your body can break through boredom and tiredness. Activity also supports circulation, breathing, oxygen use, and body temperature management. You could try a quick walk outside to reset your system or reach for chilled food if your body temperature feels high.
At this point, it feels safe to say yawning is tied to the blood whether we are talking about oxygen, circulation, or body temperature. We simply do not have one perfect explanation yet, and then there is the contagious part, which fascinates people just as much.
I once heard that yawns spread through mirror neurons, which means that when we see someone yawn, our brain encourages us to mirror that action. When I learned this, I immediately thought about early human communities where matching the group was essential for survival. If you acted too differently from the pack you could be left behind.
There is also a study from Baylor University that found yawning after someone else does may signal empathy and bonding. According to their conclusion, someone with lower empathy may be less likely to yawn when others around them do. These findings are interesting to consider, but I would not assume someone is cold or disconnected simply because they do not catch yawns.
Clearly there are many theories, and we are still putting the pieces together. If you notice you are yawning more than usual or enough that it feels excessive, you might want to take a few notes. Pay attention to your sleep patterns, workouts, day-to-day energy levels, and anything else that might help you bring useful data to your health care provider.
So why do we yawn? It is likely linked to blood flow and temperature, and of course, oxygen. The contagious piece may relate to mirror neurons, although it is not guaranteed that you will yawn every time someone else does. If yawning is getting in the way of your daily life, check in with your health practitioner so you can get the support you need.