The Rosary, yoga chants, and breathing exercises all slow down the respiration rate and calm the heart rhythm.

The Rosary is an important prayer ritual in the Catholic Church - and the benefits may be more than spiritual, according a new study. Researchers at the University of Pavia, Italy, recorded breathing rates during normal talking and recitation of the Rosary in 23 healthy adults. They also carried out the exercise with yoga mantras and a controlled breathing exercise.

All three practices slowed breathing and made it more regular than with normal conversation. At six breaths per minute, the respiration rate was linked to a healthier heart rhythm. The findings lead the researchers to speculate whether the practice of the Rosary and yoga mantras may have evolved, in part, as a calming practice, which both opens the mind and benefits the heart and lungs in the long-term.

Source

British Medical Journal December 22 2001