BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Every person breathes, but no two people do it quite the same. In a new study that blurs the line between biology and biometric tech, scientists have found that breathing patterns are remarkably unique; so much so that they can be used to identify individuals with 96.8 percent accuracy. The research, published in Current Biology, suggests that the way we inhale and exhale may be just as distinctive as our fingerprints or voice, and potentially even more reliable under certain conditions. “I thought it would be really hard to identify someone because everyone is doing different things, like running, studying, or resting,” said Timna Soroka, a lead author from the Weizmann Institute of Science. “But it turns out their breathing patterns were remarkably distinct.” The science of sniffing you out To investigate this phenomenon, scientists at the Weizmann Institute developed a lightweight wearable device that tracks nasal airflow over a full 24-hour period. Small tubes positioned under the nostrils measured how participants, 100 healthy young adults with no sleep disorders or nasal surgeries, breathed during sleep, work, and everything in between. Participants used a mobile app to log their daily activities and complete questionnaires related to mood and cognition. Researchers then extracted 24 distinct parameters from the breathing data, such as inhalation and exhalation patterns, and used machine learning algorithms to distinguish individuals. They didn’t stop there. To test whether these patterns held over time, researchers re-measured 42 of the original participants months or even years later. Despite lifestyle changes or differing activities, their respiratory patterns remained stable, suggesting that each person has a lasting, identifiable “breathprint.” Breathing and the brain What makes this discovery even more intriguing is its potential link to mental health. The researchers found that breathing traits also aligned with indicators of anxiety and depression. For instance, participants who scored higher on anxiety measures exhibited shorter inhale durations and more frequent pauses in their breathing during sleep. “We intuitively assume that how depressed or anxious you are changes the way you breathe,” said senior author Noam Sobel. “But it might be the other way around. Perhaps the way you breathe makes you anxious or depressed. If that’s true, we might be able to change the way you breathe to change those conditions.” While these correlations are still early-stage, they open the door to potential diagnostic and therapeutic applications. Could targeted breath training help regulate mood disorders? The idea is gaining scientific traction. Not quite ready for primetime Although the study’s implications are exciting, the current device still has practical limitations. The nasal tubes, while lightweight, occasionally slipped out during sleep, limiting the comfort and reliability of overnight data. Additionally, the study did not account for mouth breathing, which may introduce variables not yet measured. Still, the researchers are already developing more user-friendly versions of the device with an eye toward everyday applications, from personal health monitoring to secure identity verification. With each breath, we may be revealing far more than we think. And in the near future, your inhale-exhale rhythm could be just as identifying as your fingerprint. Source study: Current Biology— Humans have nasal respiratory fingerprintsThe post Could your breath reveal who you are—and how you feel? Researchers say yes first appeared on The Optimist Daily: Making Solutions the News.