Study suggests yawning may help move cerebrospinal fluid and venous blood out of the skull, potentially playing a role in cleaning brain fluid
https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2026/04/Good-yawn-does-more-than-you-think?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=social
22 Comments
Hi r/science – been a minute, but excited to share this paper our researchers and peers from Neuroscience Research Australia have published that suggests yawning may play a role in moving fluids in and out of the brain.
The full paper is available in Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology if you would like to check it out: [https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1569904826000340](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1569904826000340)
The study used MRI scans of 22 participants to show that yawning triggers a specific manoeuvre in which cerebrospinal fluid and venous blood move out of the skull together. Interestingly, while cerebrospinal fluid and venous blood flowed away from the skull during yawning, cerebrospinal fluid flows in the opposite direction during deep breathing – potentially suggesting that yawning plays a role in clearing waste cerebrospinal fluid from the brain.
This finding could be important for further studies into neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and dementia — all of which have been potentially linked to the build-up of waste products in and around the brain that can be a result of impaired cerebrospinal fluid flows.
Damn I reckon I yawned 200+ times yesterday alone, doin some serious brain cleanin :p
I still remember in Catholic school my teachers would punish students for yawning because it was considered disrespectful and showed a lack of self control.
I’m not surprised. Recently, as I’ve aged, I realize how fantastic my yawns and stretches feel, first thing in the a.m.
Anyone else yawn at just reading the title? Strange
So what you are saying is I need to take more naps so I can yawn and protect my brain health.
Yawn like crazy while tripping
My ish is super clean then
Does stretching while yawning have a big impact to increasing fluid removal?
I did something unusual and yawned three times as I scrolled into this
“If you’re not yawnmaxxing bro, you’re never gonna make it.”
Huh… I wonder if there’s some relationship between that and the fact the first SSRI I took made me yawn excessively and involuntarily. I remember having trouble controlling it during interviews for jobs!
I yawned after reading the title.
This is interesting! My dad recently had a total laryngectomy so he breathes through the stoma in his neck. I found it odd that he still yawns, since I’ve heard that yawning is to take in more oxygen. It would make sense that there is another reason for yawning unrelated to oxygen.
The human body is so fascinating
I swear I just read about this but the mechanism was flexing your abdominal muscles. Wild.
Excessive yawning (like every 5 mins) is a symptom of opiod withdrawals. When i was in active addiction it was always one of the first symptoms i would get as my last dose was fading. I wonder how significant this to that
imagine they do a study where people purposefully yawn a bunch of times every day and it turns out to like massively lower Alzhiemers risk
I am currently yawning and flexing my stomach. What other bodily movements will help wash my dirty brain?
Something is happening, I can hear and feel the vibration. Mini seizure, which also has benefits
This is interesting. My wife had a brain tumor removed a few years ago. She has had two surgeries afterwards to stop cerebrospinal fluid leaks. Maybe she should just yawn.
Well that’s good news bc i pretty much yawn from the moment I wake up in the morning until the moment I go to sleep at night