Surprising change that happens when you roll your shoulders

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We straighten our shoulders and stretch our backs because it is relaxing, refreshing, and perhaps even rejuvenating. But why?

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Researchers have found that in healthy adults, stretching causes a rapid drop in blood pressure. And the body's response to movement may explain why we feel calmer after stretching.

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Doctors at the University of Minnesota theorize that stretching the upper back muscles triggers a parasympathetic nervous system reflex, which may explain the feeling of relaxation. Last month, the researchers published some of their findings in a small study for the scientific journal Physiological Reports.

It appears that the response of blood pressure and heart rate may explain “this pleasant feeling,” said Jorge L. Reyes, a cardiovascular specialist at the University of Minnesota and lead author of the study.

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By understanding why this simple stretch lowers blood pressure, researchers can work backwards and use that information to treat stress or other health problems, says David Bendit, a professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Minnesota and senior author of the study.

“This is a small brick that is part of a larger wall of understanding how the human body works,” Benditt said.

“Dramatic” drop in blood pressure

The study involved 24 adults, average age 34 years, who were referred to the University of Minnesota Medical Center with symptoms of dizziness or near-syncope episodes not associated with a sprain.

Participants sat on a chair with their hands on their legs. The doctor then instructed them to pull their shoulders toward their ears, lean back slightly, and flex their upper back for 10 to 15 seconds without holding their breath.

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When participants stretched their backs, the researchers observed a “pretty dramatic” drop in blood pressure, Reyes said. “Often when our blood pressure drops, our heart rate increases to maintain blood flow,” Benditt said. (This happens when we stand up because gravity pulls blood to the legs.)

But when the participants stretched their backs, their heart rates didn't increase as much as expected. This combination—a drop in blood pressure without an increase in heart rate—may be the result of a response from the parasympathetic nervous system and may explain why stretching feels relaxing for many people, Reyes said.

“This is a small study and the concept is speculative, but speculative research may open the door to further research,” Benditt said. “I’m pretty sure, although I can’t say 100%, that it’s a spinal reflex.”

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Most study participants were young women referred to a medical center with symptoms of dizziness or fainting, and the results need to be replicated in a larger population, the researchers said.

Benditt said they studied the response in “about 150 people,” and the researchers believe that stretching the back muscles causes a general reflex, since they see this phenomenon in almost everyone – with the exception of people suffering from Parkinson's disease and other severe neurological diseases.

In some people, the sudden cardiovascular response—a drop in blood pressure and no heart rate response—leads to dizziness, and in rare cases, some even lose consciousness.

Benditt began studying the phenomenon two years ago when he met a 19-year-old patient who frequently blacked out when she strained her back. Previously, doctors thought the patient's fainting spells were caused by a seizure disorder, but “that wasn't the problem,” Benditt said. She passed out due to a drop in blood pressure as she stretched her back.

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“Out of the 100 or so patients we studied, we found nine or 10 others who actually had syncope,” Benditt said. “Most people's blood pressure just drops a little.”

Benditt said the research team is trying to confirm whether the observed cardiovascular response is the result of reflex and brain signals.

How it can help people with high blood pressure

Researchers in the study are thinking “creatively” about how to use the new discovery to help people with high blood pressure, said Michael Joyner, an anesthesiologist and exercise physiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, who was not involved in the study.

Next, researchers need to determine the exact mechanism that causes the apparent drop in blood pressure, Joyner said. Doctors know that signals from nerves in the muscles to the brain can affect blood pressure and heart rate, he said.

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Then they need to find out whether this phenomenon happens to everyone, not just young people who come to the clinic because of fainting or dizziness.

“The results obtained in these patients may provide guidance on maneuvers that could be used in people with milder disease. hypertension to help them lower their blood pressure a little bit,” Joyner said.

Stephen Juraszek, assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and hypertension specialist, said it was amazing how a seemingly harmless and simple maneuver could have such an impact on a person's blood pressure.

But there may be other mechanisms, not just a potential muscle reflex, that explain why back stretching affects cardiovascular health, and the explanations are not mutually exclusive, says Juraszek, who was also not involved in the study.

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“Muscle can store a fair amount of blood,” he said. “The very act of contracting and relaxing muscles can cause changes in blood pressure.”

People with hypertension often look for ways to lower their blood pressure on their own, Juraszek said. Meditation, breathing exercises and perhaps stretching your upper back can lower your blood pressure instantly, but it's difficult to control fluctuations throughout the day, he said.

“I would caution against over-reliance on relaxation,” Juraszek said. “Medications to treat high blood pressure have been shown to reduce the risk of stroke, heart disease and prolong life,” he said.

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