17 scientific reasons why you should yawn more
despite culture telling you it's rude
Hi! I’m Katie, and I’m a cultural and social psychologist—but you can think of me as your BFF with a PhD. I live in the desert of Texas alongside the cacti, roadrunners, and horned lizards. If you’re looking to understand your inner landscape and the whirlwind of the world around you, I hope you find something of value here. Make sure to subscribe—and you won’t miss a beat! Thank you so much for being here.
Picture it.
You have a warm coffee in hand, and you’re cosied up on that plush chair in your favorite corner of the coffee shop.
Your friend is sitting opposite to you, recounting that one time when xyz thing happened to her.
You’re interested.
You’re invested.
You’re, no doubt, listening.
But, you feel it coming on.
“Oh, no.” you think to yourself.
“How do I stop it?”
“Agh, I can’t stop it!”
In fact, the more you think about stopping it, the more you feel it coming on.
And, there, mid-sentence, despite your best efforts to push it down—you yawn.
This time, it’s not one of those cutesy, mindful, demure yawns.
It’s giant.
Chin stretched to the floor, eyes watering, even a slightly loud-ish “aahhhh” accompanies it.
And, it’s out there.
“I’m so sorry!” you say, embarrassed.
“I’m totally tuned in! I’m so sorry, but I’m just feeling a bit tired, I guess. Please, carry on with your story.”
But, why?
Why do we fight the urge to yawn?
And, why do we chronically apologize for it?
Well, we’ve been socialized to.
There are stories across the ages of students being scolded in class for yawning.
Men have been swatted with purses by their partners for yawning during school plays and 7th grade spelling bees.
We’ve been taught to believe that yawning is rude.
We’ve been told that it signals boredom or lack of attention, care, concern.
We’ve been led to believe that it means we’re lazy.
But, turn to the pages of any journal in neuroscience—and you might receive a different message.
Yes, yawning may occur more often when you’re tired, and it may be a signal from your brain that you need to rest or that you are experiencing a serious sleep deficit.
But, yawning also actually helps to bring you into a state of alertness.
It helps you stay focused.
And, it is an appropriate means of keeping the brain awake.
If anything, it’s a signal that our internal desire is to be present—and the brain is responding to that desire by giving your body and mind a wee nudge.
In fact, an optimally-healthy brain requires yawning.
Yawning regulates the temperature and metabolism of the brain, keeping it functioning at its best.
Yawning even sparks a dopamine hit—giving us a boost of energy in any given moment and flooding the brain with feel-good chemicals.
Meanwhile, the rest of the world is telling us to never yawn.
Cover your mouth.
Turn off the camera.
Swallow an air bubble and hold it in.
But, ask one of the leading neuroscientists in this area, and he would say “rubbish!”
In fact, his advice is simple:
“Yawn as many times a day as possible.”—Andrew Newberg, MD1
I know you’re second-guessing me, because those deeply-rooted narratives around the rudeness of yawning, well, run deep.
So, let’s look at the science.
Think yawning is only good for you when you’re feeling that afternoon slump and have an incoming 2PM Zoom meeting?
Au contraire!
According to neuroscience research, here are some of the times of the day when yawning may help you:
when waking
when facing challenges
when getting ready for bed
when you’re experiencing stress
before an important performance
when meditating or praying
Okay, now that we know that yawning is good for us basically anytime of day, let’s look at why.
Here are 17 reasons why you should yawn more, according to the research.
Yawning:
increases pleasure
enhances sensuality
increases empathy
raises social awareness
sharpens your sense of time
enhances athleticism and physical performance
improves muscle control
sparks relaxation
lowers stress
increases memory abilities
improves cognitive functioning
raises consciousness
activates introspection
increases alertness
fosters concentration
stimulates brain activity
optimizes brain metabolism
Convinced yet?
If you’re starting to soften to the idea that yawning is actually something that we should be doing more, you may be wondering what the perfect path is to this enhanced sensuality and lowered stress.
Exactly, how many yawns does it take?
Can we yawn once and feel this flood of 17 benefits?
The answer is surprising—the real benefits to yawning don’t kick in until 10-12 yawns.
That may sound like a lot, at first—but for something you can accomplish in less than one minute, it’s a pretty powerful tool.
The TL;DR is that yes—yawning is oh so good for you.
And, let me tell you—yawning is so good for us that even just talking about it makes the brain want to do it.
I must have yawned precisely 408,341 times just while writing this article.
And, did I even once apologize for it?
No, in fact, I did not!
Thank you so much for being here and subscribing to psychologie. Whether you’re new to my work or a long-time supporter, I appreciate you so much! Your free or paid subscription supports me and my writing. Another easy way you can support me is by sharing this article. If you like what you’re reading, please consider sharing with others and encouraging them to subscribe, too. Thank you!
To learn more about research examining the impact of yawning on the brain, check out one of my all-time favorite books: Newberg, A., & Waldman, M. R. (2009). How God changes your brain: Breakthrough findings from a leading neuroscientist. Ballantine Books.
Cover art by Alena Ganzhela used under license
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