A World Where Deep Breaths Become Passwords: The Impact of the Latest Research on "Nasal Breathing Fingerprints"

1. Is "Breath" an Unconscious Action or a Conscious Password?

We breathe approximately 20,000 times a day. However, this breathing could become a powerful "biometric ID" equivalent to fingerprints or iris scans—a groundbreaking study published in Current Biology in June 2025 suggests. The research team attached ultra-thin tubes under the noses of subjects to measure airflow continuously for 24 hours. By training AI with dozens of features extracted, such as "length of sighs," "inhalation and exhalation ratio," and "interval fluctuations," they successfully identified 100 subjects with 96.8% accuracy. This figure reportedly surpasses even voice recognition.thetimes.co.uk

2. "Mental Sensors" Beyond Biometrics

What is noteworthy about this study is not only the identification rate but also the correlation between breathing patterns and psychological states. Participants with high anxiety scores had shorter inhalations during sleep and larger variations in interval times. Those with depressive tendencies showed a decrease in total ventilation throughout the day and night, with a tendency for deep sighs to increase sharply. This suggests that breathing could be a mirror of the mind and potentially a handle to change it. Professor Noam Sobel, the lead researcher, stated, "Training to alter breathing might alleviate anxiety."elpais.com

3. Citizen Emotions Reflected on Social Media: Dual Aspects of Expectation and Caution

The day after the announcement, "#BreathFingerprint" trended at 20th place in the Japanese-speaking region of X (formerly Twitter).

• Positive Side: "Combining it with Zen breathing techniques could revolutionize mental health care," "If linked with smartwatches, it might detect early depression."

• Negative Side: "A society where even breathing is sold for approval?" "Do we have to hold our breath to protect privacy?" On Hacker News, while puns like "Unlawful sneezure" were popular, comments imagining Apple's expansion into vital data usage and concerns about the misuse of biometric information were rampant. Among them,
  "I learned my father's sleep apnea by ear, and I've always felt that people could be identified by their breathing" (mountain_peak), a personal experience, received over 100 endorsements.news.ycombinator.com

4. Impact on Japan's Medical and Wellness Industries

In Japan, the annual economic loss due to mental health issues is estimated at 6 trillion yen. If breath fingerprinting is implemented,

1. Corporate Stress Checks: Continuous monitoring with micro-sensors while at the desk.

2. Telemedicine: Real-time transmission with smart pillows and masks for home care patients.

3. Risk Assessment of Insurance Products: The stability of breathing could be reflected in insurance premiums—these are some of the possibilities. However, under the revised Personal Information Protection Law, "physical characteristics + health status" are considered sensitive personal information. If regulatory frameworks do not keep pace, there is a risk that "black breath scores" could lead to discrimination.
   

5. The Encounter of Ancient "Breath Techniques" and Science

In Japan, there is a rich culture of "controlling breath" in practices such as Zen meditation, Noh theater, and martial arts. A study by the University of Tokyo's School of Medicine reported that abdominal breathing training improved autonomic nervous system balance and reduced depressive symptoms by about 20%. If the breath fingerprint indicated by AI can be used as feedback, the effects of traditional breathing techniques could be visualized with objective data, accelerating clinical applications.

6. Technical Hurdles: Sensors, AI, Data Infrastructure

The current prototype is a "rugged" setup with a nasal tube and waist pack, and it has been noted to have the drawback of shifting during sleep. The research team states
, "In the future, we aim for an integrated mask or non-contact measurement using infrared cameras." Domestic manufacturers are progressing with demonstrations to extract breathing noise using microphones and AI analysis. Earphones and glasses-type devices equipped with Edge AI chips hold the key.

7. Ethics and Privacy: Who Controls the Breath?

Unlike fingerprints or facial recognition, breathing is a biometric that "leaks into the environment." There is a risk that a malicious third party could identify a person by recording with a remote microphone. On Hacker News, "humming a tune for 24 hours as a hacking countermeasure" was jokingly suggested, but in reality, technology to intentionally disrupt breathing signatures with noise (anti-fingerprint technology) might be required.

8. Breath Fingerprint × Mental Health—Clinical Expectations

Depression diagnosis mainly relies on self-reporting, with few objective biomarkers. If breath fingerprints are established,

• detection of subtle changes before onset

• monitoring the effectiveness of drug therapy

• early signals of suicide risk
  will become possible, psychiatrists unanimously agree. In diseases accompanied by breathing abnormalities, such as hyperventilation syndrome and panic disorder, treatment protocols are likely to change significantly.

9. Business Perspective: New Markets and Competitive Axes

The wearable market is searching for the next big thing after heart rate and SpO₂. Breath fingerprints, with their "high added value and low data frequency," make it easier to achieve high-priced SaaS while reducing cloud communication costs. Related patents already exceed 50, held by companies like Apple, Huawei, and OMRON. Domestic startups are also raising funds with platforms combining scent × breath.

10. Conclusion: Healthcare DX Walking with Breathing

Just as fingerprints do not change with unhealed scars, breath fingerprints quietly etch our "way of life." However, the difference is that breathing is plastic. Stress disrupts breathing, and disrupted breathing amplifies stress—the key to breaking this vicious cycle is being unlocked by the latest AI and ancient breathing techniques together. Beyond the tug-of-war between technology and ethics, a future where "regulating breath" becomes the core of self-care for the mind and body is emerging.