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by James Nestor
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Breath is a fascinating and helpful guide to understanding the science of breathing, including how doing it slowly and through your nose is best for your lungs and body, and the many proven mental and physical benefits of being more mindful of how you inhale and exhale.
Breath is a fascinating and helpful guide to understanding the science of breathing, including how doing it slowly and through your nose is best for your lungs and body, and the many proven mental and physical benefits of being more mindful of how you inhale and exhale.
If you’ve seen the Netflix series Stranger Things, you’re familiar with the term “mouth-breather”. In addition to being cringey to hear, mouth breathing is also bad for your health! It turns out breathing through your nose is the definitive way to go.
After a surgery that temporarily plugged his nasal passages, Nestor experienced a blood pressure increase of 13 points in a matter of weeks. Not only was he more at risk for stroke, but he also had a faster pulse and felt terrible. This is an example of what something as seemingly innocent as breathing out of your mouth can do.
Estimates say about half of us mostly breathe through our mouths and there are many reasons for this such as medical issues or pollution. But did you know breathing through your nose filters, heats, and moistens the air you breathe? What’s more, it releases chemicals that regulate your heartbeat and lower your blood pressure.
Scientists have learned that excessive mouth breathing actually alters the shape of your face. In a cruel experiment, scientists plugged the noses of lab monkeys. Over two years he documented as their mouths changed and their teeth grew more crooked. Even their head shape changed!
Unlocking health benefits from breathing can be as easy as just breathing a little slower. You don’t even have to breathe very deep breaths. Science says that shallow breaths 5.5 seconds in and 5.5 seconds out are best. When we get down to the molecular level, we see why this is. When we breathe, we take in oxygen that attaches itself to red blood cells. These oxygen molecules travel throughout the body and are used by our cells and are exchanged for carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide is then released from the body when we exhale. But carbon dioxide is more than just a waste product. It helps oxygen separate from blood cells and also plays a role in signaling the blood vessels to dilate, which means they can transport more blood. This means when we breathe heavily, we release more carbon dioxide, which reduces blood flow. This is why hyperventilating and exercise can cause you to feel light-headed. Breathing slowly will help maintain your blood carbon dioxide levels which is more efficient. The author encourages us to breathe slowly and less deeply for these reasons. You don’t have to worry that breathing slowly and less from will leave you without enough…
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Get the complete summary in the appStart breathing out of your nose to unlock natural health benefits.
You can receive unexpected health benefits just from slowing down your breathing.
Ancient Eastern cultures have been practicing breathing techniques for millennia, but Western culture still mostly ignores the importance of breathing.
"Breath" is a strong fit if you want practical ideas around fitness, health, mindfulness—especially themes like start breathing out of your nose to unlock natural health benefits; you can receive unexpected health benefits just from slowing down your breathing. The MinuteRead summary distills these concepts into a focused read, whether you're deciding whether to buy the book or applying its lessons at work.
James Nestor is an author and journalist who has written for Outside Magazine, The Atlantic, National Public Radio, The New York Times, Scientific American, Dwell Magazine, The San Francisco Chronicle, and more. Nestor’s book, Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, was released through Riverhead/Penguin Random House on May 26, 2020. Breath spent 18 weeks of the New York Times bestseller list in the first year of publication and was an instant bestseller in the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles T…
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