learn to breathe
breathe through the mouth promotes snoring, sleep apnea and contributes to insomnia and back pain . It is an important factor in periodontitis and bad breath. And it's the number one cause of cavities.
Breathing through the mouth changes the physical and transform our airways , all for the worse. and causes that we lose 40% more water and that we grow old sooner.
inhale through the nose Instead, force air hits soft tissue that is in the back of the throat, which widens the airways and makes it easier to breathe. lowers blood pressure and facilitates , also, The digestion.
'Breathe', James Nestor
The functioning of the immune system, weight, circulation, mood, back pain, stress and even our sexuality can be directly affected or benefited by the way we breathe. And we do it 20,000 times a day!
“It doesn't matter what you eat or how much exercise you do; It doesn't matter if you're young, strong and smart. Your health essentially depends on the way you breathe, and 90% of people do it wrong”.
That's how clear it is for the journalist James Nestor, who after a decade of research, experiments and interviews with all kinds of experts on the subject, publishes Breathe (Ed. Planet) , a book that is already a success in the United States and that not only reveals to us what we do wrong, but also teaches us the **benefits and techniques to do it better. **
AN EXPERIMENT THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
Nestor had chronic bronchitis and pneumonia and his doctor recommended that he go to breathing classes. The experience of the first session led him to register as a candidate for a Stanford University study about its repercussions for health breathe through the nose or through the mouth.
For the initial phase, he plugged his nostrils for 10 days... “Breathing through the mouth is destroying our health”, he assured him. He had skyrocketing blood pressure and risk of having a heart attack or a stroke. During mouth breathing days he suffered 24 episodes of apnea. He wasn't the only one.
James Nestor, author of the book
It is estimated, in fact, that 25% of North American adults people over 30 suffocate with sleep apnea and it is estimated that 80% of moderate and severe cases are not diagnosed.
So if after reading this you are already trying to start breathing through your nose, pay attention because "Inhaling is the easiest part," warns this science journalist.
The key to breathing enlarge the lungs and achieve a longer life -because yes, studies say that lung capacity has to do with life expectancy- is at the other end of the process.
“It is in the power to make full exhalations” . A technique that many ancestral cultures have developed throughout history, despite the fact that now - as James Nestor recalls - it seems a "forgotten art".
THE NOSE AND ITS ERECTILE TISSUE. YOU READ WELL.
Nose is crucial because cleans the air, warms it and humidifies it to make it easier to absorb. One of the many benefits is that breasts they release a good amount of nitrogen monoxide, an essential molecule in increasing circulation and supplying oxygen to cells.
“Breathing through the mouth is destroying our health”
What many people don't know is that “The inside of the nose is lined with erectile tissue, the same meat that covers the penis, the clitoris and the nipples. Noses have erections. Within seconds, they can also fill with blood and become enlarged and hard. This happens because the nose is more intimately connected with the genitals than any other organ.
THE BLAME? DO NOT CHEW
James Nestor explains that 150 years ago man stopped chewing and that this did not only set our chins and jaws back, but also made it easier for us to We started breathing through our mouths. Did you know that of the 5,400 species of mammals are the only one with crooked teeth?
“95% of the modern diet is bland food. Our pre-industrial ancestors They chewed for hours a day. And they chewed so much that their mouths, teeth and throats became wide. Now with the bigger brain and a face, mouth and smaller nose, we breathe worse.
THIS IS THE PERFECT BREATH
And in the end, after talk to dozens of experts and familiarize himself with numerous investigations and essays -all collected in the book-, this journalist -who writes for media such as Outside, Scientific American or The New York Times- reaches the conclusion that you have to breathe less and better.
To breathe well, you have to chew well
The perfect breath formula? Inhalations of 5.5 seconds and exhalations of 5.5 seconds. This gives 5.5 breaths per minute and a total of 5.5 liters of air.
But… how do we start? In Respira, James Nestor collects different techniques and he also includes explanatory videos on his website, although he recommends starting with some simple ones, alternating nostrils:
if we want facilitate digestion , after meals, we must place an index finger above the left hole and then breathe in and out only on the right about twenty times.
And to improve concentration, you have to take air through the right nostril and then expel it through the left for several times. Now it's just a matter of re-learning... to breathe.