Why Should We Breathe Through The Nose?
Many people are not breathing functionally. We are often over-breathing.
What are some of the symptoms of habitual hyperventilation?
Respiratory system: wheezing, breathlessness, coughing, chest tightness, frequent yawning, snoring, and sleep apnoea.
Nervous system: light-headedness, poor concentration, sweating, dizziness, vertigo, tingling of the hands and feet, faintness, trembling, and headaches.
Cardiovascular: high blood pressure, arrhythmia, racing heartbeat, pain in the chest region, and a skipping or irregular heartbeat.
Mind: anxiety, tension, depression, and stress.
Other general symptoms caused by over-breathing include:
mouth dryness, fatigue, nightmares, dry or itchy skin, sweaty palms, muscle cramps and spasms, increased urination (for example, bed wetting in children, or regular visits to the bathroom during the night in adults), diarrhoea, constipation, insomnia and chronic exhaustion.
So, how can we resist over breathing. Breathe through the nose!
What is the importance of Nasal Breathing?
Your nose plays an important role in conditioning incoming air before it enters your lungs, in addition to regulating breathing volume. By making the switch from mouth to nasal breathing on a permanent basis you can reduce asthma symptoms by 30% and reverse the habit of over-breathing for improved lifelong health. Nasal breathing is the pivotal point upon which to base your journey to easy breathing.
What does the nose do?
The nose is highly underrated when it comes to promoting good health. Breathing through your nose day and night helps to maintain correct breathing volume as well as reducing allergies and illnesses, improving sleep and energy levels, and weight loss.
How the nose affects breathing:
Filters: The nose is lined with a mucus membrane which filters the air we breathe before it reaches the lungs. “It has been estimated that three quarters of the bacteria entering the nose are deposited on the mucus blanket and are thus eliminated. In fact, the mucus has its own antibacterial action.”
Your nose also filters larger particles, which are common triggers for asthma.
Warms: Your nose warms the air you breathe to a better temperature, therefore reducing the likelihood of airway cooling and narrowing.
“Air swirling through turbinates is warmed rapidly: entering the nose at 6 degrees (43 degrees F) for instance will be warmed to 30 degrees (86 degrees F) by the time it reaches the back of the nose, and to body temperature as it passes the trachea.”
Moistens: Your nose contains a moist mucous blanket which slightly moistens incoming air, reducing narrowing of the airways caused by the dehydration effect.
Regulates air volume: Your nostrils provide a smaller entry for air than your mouth. Nasal breathing creates a mild resistance to breathing and results in a smaller breathing volume.
Dilates airways: Breathing through your nose facilitates the transfer of nitric oxide from the nostrils to the lungs. Nitric oxide is a naturally occurring gas which has a significant effect on many bodily functions, including the reversal of the build up of cholesterol and plaque in the blood vessels. Breathing gently and slowly through the nose allows greater concentrations of nitric oxide to be picked up by the incoming air for improved blood circulation as well as airway dilation.
So, the invitation is to breathe more consciously, breathe through the nose, slower and deeper.
“One needs to eat less, breathe less, sleep less and physically work harder. This is a fundamental change, this is true restructuring.” - Konstatin Buteyko
