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Breathing – A Forgotten Art

breathing

We eat 3-4 times a day, about 1.5kg of food, but we breathe 20,000 to 25,000 times a day – we intake about 20-25kg of air – We are not fully knowledgeable on breathing. Since it is an autonomous process, we do not – My research with Sleep naturally took me to research about “Breathing” and what I found out, woke me up (pun intended) and I decided to continue my blogs on Breathing.

3 external physical objects are consumed by us regularly. Life critically depends on them. Food, Water and Air. Food and Water can be paused through fasting for some time. But breathing cannot be paused beyond 10 minutes. Life will cease.

Only Free Divers can hold their breath for a maximum time of 10 minutes. We cannot and should not. Unlike eating food or drinking water, which are conscious activities, breathing is an  autonomous process. It is controlled by the medulla oblongata, a part of the brain stem. 

However, Both Indian and Chinese ancient wisdom has clearly found out that “Conscious Breathing” is the only process which can be used by human action to influence the brain functions and hence, the mind.

As evolving human beings, we have forgotten what is the natural and correct way of breathing. 

Our modern lifestyle has robbed us of natural breathing. We have got to relearn 

  • Correct Breathing 
  • Conscious Breathing

Unfortunately, there is little or no focus on breathing from modern medical science. 

Other than just asking you to breathe deep while checking heart/lung function using the stethoscope, I am not aware of any doctor visually observing or inquiring about how the patient is breathing!

My research into sleep took me naturally to breathing. So, I read James Nestor, the author of a recent bestseller on “Breath, the New Science of a Last Art”, Anders Olsson on “Conscious Breathing” and Wim Hof about the Wim Hof Method of breathing. 

I acknowledge the above authors in taking up the cause of breathing and explaining lucidly about the science behind breathing, the anatomy concerning breathing and some breathing techniques which have given me massive improvement in my health and attitude to life over the past few months.

Correct Breathing 

First let us learn about Correct Breathing and then I will talk about Conscious Breathing. So, what exactly is incorrect about breathing? All 3 aspects: 

  1. Breathing through the Nose
  2. Using Abdomen and Diaphragm for breathing
  3. Breathing Rhythmically and Slowly

Breathing through the Nose:
I wonder why I even should talk about this. Is this such a big thing? Then I really started observing the world around me – Shocking when I observed that my wife was breathing through her mouth during sleep (how I worked on it and corrected is a separate story).

We believe that it is ok to breathe through the mouth – this is as correct as eating through your nose! Nose is created to be the sole instrument of breathing! Period. Google it or look around when people are sleeping. Surveys and research says that at least 50% of people are breathing through their mouth during sleep! Add to this the percentage of people who have choked noses, COPD and other breathing issues! 

We are talking about a VERY LARGE proportion of the human population incorrectly breathing.

How do you breathe? Do you know? Ask your partner to observe while you breathe.

If you have a dry mouth when you wake up, if you  have a V-shaped upper palate (as against a U-shaped palate), If your tonsils are removed when you were a child, if you are snoring then IT IS QUITE LIKELY THAT YOU ARE BREATHING THROUGH YOUR MOUTH.

See what you are missing out if you breathe through your mouth?

  • Your nose captures impurities, particles, bacteria and viruses using the hair mucous surface in the nose when the inhaled air is going through.
  • Your nose heats up the air and moistens it using the moist mucous surface. Why is this important? The incredible process of Gas exchange in the lungs happens optimally only when the air is hot and humid (more about Gas exchange and the process/chemistry of breathing later).
  • It also adds the magical element of Nitric Oxide which is secreted in the sinuses. Nitric Oxide dilates the blood vessels as well as the air tubes of lungs, reducing blood pressure. Most Importantly, it KILLS the COVID virus (and any virus)

Tip: When you do Bhramari Pranayam (humming), you are releasing 15 times more Nitric Oxide into the breathed air and hence, practicing Bhramari Pranayama a few times a day during these days of the pandemic, can help you avoid getting infected. 

A nasal spray to produce more Nitric Oxide in the nose to kill the covid virus is being tested and might get released soon. Also, there is a good side effect of Nitric Oxide – it is a vasodilator and helps in pumping more blood to sexual organs similar to Viagra.

So, why not simply hum and breathe through your nose?

PS: All of what is stated above is a summary of reading so many research articles and you can google about any of them.

I will be sharing more on breathing in the articles to come! Stay tuned. For more breathing exercises, check out Healthy Reads. To learn breathing techniques with the right guidance from a certified expert, subscribe to personalized coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr 

#BeTheForce 

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5 Ways To Keep Your Lungs Healthy

keep your lungs healthy

Even though the heart gets a lot of attention, healthy lungs are also crucial for overall health — particularly in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Lung infections often develop as a complication of other chronic illnesses. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), exposure to air pollution results in 4.2 million deaths worldwide each year. Cigarette smoking is the cause of death for one in every five people in the United States. So, lungs should not be taken for granted. Though the body has a natural defense system to protect the lungs, there are some ways to keep your lungs healthy! 

How To Keep Your Lungs Healthy 

1. Practice Deep Breathing
Although lung capacity can diminish as you age, certain deep breathing exercises can help you breathe better. Breathing exercises can help healthy people as well as those with breathing problems. You can try these two types of deep breathing techniques to keep your lungs healthy.

  • Diaphragmatic breathing helps in building lung capacity and helps people with COPD. Inhale through your nose for two seconds, feeling the air move into the abdomen and breathe out for two seconds. 
  • Pursed-lip breathing: Breathe in through your nose and then breathe out slowly through pursed lips.

2. Detox Your Lungs
Our lungs are mostly self-cleaning organs but there are certain simple ways which help cleaning lungs, so that they function at an optimum level.

  • To break down the mucus, start your day with 1-2 crushed cloves of garlic in one tsp of raw honey.
  • Drink 250ml of lemon water, add a pinch of cayenne pepper and drink it in the morning to loosen up the mucus. 
  • Drink fenugreek seed water and chew the soaked fenugreek seeds to break down the mucus. 
  • Steam inhalation with peppermint and eucalyptus oil for 5 minutes twice a day is an effective way to keep your lungs healthy.  
  • Castor oil has properties to destroy mucus, massaging your chest deeply with warm castor oil is good to cure congestion.

3. Get Fit & Stay Active
Exercise forces the muscles to work harder, which increases the body’s breathing rate, which in turn gives a good supply of oxygen to the muscles. It also helps in improving circulation and making the body more efficient in removing the excess carbon dioxide that the body produces when exercising.

4. Stay Hydrated
The best way to keep your airways moist is to stay well hydrated. Staying well-hydrated is very important if you have breathing problems because it helps the lungs to do their job better. It keeps the mucosal lining in the lungs thin and this thinner lining helps the lungs function better.

5. Prevent Infection & Avoid Exposure To Pollutants
Sometimes respiratory infections become very serious. To safeguard your lungs from various infections you should: 

  • Wash your hands often with soap and water or use alcohol-based sanitizer
  • Maintain good oral hygiene, brush your teeth twice a day and see your dentist every six months
  • Avoid crowded places during cold and flu season. Get yourself vaccinated against influenza and pneumonia every year
  • Minimize exposure to outdoor air if the quality is not good and avoid exercising outdoors on bad air days
  • Don’t exercise near heavy traffic to avoid inhaling polluted air
  • Avoid exposure to indoor pollutants which worsen lung disease. Make your home and car smoke-free
  • Dust the furniture at least twice a week. Keep your home clean as much you can, use natural cleaning products and make sure you have adequate air ventilation at home.
  • Instead of using synthetic air fresheners and candles, you can use an aromatherapy diffuser, essential oils like lavender oil, peppermint oil, rosemary oil, etc.
  • Stop smoking as soon as possible because it causes chronic inflammation in the lungs and destroys lung tissues which can lead to chronic bronchitis and lung cancer.

Apart from the above therapies, you can add some anti-inflammatory and antioxidant-rich foods to your diet which helps in reducing the inflammation of the lungs. Try adding turmeric, green tea, cherries, blueberries, olives, walnuts, beans and lentils, etc. to keep your lungs healthy! 

We hope this article helps you. To know more ways to keep your lungs healthy, check out Healthy Reads or tune in to LIVE sessions by experts on GOQii Play. 

#BeTheForce 

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