Recently as I started doing a breathing exercise and I became interested in the topic of breathing. Here I will sum up the interesting and useful things that I’ve found.

Why breathing is important?

When we breathe we take in oxygen, which produces energy vital for the function of our body and we take out 70% of the waste products produced in our body such as carbon dioxide.

By breathing consciously we can improve the health of our nervous system, including our brain. The brain requires three times more oxygen than other parts of the body. We can rejuvenate our skin, cure our colds and have healthy lungs. We can also relax the body and the mind.

The Breathing Process

Breathing is the proccess by which we take oxygen into our body and release carbon dioxide out of our body. The air we breath goes through the nostrils, the nasal cavity, the pharynx and larynx, then through the trachea and the bronchi into the lungs. The nostrils and the nasal cavity have two important functions. The many tiny hairs of the nostrils clean the air by stopping dust, impurities ang germs going further in our body. Maybe you have seen how dirty is the inside of your nose after a party or acitve or passive smoking. The another important function is the warming and moistening of the air. The nasal cavity is covered with blood vessels which warm the air and other cells in the cavity moisten it. After that the filtered air goes down to the pharynx. This is the place where the nose and the mouth get connected. If we breath with the mouth, then the air moves from our mouth into the pharynx. But in that case we will lose the good qualities of the nasal breathing and maybe dirty and cold air will enter into our lungs. From the pharynx the air goes down into the larynx, which generates sound. Pitch and volume of the sound are adjusted here. Then the air descends though the trachea and the bronchi into the lungs.

The lungs are the most important part of the respiratory system. Their main function is gas exchage - the exchange of oxygen with carbon dioxide. The bronchi which enter the lungs branch out and at their ends are the alvioli. Acctualy the gas exchange occurs between the alvioli and tiny blood vessels (capillaries) by diffusion, spontaneous movement of particles from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration. Carbon dioxide diffuses from the blood into the alveoli and leaves our body as we breathe out. Oxygen diffuses from the alveoli into the blood where it binds itself with hemoglobin molecules and is transported to the parts of our body that need oxygen.

Why do we need oxygen? The body uses oxygen to create energy, which is used by the cells of the body to perform their functions. The cells can also use energy produced by the food we eat. Why do we release carbon dioxide? If there is an increased amount of carbon dioxide in the blood, then the ability of the hemoglobin to bind with oxygen decreases and in this way the amount of oxygen carried by the blood is reduced. Besides that, a reduction of the oxygen can occur by the presence of a toxic molecule found in automobile exhaust, tobacco smoke and many home heating systems. The ability of this toxic molecule to bind with hemoglobin is 200 times greater that that of the oxygen and thus the oxygen can’t bind and is reduced in the blood.

Types of Breathing

There are several types of breathing known as high, mid and low breathing.

High breathing is when we use the upper part of our lungs to breath. The diaphragm, a muscle between the chest and the abdominal, is raised, the rib muscles lift the chest outwards and upwards and the shoulders and the collarbones are raised. In this case the breathing occurs in the upper part of the lungs, which are the smallest and the raised diaphragm does not allow expansion of the lungs downwards. That’s why if you try it you will notice that you put much effort, but you do not inhale much air. This leads to more shallow breaths and less oxygen is delivered to the brain, the heart and the rest of the body. You can notice this when you run fast and when you stop running how you breath more slowly in order to supply the body with the oxygen that it needs.

If we breath a little lower, then this is called mid breathing. The diaphragm is raised again, but the chest is lifted only partially outwards and upwards and it is expanded sideways. It is better than high breathing, because bigger area of the lungs is used - the middle part and a portion of the upper part of the lungs.

Low breathing, also known as abdominal or deep breathing, engages the lowest part of the lungs, which is the biggest, and a portion of the middle lungs. The diaphragm is pushed downwards and allows more space for expansion of the lungs. Thus maximum area ot the lungs is utilized and the effect of breathing is greater than the other forms of breathing. You can notice this type of breathing especially in children, the way their stomach goes up and down.

Let’s see some of the problems with breathing in order to be acquainted with them.

When do we breath fast and shallow (high breathing) instead of deep breathing in our everyday life?

We breathe fast and shallow when we aren’t aware of our breathing and we are in a hurry, when we are stressed, when we get angry easily and in other cases. When we work indoors if the house is not good ventilated with fresh air, then the air may get polluted and the body takes in less air to protect itself.

Breathing Problems and Aging

When we don’t use all parts of our lungs, the unused parts can become inactive and lose their functions. Also such parts of the lungs invite various kinds of bacilli. Breathing problems can lead to asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis, lung cancer, pneumonia and others. You can notice them by their symptoms like wheezing, bad breath, rapid and shallow breathing, chest pain, asymmetrical chest expansion and others.

Lung capacity diminishes after age of 20 and declines steadily unless breathing is exercised in some way. The lungs become less elastic and the chest stiffens. The diaphragm and the muscles between the ribs become weaker. The breathing becomes more rapid and shallow due to weak or stiff muscles and poor postures.

The cessation of breathing and heartbeat was once defined as death (”clinical death”), but later it was found out that they can be restarted. Today, 2008, it is more correctly to say that when the electrical activity in the brain ceases, the person is dead.

What can be done with that knowledge?

It is education and can be applied in various areas of our life. Can you guess where conscious breathing can be applied?

In areas where better breathing can help us in what we are doing. Singing (for stronger and smoother voice), swimming (more oxygen means more energy for the working muscles), bicycling, playing wind instruments (to control the breath), Yoga, QiGong, Tai Chi, meditation, martial arts, public speaking, dancing, in all of them conscious breathing can utilize the way people do what they do. Of course there are also other areas, because breathing is strongly connected with our posture and our emotions.

You can search in google how breathing can be applied in what you do and test it. One important thing to remember is that if you try to do some advanced breathing techniques without knowing your body and mastering the basics, you may injure your respiratory system. So be careful, don’t try hard and instead do it in a way that feels good and relaxing for you.