How many of you focus on the way you inhale and exhale ?? Not many. A lot of us breathe incorrectly and only use one third of our lung’s total capacity.
If you are not breathing correctly, your body is not supplied with the required amount of oxygen, thereby failing to replenish your brain as well as other vital organs with essential nutrients. In fact, a certain level of carbon dioxide is also important for your body to function properly. Not using your lung’s full capacity can lead to a host of health issues.
International breathing expert Rebecca Dennis says, ” Shallow breathing can make you feel stressed, depressed, drained and can even affect our sleep pattern.”
Observe a child sleeping and you will see how deeply it breathes with its abdomen rising and falling. It’s exactly the opposite in case of adults. Most of us breathe only from our chest and our breathing is short and sharp and the condition worsens with stress.
Ideally, we are supposed to breathe 20,000 times a day. It assists our nervous, cardiovascular, immune and digestive systems among others. Interestingly, 70 per cent of the toxins are flushed out of our breath.
Breathing through your mouth is a common breathing mistake. It can cause tiredness as well as dry mouth. Not only this, it can alter your heart rate and blood pressure too. For the uninitiated, nitric oxide which is important for the body to absorb oxygen is produced in the nose. This is all the more important while exercising.
Breathing tips
– Don’t be only a chest breather or an abdomen breather. You should be utilising both while breathing. “Your stomach should expand while inhaling and contract while exhaling. A lot of people miss out on this very important breathing rule,” shares yoga expert, Abhishek Sharma.
– Breathe through the nose. It is vital for people to practice different types of breathing through the nose. This is where yoga comes in. One must try alternate nostril breathing, which also helps release stress.
– Tooth grinding in sleep. This often happens alongside improper breathing because they are both signs of stress.
– Feeling tired perpetually? Your brain doesn’t get the required amount of oxygen and it will obviously impact your energy levels.
– Tightness in neck and shoulders? 80 per cent of us are chest breathers and it leads to stiffness in neck, shoulders. This is body’s way to allow lungs to get more air.
