Nose breathing is almost as important as the actual air you breathe. Are you paying attention to how you get your oxygen intake? Mouth breathing causes blood vessels in the nose to become inflamed and enlarged, which makes inhaling and exhaling through your nostrils difficult. How about now?
Health Benefits Of Nose Breathing
There are many health benefits of nose breathing, particularly in relation to exercising. For starters, it enhances your endurance and stamina tremendously. Nose breathing reduces breathing rates by over 50% and decreases perceived exertion by 60%, which means you'll be able to workout harder and longer if you simply close your mouth when doing so. The nose also produces nitric oxide, which is an important compound for cardiovascular, immune, and sexual health. Nitric oxide (NO) is released from the nasal airways to the lungs and circulated through the bloodstream, where it plays a vital role in opening and closing blood vessels, homeostasis, neurotransmission, and of course respiration. Since a health benefit of nose breathing is immune defense, you'll reduce the risk of getting colds and other viruses and bacteria as well.
Nose Breathing Techniques
If you're wondering how to breathe through your nose, look no further. There are some techniques that you can do to ensure that you are breathing through your nose and getting these superior nose breathing health benefits. Follow this simple breathing exercise to get started:
- Inhale and exhale through your nose, then pinch your nose and hold your breath.
- Walk as many steps as you can, building up to a strong air shortage.
- Resume nose breathing, and calm yourself as fast as possible. If you’re not able to recover within 2 to 3 breaths, you’ve held your breath for too long.
- Wait 1 to 2 minutes, then do another breath hold.
- Repeat for 6 breath holds every day.
How To Stop Mouth Breathing
So how do you stop mouth breathing? The oldest trick in the book is to use low-adhesive paper tape lightly over your mouth at night. Yes we're serious - actually tape your mouth shut at night. Most people breathe through their mouths all night long, which is 8 hours of poor oxygen and zero nitric oxide uptake. This actually leads to you feeling more groggy in the morning, so wouldn't you want to fix this problem? Even if the tape falls off during the night, you'll still notice a dramatic improvement of energy throughout the day, and you'll be training your body to breathe through your nose all night. When you wake up, you'll realize that your mouth will have plenty of saliva and you’ll feel refreshed. Of course if you're uncomfortable with tape, you can try a stop snoring strap as well.
Share your favorite health benefits of nose breathing and if you're a nose breather by tagging us on Instagram @itouchwearables and Facebook @itouchwearables. Also, be sure to check out our new articles published daily!
-Gina
