March 30, 2023 general

Yes, I know…you’ve been breathing regularly all your life. But…there is more to that story.

This week’s blog is an extension of last week’s, Think your way to better health! Thinking about our breathing helps our health in many ways as is pointed out in the following article by Andrew Shepherd, DC. Also, check out what I added at the bottom about a simple but effective breathing technique.

“Proper breathing decreases the risk of disease AND improves immune system strength! It also can:

✅Reduce stress levels in your body
✅Lower your heart rate
✅Lower your blood pressure
✅Improve diabetic symptoms
✅Reduce depression
✅Better manage chronic pain
✅Better regulate your body’s reaction to stress and fatigue

Many people are “shallow breathers” as a reaction to environmental stressors.

Breathing in a shallow way keeps the body in a cyclical state of stress; stress causing shallow breathing and shallow breathing causing stress. This activates the sympathetic nervous system which then keeps the body in constant “fight or flight” mode. That’s why shallow breathing in the long run can have serious health consequences. 

According to John Luckovich, an Integrative Breathwork Facilitator in Brooklyn, NY, ‘the chronic stress that is associated with shallow breathing results in lower amounts of lymphocyte, a type of white blood cell that helps defend the body from invading organisms and lowers the amounts of proteins that signal other immune cells. The body is then susceptible to contracting acute illness, aggravating pre-existing medical conditions, and prolonging healing times. It is also a precursor for cardiovascular issues’. (Source: Headspace)

This is important information with the contagious diseases that pop up in the news.

Working on proper breathing techniques will calm the sympathetic nervous system and keep you less susceptible to illness and disease. 

It’s also important to note that chiropractic adjustments will help reduce the stress on your nervous system and facilitate relaxation in the body which will allow you to take fewer breaths per minute. 

Practicing proper breathing techniques AND getting adjusted regularly are two of the best things you can be doing for your health.” 

Martie adds this: As noted above, simply focusing on your breathing can reduce stress and it can help with sleep (better than counting sheep). I like a technique called “box” or “square” breathing that is said to be used by Navy Seals, professional athletes, nurses and police officers when they are anticipating a stressful event. Here are instructions from the Cleveland Clinic for that technique:.

1. Breathe out slowly, releasing all the air from your lungs.
2. Breathe in through your nose as you slowly count to four in your head. …
3. Hold your breath for a count of four.
4. Exhale for another count of four.
5. Hold your breath again for a count of four.
6. Repeat for three to four rounds.

I think it is pretty cool that there is something so powerful for health that is FREE and has no unpleasant side effects. Thank you, Dr. Shepherd for writing about this fundamental health factor.

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Dr. Shepherd’s Sources:

• Front Hum Neurosci. 2018; 12: 353.
• Am J Hypertens. 2009 Dec;22(12):1326-31. doi: 10.1038/ajh.2009.184. Epub 2009 Oct 1.
• JAMA Intern Med. 2014 Mar;174(3):357-68. doi: 10.1001 /jamainternmed .2013.13018.
• Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2005 Nov;1056:242-52.