How you breathe affects your health and recovery.

Breathing is generally automatic however it is not automatically efficient.

We can breathe efficiently, inefficiently or anywhere in between.

Breathing affects every cell, tissue, organ and system in the body.

Breathing efficiently provides the basic foundation for every cell, tissue, organ & system in the body to work efficiently

Modern living is pushing us away from living as we have been biologically programmed to live and as a consequence increasing number of individuals are not breathing as nature intended.

Breathing at rest should use the nose, be quiet, slow and driven by the diaphragm – this is how we have been designed to breathe.

Consider how you breath whilst resting, moving and sleeping over a 24-hour period.

In 2019 a paper highlighted 1 in 10 adults in primary care in the United Kingdom breathe inefficiently and in individuals with asthma one third of women and a fifth of men do not breathe efficiently. This paper explains inefficient breathing has been investigated for decades, it remains poorly understood because of a lack of high-quality research and an absence of a gold standard to diagnose this condition.

Also inefficient breathing is often under-diagnosed or misdiagnosed as symptoms are similar to other conditions (e.g. asthma) or sometimes the symptoms are labelled as a form of anxiety.

When we sleep the fight, flight (sympathetic) response should turn down and the relaxation (parasympathetic) response turn up so the body feels safe and can perform all the wonderful repair processes required for long term survival.

Unfortunately, an increasing number of individuals are breathing inefficiently whilst sleeping. Sleep disordered breathing (SDB) refers to a wide spectrum of sleep-related conditions including increased resistance to airflow through the upper airway, heavy snoring, marked reduction in airflow (hypopnea), and complete cessation of breathing (obstructive sleep apnoea = OSA). If breathing is compromised during sleep the individual will generate a fight, flight (sympathetic) response to maintain breathing and survival however this reduces sleep quality and the ability of the body to repair leading to increased mortality and morbidity.

In the research the prevalence of SDB varies widely and has been reported to range between 17 and 49% for all severities of OSA (mild, moderate & severe).

Generally more men than women have SDB however a study (Wisconsin Sleep Cohort Study) demonstrated that there is a 3 times greater risk of moderate or worse OSA in post-menopausal women compared to pre-menopausal women.

Women with OSA are less likely to report snoring or witnessed gaps in breathing (apnoea) but are more likely to complain of daytime fatigue, lack of energy, insomnia, morning headaches, mood disturbance and nightmares compared to men.

Are sometimes the symptoms you describe related to the way you breathe whilst sleeping? Ask yourself or your partner: Do you sleep with your mouth open, snore, have noisy breathing or gaps in breathing whilst asleep?’

Try to observe how you breathe whilst resting and moving.

The only role the mouth has in breathing is making breathing inefficient.

The body has been designed for survival therefore it will make adjustments within the systems of the body to cope with inefficient breathing however this may lead to a cascade of inefficiencies which can impact the pillars of lifestyle medicine such as:

• Excessive breathless on exercise (affecting the physical exercise & mental health pillar)

• Reducing sleep quality (affecting the sleep, mental health, minimising harmful substances, healthy relationships & healthy eating pillars)

• Higher sympathetic drive (fight, flight, freeze response) increasing feelings of anxiety (affecting the mental health pillar)

  
  

How we breathe whilst resting, moving and sleeping matters and thats why we talk about and work with you during assessment, reviews and exercise session.

We can change how we breath for the better.

At Turra Physio Therapy we know the importance of correct breathing and how not doing so effects health and recovery. Our team has the expertise and experience to assess and help as with over 40 years of Chartered Physiotherapy practice we hold the highest form of professional qualifications and registration in the UK. Our registration with the Health and Care Professions Council and Charter Society of Physiotherapy, ensure that each person is getting the most experienced and expert led knowledge base when you attend an appointment.