Why Nose Breathing is Better Than Mouth Breathing

We are designed as humans to breathe in and out of our nose most of the time during wakefulness and sleep. The nose performs many critical health functions, while the mouth serves no purpose in our daily breathing, except to act as a backup if the nose is congested or during high-intensity exercise (like sprinting or jogging up a hill). With training, we can learn to breathe in and out through the nose during the day, while asleep, and during sports up to a moderate intensity. Swimming is an exception, as we need to inhale through the mouth, but we can exhale through the nose.

Think of the nose as part of our respiratory system and the mouth as part of our digestive system. You wouldn't try eating through your nose, so why breathe through your mouth?

Why Do Some People Become Mouth Breathers?

There are multiple reasons why children and adults adopt poor breathing patterns, mainly linked to their lifestyle. Factors like stress, anxiety, poor posture, diet, hormonal changes, a sedentary lifestyle, and even genetics can lead to mouth breathing. If you have a job that requires a lot of talking, you might find yourself mouth breathing throughout the day. Singing can have a similar effect.

Some forms of nasal obstruction, narrow nasal passages, and respiratory conditions or allergies can also lead to mouth breathing. However, this does not mean that nose breathing is impossible. There are breathing exercises to help decongest the nose, even during a cold.

As babies, we naturally breathe through the nose and use the diaphragm, our main breathing muscle. However, as early as 4 or 5 years old, some children start adopting mouth breathing patterns during the day and/or during sleep. Some people continue to breathe this way all their lives, often unaware of the impact it can have on their physical and mental health.

I was one of those people until my mid-forties when I discovered the Oxygen Advantage. I retrained myself to breathe through my nose during the day and while sleeping. Changing my breathing has improved my sleep, reduced my migraines, and boosted my energy levels and focus. It has also enhanced my swimming endurance and how I react to stressful situations. I believe it has helped me minimise menopausal symptoms by regulating my nervous system. Learn more about the benefits of functional breathing here. As a result, I trained as a functional breathing coach to help others experience the benefits of improved breathing.

Why is Nose Breathing Better Than Mouth Breathing?

In addition to providing us with a sense of smell, the nose performs many important health functions:

• Immune Defense: The nose acts as the first line of our immune defense by filtering inhaled air, which contains allergens and foreign bodies. Tiny hairs called cilia, mucous, and the internal structure of the nose all help prevent billions of airborne particles from entering the lungs.

• Nitric Oxide Production: Nitric Oxide is produced in the sinuses and purifies incoming air with its antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal properties. It also acts as a vasodilator, opening up blood vessels in the lungs to improve blood flow for better gas exchange (getting oxygen into the bloodstream).

  
  

• Warming and Moistening Air: The nose warms and moistens inhaled air, reducing airway irritation or constriction. Moist air allows for better oxygen uptake in the alveoli (tiny air sacs) in the lungs.

  
  

• Resistance and Diaphragm Activation: The nostrils are smaller openings than the mouth, creating 50% more resistance compared to mouth breathing. This resistance forces the diaphragm to contract, strengthening it and allowing for deeper air intake into the lower lobes of the lungs.

  
  

• Parasympathetic Activation: Nose breathing activates the parasympathetic branch of the nervous system, putting us in rest, digest, and relaxation mode.

  
  

If you breathe through your mouth, the only defense against harmful particles are your tonsils and adenoids, which can become enlarged in mouth-breathing children. Cold, dry, unfiltered air travels straight down into your airways through your mouth. Nitric Oxide is not released in the mouth, so it cannot purify the air or be harnessed for optimal gas exchange. Your diaphragm is not activated as much, leading to less efficient breathing.

Mouth breathing tends to create faster, shallower breathing and can lead to hyperventilation or over-breathing. Many people think of hyperventilation as an exaggerated breathing pattern, like during a panic attack, but it often just means breathing more air than the body requires at a given time. Upper chest breathing primarily recruits the neck, chest, and shoulder muscles, rather than the diaphragm. These auxiliary breathing muscles are not designed for regular breathing, only for when we are out of breath.

Fast, upper chest breathing and hyperventilation through the mouth are less efficient at getting oxygen deep into the lungs and diffusing it into the bloodstream. With every breath, 150ml of air gets lost in the dead space of the airways and does not reach the alveoli. If we slow down our respiratory rate and take deeper breaths using our nose and diaphragm, our breathing efficiency can improve by up to 20%!

When a person overbreathes, they inhale too much oxygen but also exhale too much carbon dioxide, disrupting our respiratory biochemistry. We are saturated with 95-99% oxygen in the body, but we can lose too much carbon dioxide by over-breathing daily. While we need to exhale excess CO2, red blood cells require a certain level of CO2 in the blood to release oxygen into the cells throughout the body.

Mouth breathing also affects our mental state. It sends a signal to our brain that we do not feel safe. This is an evolutionary response, and the brain interprets hyperventilation as a stress signal. If this becomes a chronic pattern of breathing, a person may feel more anxious or stressed, often "reacting" rather than "responding" to life's challenges.

People who mouth breathe tend to have poorer dental health. The mouth becomes dry and more acidic, contributing to tooth decay and halitosis (bad breath!).

More worryingly, mouth breathing in children from an early age can impact their craniofacial development. This often leads to crooked teeth and a high palate, creating a narrow, long face and/or set-back jaws, which makes the airways smaller. Studies have shown that mouth breathing and sleep-disordered breathing can also affect cognitive and academic performance. Therefore, it is imperative to encourage nasal breathing during wakefulness and sleep from an early age. Seeking help from a functional breathing coach can provide valuable guidance.

Conclusion

In conclusion, understanding the importance of breathing correctly can significantly improve our overall health and performance. By focusing on nose breathing, we can enhance our physical capabilities, mental clarity, and emotional well-being. So, why not take a moment to check in with your breath? Are you breathing through your nose or your mouth? Making small changes today can lead to big improvements tomorrow. Let's embrace the power of our breath together!