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Posted on: July 20, 2007

You Do Know How to Breathe, Don’t You?

According to doctors, most people breathe incorrectly. Learning the proper techniques can lead to fewer aches, pains and illnesses

By Bev Bennett
CTW Features

The basics of breathing are to just take a deep breath and blow, to paraphrase actress Lauren Bacall. Breathing is so mindless, you don’t even think about it.

But if it is so natural, why is it such a big deal? Why are so many books, lectures and even personal coaches ready to tell you how to draw in air? People are far more conscious about breathing now because lifestyles are so taxing, says Dr. Jeffrey Migdow, medical director of the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Lenox, Mass.

“There’s so much publicity about stress and how it affects our health [increasing risks for high blood pressure], and there’s so much about cigarette smoke and how that affects the air quality that people have become much more conscious about breathing,” Migdow says.

Experts suggest that merely breathing isn’t enough. How you breathe affects whether you’re stressed or relaxed, or whether you can break your bad nail-biting habit. Breathing may turn your skin from sallow to glowing and even help you lose a few extra pounds.

“If a person isn’t breathing properly, he might be anxious,” says Barry Sultanoff, a holistic psychiatrist in Kensington, Md. “There’s a link between calmness and anxiety and how you breathe. There are so many situations that can cause us to restrict our breath. I pay attention to people who are tense, irritable, feeling jagged, out of balance - the things that go along with breathing that isn’t slow enough and smooth enough.”

Here’s what breathing solves

Proper breathing, says Migdow, can reduce chronic pain, such as that from arthritis, severe headaches, some asthma symptoms and heart palpitations. And it can be the solution to bad habits such as nail biting and smoking.

“Anxiety triggers nail biting,” Sultanoff says. “Breathing helps you stay focused on breaking habits. Breathing helps you focus on the present moment.”

Correct breathing also helps your body shift from the fight-or-flight state into a relaxation response, Migdow says: “It relaxes the emotional system of the brain. The day just goes better.”

Dr. Mark Rudin has seen results. He has a physician’s typically grinding routine: “I just go. I don’t think about stopping and breathing. I just run. I barely eat, [and I] forget how I got where I’m going. By learning to breathe, my body adjusts better. I feel more grounded. I’m less stressed, more focused. It’s taught me to relax and have a good night’s sleep.”

The Lenox, Mass., physician even taught his son and daughter to breathe. “It’s important,” Rudin says. “They’re carrying around 40-pound backpacks; they have so much homework. Learning to breathe and release stress is important.”

Breathe for good looks?

Being able to cope with tension is valuable, but can breathing help with less-critical improvements, such as a better complexion or a shapelier figure? Yes, say some experts.

“Most wrinkles are caused by worry lines and lack of exercise,” Migdow says. “If you breathe correctly, you’ll have fewer wrinkle lines. And if you exercise, you’re not going to have dull skin. People who learn to breathe say their skin looks better.”

Bev Bennett, a veteran food writer and editor, is the author of "Dinner for Two: A Cookbook for Couples" and "30-Minute Meals for Dummies"