Harness nose breathing and *nitric oxide to improve your health

Breathe easy — you’re in the right place! In this blog, we’ll show and tell you the ins and outs of breathing properly to improve your blood oxygen levels, immune defense, oral health, and more — while reducing blood pressure, inflammation… Really, the list goes on! 

Health is holistic, so as leaders in oral health, we’ll say this for the folks in the back: 

Your mouth is the window to your body! 

It plays an important role in your overall health — and vice versa. So below, we’ll explore the benefits of breathing through your nose for your dental wellbeing and beyond. Then, we’ll touch on some recommendations to improve your breathing longterm.

Let’s dive in. 

The moral when it comes to mouth breathing?

Don’t do it!

We understand — it’s easy to do without thinking. Breathing is supposed to be passive! 

The thing is, a large portion of the population doesn’t breathe properly one way or another. Breathing through your mouth in particular has been shown to play a role in several health problems over time. These can include:

• Chronic hyperventilation
• Lower oxygen and CO2 levels
• Reduced blood circulation
• Higher blood pressure
• Heart disease
• Sleep apnea
• Asthma
• Tiredness
• Allergies
• For oral health, higher risk of cavities, TMD (jaw pain), and gum disease

But why?

When we breathe through our mouths, we release too much carbon dioxide — and oxygen doesn’t spread through our bodies properly. Mouth breathing also side-steps one important sinus function:

The sinuses in our nose generate nitric oxide (or “N.O.”), which plays a key role in regulating organ function. Breathing through our noses carries this essential gas through our systems. 

Low N.O. over time has even been linked to medical emergencies like heart attacks and strokes, as well as degenerative conditions like Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. 

We can’t say it enough: it’s essential to support our bodies with the breaths we take. But how can we best do that?

Let’s start with an exercise

And a few deep breaths.

1. Place your hand on your abdomen.
2. Take a slow breath through your nose.
3. Try not to fill your chest with air, but instead feel your stomach expand!
4. Fill your lungs until you feel natural resistance.
5. Breathe out.
6. Repeat!

You’re probably thinking: “I’ve breathed before — successfully even.”

It’s true — when it comes to years of experience breathing, you’re outstanding in your field. Sometimes, though, it’s important to be mindful of the things we do automatically.

And we can always do better! For example… 

Here’s what you just set in motion by breathing better through your nose:

• Increased blood flow to your brain 
• Improved oxygen delivery and oxygen saturation
• Healthier blood pressure
• Improved breathing efficiency 
• Better tongue posture 
• Increased saliva production
• Better bacterial balance in your mouth
• Improved dental erosion prevention
• More anti-inflammation and anti-clotting properties for your arteries
• Better immune defense
• Improved cognitive function
• Healthier digestive and urinary system functions
• More balanced hormones

Beyond breathing exercises…

(Because 70% of mouth breathing is from habit)

One of the best ways to achieve healthy breathing long term is to work closely with a myofunctional therapist. (Think of them like a physiotherapist — for the mouth and oral muscles.)

They’ll provide an airway assessment to identify the possible causes of your mouth breathing. These causes could include your tonsils, narrow arches, or a tongue tie. In some cases, your myofunctional therapist may recommend an ENT or sleep study to find the possible cause. 

At Oceana, our myofunctional therapist can provide a variety of solutions tailored to your needs. Breathing is everything! 

The takeaway

Breathing properly through your nose is essential — not only for your dental health but the health of your whole body! In addition to spreading oxygen, nose breathing brings nitric oxide to your organs, helping to regulate your systems.

Though we breathe automatically, it helps to be mindful — because sometimes, we can teach ourselves bad habits. In fact, 70% of mouth breathing happens out of habit.

Luckily, we can teach ourselves the right habits, too!

At Oceana, recommend reaching out to a myofunctional therapist if you have any questions about breathing better. And a little mindfulness moment every day to take some deep breaths doesn’t hurt!

Good luck, and breathe easy.

To get in touch with our myofunctional therapist, give our clinic a call at 613-680-6543!