Proper breathing

You may not know it, but some of the best advice that have likely received is to “take a deep breath.”  

Many people do not realize that breath improperly. Improper breathing includes breathing through the mouth and taking shallow breaths and has been linked to a variety of negative health outcomes. While breathing through the mouth is at times necessary, like during intense exercise, mouth breathing is generally less efficient and beneficial. Shallow breaths can elicit a fight-or-flight response in the nervous system and contribute to feelings of agitation, anxiety, and depression.

Proper breathing involves:

• Breathing through the nose. The nose helps to clean the air that we breathe by filtering out dust, pollution, allergens, smoke, bacteria, viruses, etc. The nose also warms and humidifies air as our lungs do not tolerate dry air well. Breathing through the mouth does not provide these important benefits.
• Deep breaths. Deep breaths engage the diaphragm, a key muscle in breathing that sits above the stomach and helps the lungs to expand and contract. As you take deep breaths, the diaphragm is pulled down, increasing the space, and creating negative pressure, in the chest cavity. This allows the lungs to expand and fill with air. 

Some of the many scientifically proven benefits of proper breathing include: 

• A greater sense of mental clarity
• Reduced feelings of stress, anxiety, and depression 
• Better sleep
• More efficient food digestion
• Improved body's immune response
• Boosts energy and increases vitality.

As breathing is mostly done unconsciously, breathing exercises are needed to practice proper breathing. It is recommended to practice proper breathing for 5 minutes a few times during the day. 

Here is one simple breathing exercise:

• Sit down comfortably on a chair or on the floor with your straight posture.
• Breath in through the nose for 5 seconds.
• Breath out through the nose for 5 seconds.
• Repeat for around 5 minutes. 

Over time, you can increase the duration of your inhalations and your exhalations.