Dr. Berg’s Healthy Keto and Intermittent Fasting Podcast

How to Increase Blood Oxygen Levels: Breathing Hack

May 5, 2024

08:03

Snipd AI

Discusses the misconception of deep breathing and the importance of carbon dioxide balance for optimizing blood oxygen levels. Explores the risks of chronic hyperventilation and the impact of mouth breathing on overall health. Provides breathing techniques to enhance oxygen intake and alleviate health concerns.

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Quick takeaways

Deep breathing does not directly increase blood oxygen levels, and excessive oxygen intake can be harmful.

Chronic hyperventilation due to stress can deplete CO2, inhibiting oxygen absorption and leading to various health issues.

Deep dives

The Myth of Deep Breathing and Oxygen Intake

Deep breathing does not necessarily increase oxygen levels in the body, contrary to common belief. While deep breathing may increase the amount of air inhaled, it does not directly correlate to more oxygen entering the system. In fact, too much oxygen can be harmful, leading to adverse effects like dizziness and fatigue. The podcast highlights the misconception that oxygen is solely beneficial and emphasizes the critical role of CO2 in the oxygenation process.

Introduction

3min

Understanding Chronic Hyperventilation and Its Health Implications

3min

Optimizing Oxygen Intake Through Proper Breathing

2min

In this podcast, we’re going to talk about breathing. Deep breathing does not increase blood oxygen levels. In fact, it can cause dizziness, make you tired, and even make you pass out.

Your red blood cells will not release oxygen unless enough carbon dioxide (CO2) is present. This is known as the Bohr effect. This means that the amount of oxygen released from your blood into your cells is dependent upon CO2.

If you’re breathing a lot or hyperventilating, you’ll get too much oxygen and not enough CO2. Too much oxygen can be dangerous to the body. If you give a baby too much oxygen, it can cause blindness, an epileptic seizure, or a coma. Too much oxygen also causes oxidation.

People in a panicked state experience acute hyperventilation. Chronic hyperventilation, also known as carbon dioxide syndrome, is a lack of carbon dioxide that occurs when a person is consuming too much air. This is often triggered by stress.

Mouth-breathing can deplete CO2 and inhibit oxygen absorption at the cellular level. This can affect the heart and cause hypoxia, fatigue, insomnia, muscle twitching, and increased histamine.

To fix this problem, you need to train your body to breathe properly to get oxygen deep into the cells by doing the following:

1. Relax your breathing.

Take soft, gentle breaths through your diaphragm and stomach, not your upper chest. Breathe in slowly for 5 seconds and exhale for 5 seconds. Practice this before you sleep at night, while driving, or while watching TV.

This simple breathing technique can help your body get out of fight-or-flight mode. You can even use a free app to help you time your breathing!

2. Breathe through your nose.

Your nose cleans, humidifies, and filters the air before it enters your lungs. Nose breathing increases your oxygen by 20%!

3. Use nose strips.

Nose strips can help open your airways and sinuses while you sleep to help you breathe better.

4. Use mouth tape.

Mouth tape can help you breathe through your nose while you sleep. You can filter the air all night, get more oxygen, and sleep better. You won’t wake up with a dry mouth, and you’ll wake up feeling refreshed. Mouth tape might even stop your snoring!

Book Link: https://www.amazon.com/Carbon-Dioxide...