The Oxygen Advantage: The Simple, Scientifically Proven Breathing Techniques for a Healthier, Slimmer, Faster, and Fitter You

by Patrick McKeown

  This illustration shows the facial characteristics of a nasal breather and is based on the Irish International and LA Galaxy soccer captain Robbie Keane:

  Note the forward position of the jaws, high cheekbones, airway size, and width of the face. The jaw is strong and positioned well forward so that the chin is nearly as far forward as the tip of the nose. When cartoonists draw illustrations of a dominant male, his strength is often conveyed by a rugged and exaggerated jaw. Socially, a wide facial structure and strong jawline are considered healthier and more attractive than a recessed chin. And not only is the classic square jawline more likely to get you a date, it might also be beneficial to your bank balance. In a paper written by researchers from the School of Business at the University of California at Riverside, men with wider faces were found to be stronger negotiators, commanding a signing bonus of nearly $2,200 more than their narrow-faced counterparts. In a separate study by the same authors it was found that companies led by men with wider faces also achieved superior financial performance.

  Throughout our evolution, social anthropologists have regarded facial appearance as a determinant in establishing societal rank and individual roles. Beauty is not just skin deep, and Aristotle was right when he stated that “Beauty is a far greater recommendation than any letter of introduction.”

  In the image above, the jaws are set back and the airways are smaller, resulting in diminished athletic performance. Had the jaws been in a more forward position, the nose would be straighter and smaller. The eyes look tired as the face sinks downward, and there is poor definition of the cheekbones. Chronic, habitual mouth breathing is also associated with postural changes that result in decreased muscle strength, reduced chest expansion, and impaired breathing. Interestingly, researchers have found that mouth breathers are more likely to be male.

  While the above image is exaggerated somewhat, these features are identifiable in thousands of children and adults who have fallen between the cracks of the health care system and were not encouraged to breathe through their nose. These same individuals often suffer from poor health, low energy, and reduced concentration. In the words of Dr. Yosh Jefferson: “These children do not sleep well at night due to obstructed airways; this lack of sleep can adversely affect their growth and academic performance. Many of these children are misdiagnosed with attention deficit disorder (ADD) and hyperactivity.”

  Dr. Egil Peter Harvold, an expert in orthodontics and craniofacial anomalies, carried out extensive research into the development of the facial structure of monkeys in the 1970s, discovering that the restriction of nasal breathing over several years led to a lowering of the jaws, crooked teeth, and other facial deformities. While today we would consider it dreadful to experiment on innocent animals in this way, hundreds of thousands of children take part in a similar experiment and experience the same craniofacial anomalies due to the effects of mouth breathing. Dr. Harvold’s studies paved the way for the treatment and prevention of the improper development of the jaws and face and is accredited almost single-handedly for introducing a branch of orthodontics known as functional appliance therapy to North America.

  A 2012 study investigating the long-term changes to facial structure caused by mouth breathing noted that this seemingly “benign” habit “has in fact immediate and/or deferred cascading effects on multiple physiological and behavioral functions.” Infants and children who breathe through their mouths due to nasal obstruction are likely to develop crooked teeth and a longer, narrower face, permanently affecting their appearance. Mouth breathing also has a significant impact on the health of the child, including restriction of the lower airways, poor quality of sleep, high stress levels, and a lower quality of life. Research has suggested that habitual mouth breathing may even be connected to sudden infant death syndrome.

  Hold On to Your Teeth!

  Over the past few years I have been asked to give talks on nasal breathing at dental conferences in Europe, Australia, and the United States. Each conference presents a wonderful opportunity to speak with international experts in dentistry and related disciplines, including orthodontics. There are two specific groups within orthodontics that hold opposing views: functional orthodontists and traditional orthodontists.

  A functional orthodontist places emphasis on attaining the correct facial profile of the face as well as straightening the teeth. Functional appliances are worn by the child in order to help guide the growth of the face, jaws, and teeth to reach their full genetic potential. The commonly held view of functional orthodontists is that overcrowding of teeth is not because the teeth are too big, but more likely because the jaw is too small as a result of mouth breathing or thumb sucking. The course of action therefore is to gently expand the jaws and guide them forward to make room for the teeth, with extractions only carried out as a last resort.

  In contrast, the primary emphasis of traditional orthodontics is to straighten the teeth, with the facial profile and airway size receiving secondary consideration. Crowded teeth are usually treated by extracting four perfectly good premolars and retracting or pulling the front teeth back to close up the excess space created. This retraction sometimes causes the face, especially around the lips, to look caved in, and the nose and chin to become more prominent. This retraction of the front teeth may also cause problems with the joint of the jaw if the lower jaw is forced back too far. When the lower jaw is too far back, it encroaches on the upper airways, decreasing airway size and negatively affecting athletic ability.

  If you are the parent of a child who may be undergoing orthodontic treatment, I would like to impart some advice from international orthodontist Dr. John Mew, who has devoted his life to ensuring the normal growth of children’s faces:

  • First ask the orthodontist how many permanent teeth will be initially removed and how many more may need extracting later. Sadly, most children who receive traditional retractive orthodontic treatment lose 4 premolar teeth, and nearly half of these children will not have room for their wisdom teeth, leaving them with 24 teeth. This can be completely avoided by helping to ensure normal growth of the face to accommodate all 32 teeth.

  • Ask your clinician whether he or she is confident about avoiding an increase in the vertical growth of your child’s face. You have the right to be informed of all types of treatment and to be warned of likely problems.

  Knowledge is empowering. The best approach to determine the treatment options for you and your child is to research both functional and traditional orthodontic treatment. Selecting the correct approach will have repercussions on the well-being of your child; it is well worth investing a little time to determine a more noninvasive solution. Extractions should be a last resort.

  Don’t Leave It Until It’s Too Late

  According to American research, 95 percent of head circumference growth for the average North American white child takes place by the age of nine. Development of the lower jaw, however, continues until approximately the age of eighteen.

  Based on these observations, for correct craniofacial growth to take place, early intervention with nasal breathing and tongue posture is essential. The negative effects of mouth breathing on the structure of the jaws and face will have the most impact when they occur before puberty, so there is only a brief window of opportunity to avoid the need for orthodontic treatment and significant changes in a child’s facial structure.

  My daughter is three years old. She first began to breathe occasionally through her mouth at the age of eight months during teething, and since then I have been encouraging her to breathe through her nose. I set an example by breathing through my own nose all the time, and congratulate her any time she has her mouth closed. As we live in the countryside, I often comment that Charlie the donkey breathes through his nose, as does Snowball the cat. Such clever animals!

  Genetically, there would be a high likelihood for my daughter to be a mouth breather as both my wife and I had severe respiratory complaints while growing up. The earlier you begin to
encourage your children to breathe through their nose and ensure the correct positioning of the tongue, the better. Not only might you help them avoid orthodontic treatment altogether, but the shape of their face, their general health, and their athleticism will be significantly influenced during these few short years. Even genetic predispositions can be minimized when the right action and behavior is enshrined.

  A few years ago I wrote a self-help book for children, teenagers, and parents entitled Buteyko Meets Dr. Mew: Buteyko Method for Children and Teenagers about the craniofacial changes associated with mouth breathing. I put extensive amounts of research into the subject and included many peer-reviewed papers and studies to support my claims. Most parents are shocked when they realize that crooked teeth, narrow faces, large noses, and undeveloped jaws can be avoided if a child is simply encouraged to breathe through his or her nose. Not only is sports performance affected, but lifelong health! We cannot be dispassionate about the impact of mouth breathing on the development of our children. The detrimental effects that I suffered from a childhood of breathing through my mouth needn’t happen to anyone else, armed with the knowledge we have about the benefits of nasal breathing.

  CHAPTER 14

  Exercise as if Your Life Depends on It

  For two million years we survived without supermarkets, convenience stores, microwaves, or McDonald’s. In the past, in order to feed ourselves and our families, muscle movement was required to collect berries and vegetation or to track down an animal—often over several days—until it collapsed from exhaustion.

  Compare that to today’s couch potato lifestyle—do you know many people who could adequately feed themselves if there was no food available for convenient purchase? One thing is for sure—a major shift of attitude would be required. In order to eat, we would have to perform regular and sustained physical exercise, something that the human body is built for and thrives upon. Why should we stop it now, simply because hunting our own food is no longer necessary?

  And while it might be too late for many of us to become elite athletes, we can still enjoy and derive considerable benefit from regular physical exercise. Even if you have lived a relatively sedentary life until now, you can develop your fitness slowly and steadily and bring about positive changes to your health. There is a great feeling of self-esteem and accomplishment when we get up off our backsides or move away from the computer. If you exercise for an hour per day, five times per week, for just a few weeks, you will experience a remarkable difference in your sleep quality, mood, and state of health.

  Despite the advances of medical science, the diseases of modern civilization continue to increase, and it could be argued that we are passing responsibility for our health to pharmaceutical companies rather than making changes to our lifestyle and diet to prevent illness in the first place. Each year, more and more people are developing asthma, heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and cancer. Not only that, but new “diseases” are being invented all the time—and some might say it’s because the market conditions and share prices of big pharmaceutical companies dictate a need for new markets and ever-increasing sales. We may be living longer, but at the expense of consuming vast quantities of medication as soon as we approach fifty or sixty years of age. A far better option to help prevent the onset of diseases—and one that involves no toxicity or expense—is to take a regular fast walk or jog. If you haven’t exercised regularly before, please pay a visit to your physician to get the all clear before starting.

  One thing that pretty much all health professionals agree on is the importance of regular physical exercise, taken within our limits. Dozens of studies over the last few years have shown that regular physical exercise provides many health benefits, including a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes.

  Studies as far back as the 1950s have investigated the relationship between regular physical exercise and cardiovascular health. One of the earliest was conducted by Dr. Jeremy Morris, who studied the incidence of heart attacks in 31,000 transport workers. Morris found that bus conductors, who spent most of their day climbing up and down the stairs of double-decker buses, averaging between 500 and 700 steps per day, had reduced incidences of heart disease than their bus-driving counterparts, who spent 90 percent of their day sitting down. Not only this, but heart disease developed by the bus conductors tended to present later in life and was less likely to be fatal.

  The same study was replicated using over 100,000 postal workers, and once again it was found that those who spent their day on foot or cycling while delivering the mail had fewer incidences of heart disease compared to workers in sedentary occupations such as telephonists, civil service executives, and clerks. Dr. Morris’s findings are just as relevant today as sixty years ago, and since more and more of us spend our working day behind a desk, there is an increased need to perform regular physical exercise. Even more important is that we perform this exercise within our own personal limits.

  The best way to ensure that we exercise within our capabilities is by nasal breathing, and an important consideration is the length of time you can comfortably hold your breath, or your BOLT measurement. When your BOLT score is less than 20 seconds, your breathing volume will be greater than what your body requires, resulting in a risk of overbreathing during physical exercise. All breathing should be through the nose when performing physical exercise so as not to increase breathing volume even further.

  When your BOLT score is greater than 20 seconds, it’s fine for you to breathe through the mouth during exercise for brief periods of time. However, it is only when your BOLT score is greater than 30 seconds that intense physical exercise can be performed without undue risk of overbreathing. The goal for serious athletes, of course, is to attain a BOLT score of 40 seconds.

  Only with a high BOLT score of 40 seconds is breathing volume at a normal level. Anything less indicates habitual overbreathing. And while it would be a normal expectation for athletes to possess a high BOLT score, in reality this is seldom the case. I have measured the BOLT scores of hundreds of athletes, ranging from weekend warriors to elite Olympic-level athletes, and guess what? The vast majority of BOLT measurements were less than 20 seconds. Some, in fact, have been less than 10 seconds, as low as any person with severe asthma. It is shocking to think of the stress that such overbreathing is placing on the body during intense physical exercise, so anyone serious about exercise should aim to reduce their breathing and increase their BOLT score.

  Like any change to your routine, the best way to determine the benefits of reduced breathing, nasal breathing, and a higher BOLT score is to put the Oxygen Advantage program into practice for 2 to 3 weeks. You will find a program specific to your BOLT score, exercise history, and state of health in Part IV of this book. Two or three weeks is a relatively short period of time in the grand scheme of things, and most individuals will experience positive benefits within a few short days. As you experience the positive benefits, I am in no doubt that you will be happy to incorporate these principles into your life, for the rest of your life.

  For example, when I first learned to unblock my nose and switch from mouth to nasal breathing, I immediately felt tension lifting from my head, and despite having wheezed my way through the previous twenty years, my symptoms reduced by as much as 50 percent within the first day, simply by breathing calmly through the nose.

  Even if you are unwilling to make a 100 percent change to nasal breathing during your peak season training, bear in mind that whatever you do to incorporate the Oxygen Advantage program into your routine will provide a return. Ultimately, your success depends on your ability to improve your BOLT score—each 5-second improvement will cause the benefits to accumulate.

  In Part IV I have outlined a series of different programs to suit individuals according to their current training, BOLT score, age, and overall health. Choose the one that best matches your fitness level and abilities and move on when you feel you have accomplished as much as possible from eac
h program.

  Would You Do Me a Favor?

  I am very optimistic that if you follow the principles outlined in this book and work toward increasing your BOLT score, your health and sports performance will improve in many ways.

  Since 2002, I have observed tremendous improvements in the sporting ability of both amateur and professional athletes who have applied the concepts of the Oxygen Advantage program. I have also witnessed the negative effects on respiratory, mental, and cardiovascular health from chronic overbreathing. It is my aim to spread the word of these simple techniques to provide an easy and effective way of improving the health and well-being of readers.

  And you can help me to generate awareness!

  I would appreciate it greatly if you would try out these practices and then spread the word to your friends and family who are interested in health and sports, or who suffer from any of the problems described in this book. You could also help by writing a review of The Oxygen Advantage on Amazon.com.

  Also, please share the book with anyone you think may benefit from the techniques within the Oxygen Advantage program.

  Finally, if you have any questions, or would simply like to tell me about your personal experience with the Oxygen Advantage program, please drop me a line. I would love to hear from you. You can contact me directly at patrick@OxygenAdvantage.com.

  Best wishes and thanks again,

  Patrick McKeown

  Galway, Ireland

  PART IV

  Your Oxygen Advantage Program

  Summary and General Program Based on BOLT Score and Health

  Each time I work with a client, I design a program of breathing exercises and lifestyle guidelines to help him or her reach goals safely and in the shortest time possible. When deciding on a program, it is necessary to take into consideration each individual’s health and BOLT score. Having an insight into a person’s lifestyle is also useful, as exercises can be tailored to cause minimal disruption to work schedules and current training routines. I fully understand the challenge of making time in a busy life to exercise, which is why the Oxygen Advantage program offers quick, easy, and achievable techniques that can fit around any existing routine. There is no doubt that a low BOLT score can result in fatigue, reduced concentration, and poor productivity, so by allocating just a half hour to one hour each day to practice these exercises, your BOLT score will increase along with your energy levels, well-being, and performance. I have seen the proof in thousands of clients that spending a little time to improve body oxygenation is a hugely beneficial investment.