SOME CONSEQUENCES of HYPERVENTILATION

Date: 02/08/2008

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Breathing behavior changes all the time, dependent upon emotions, feelings, actions, and thoughts. We do just breathe, but we don't just breathe well automatically. Poor breathing (too rapid exhaling) can easily become learned behavior and a bad habit. This is hyperventilation. You may get used to limping if you have knee pain; you also get used to breathing too rapidly and existing on far lower than optimum levels of both C02 and O2.

Usually because of family stress that exits in all families, most kids are over-breathing at a very young age, often by three years of age and this continues with life's on-going stressors. This accelerated breathing causes us to loose too much carbon dioxide. The ratio that results of too much oxygen being inhaled and too much C02 being exhaled leads to pretty dire consequences.

Thirty seconds of this over-breathing can lead to the brain?s blood vessels constricting up to 60%. Translated, this means that for every mmHG drop in C02 level there will be a 2% loss of blood circulation in the brain. C02 is the most potent vaso-dilating (blood vessel opener) agent known in the human body and is the prime regulator of vascular tone in the cerebral cortex. Temporal vaso-constriction at the cortical level is most vulnerable to hyperventilation. Can you imagine what this may do to you? How about memory loss, loss of focus, distraction, inability to retain information or understand it, or how about hyper-excitability? On a physical level, inability to fall asleep, poor co-ordination, poor performance, fatigue and so on.

* Hyperventilation causes the blood to become alkaline and the blood pH to rise above 7.4. You can become very sick in this condition, from heart disease to having a poor immune response.
* The nervous system becomes hyper-excitable.
* The Sympathetic nervous system is aroused and you will be in a full blown stress response.
* You might feel anxiety or panic.

Does any of the above sound like problems or experiences you have encountered? To reduce your incidence of sickness and to regain and be more in control of your health, start by understanding your breathing behavior. It may be your best stress reducer and a life-saver.


By Rosemary MacGregor RN, MS info@themangotreespa
506 2786 5300

There are major consequences to over-breathing. Bad breathing is a bad habit and one of the most pervasive bad habits we have. Start to pay attention to your breathing.

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