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Buteyko Theory: A Breathing Discovery

Buteyko theory is based on the work of Russian scientist Konstantin Pavlovich Buteyko who discovered that most people do not breathe correctly. His research showed that breathing too deeply can deprive the body of the carbon dioxide it needs to function properly. Buteyko developed a "Control Pause" breathing test to measure breathing depth and retention of carbon dioxide, with lower pause times indicating potential health problems. The theory posits that overbreathing, or hyperventilation, causes a loss of carbon dioxide which is crucial for oxygen delivery to tissues, immune function, nervous system regulation, and other bodily processes. Maintaining the proper balance of carbon dioxide to oxygen is important for overall health and wellness

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Muhammad Iqbal
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182 views3 pages

Buteyko Theory: A Breathing Discovery

Buteyko theory is based on the work of Russian scientist Konstantin Pavlovich Buteyko who discovered that most people do not breathe correctly. His research showed that breathing too deeply can deprive the body of the carbon dioxide it needs to function properly. Buteyko developed a "Control Pause" breathing test to measure breathing depth and retention of carbon dioxide, with lower pause times indicating potential health problems. The theory posits that overbreathing, or hyperventilation, causes a loss of carbon dioxide which is crucial for oxygen delivery to tissues, immune function, nervous system regulation, and other bodily processes. Maintaining the proper balance of carbon dioxide to oxygen is important for overall health and wellness

Uploaded by

Muhammad Iqbal
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Buteyko theory

A BREATHING DISCOVERY
At the end of the last century Austrian physiologists Breyer and Gering made a sensational
discovery - man is the only biological specimen on earth who had not developed a correct
way of breathing. All other beings know how to breathe, but not humans. Just observe those
around you carefully and you will find that people breathe differently. Some breathe deeply,
others superficially, some faster, others slower, some with pauses and some without.

NORMAL BREATHING
Russian Medical Scientist Professor Konstantin Pavlovich Buteyko devoted over 40 years of
research into breathing and in the process discovered that only one in ten people breathe
correctly. Natural or normal breathing results in a very specific accumulated gas mixture that
our organism requires to function properly.

SO HOW SHOULD WE BREATHE?


Physiological norms apply to pulse, blood pressure, sugar levels, temperature and breathing
as well. Ideally at rest an adult should breathe lightly, superficially, and only through the
nose. A healthy person can perform light exercise and still breathe lightly, whilst a sick
person requires deep breaths almost all of the time.

BUT HOW CAN WE TELL IF WE BREATHE TOO DEEPLY OR NOT?


Many people think they breathe shallowly but in fact they breathe very deeply. Many people
who suffer with asthma, allergies, bronchitis, emphysema and breathlessness will tell you
they feel that they can't breathe enough, when they are actually breathing three or more
times the normal volume of air.

The Control Pause Breathing Test

Professor Buteyko developed a test to measure your depth of breathing and consequent
retention of carbon dioxide, resultant oxygenation and health. He named it the "Control
Pause" breathing test. This acts as a natural peak flow meter and is far more useful.

You can try this for yourself - find a clock or stop watch then -
1 Sitting down, close your mouth and breathe normally through the nose for 30 seconds or so.
2 Take a normal breath in through your nose.
3 Allow a normal breath out through your nose.
4 Gently close your nose with thumb and forefinger, glance at a a clock face or timing with a stop watch. count the seconds.
5 When you feel the first need to breathe, release the nose and take a breath in through the nose. remembering to keep the mouth
closed at this point.

The number of seconds that has passed is your Control Pause.


If you managed less than 10 seconds .....you have health problems
If you can hold for less than 25 seconds..... your health needs attention
.........................................30-40 is satisfactory
.........................................60+ seconds is excellent

THE MYTH BEHIND DEEP BREATHING


Traditional wisdom tells us that deep breathing is the best as it is thought to provide the
most oxygen. We inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide and the conclusion that is drawn
is that oxygen is good for us and carbon dioxide is harmful. When Professor Buteyko was first
analysing his patients he discovered that those who were sick breathed much more than
those who were healthy; that is, their tidal volume, depth and frequency was greater. Could
it be that "breathing deeply" is in fact contributing to ill health?

THE OXGYGEN PARADOX


In 1871 Doctor Da Costa discovered the "Hyperventilation Syndrome" whereby deep
breathing in a relaxed state caused dizziness and sometimes fainting. This has in the past
often been incorrectly attributed to oxygen saturation. According to the Verigo-Bohr effect, it
is the ratio of carbon dioxide to oxygen which permits the release or retention of oxygen from
the blood.

At the end of the last century Russian physiologist Verigo and Dutch scientist Bohr
independently discovered that, without carbon dioxide, oxygen is bound to the haemoglobin
of the blood and simply does not work. This leads to oxygen deficiency in the tissues of the
brain, heart, kidneys and other organs and a raising of blood pressure. SO, strange as it may
seem, oxygen deficiency is not caused by lack of oxygen but by the lack of carbon dioxide! If
we breathe too much we get less oxygen.

HOW MUCH CARBON DIOXIDE DO WE NEED?


THE AIR THAT WE BREATHE CONTAINS 200 TIMES LESS CARBON DIOXIDE THAN WE NEED
AND 10 TIMES MORE OXYGEN THAN WE NEED.

The function of our respiratory system is not just to push air in and out but to maintain a
very specific ratio of oxygen to carbon dioxide.

OVERBREATHING OR HYPERVENTILATION
When we over-breathe or hyperventilate, we lose valuable carbon dioxide. According to
Professor Buteyko, "hidden hyperventilation" often goes undiagnosed. When a person is
acutely hyperventilating, it's obvious and the implications to the organism are disastrous.

Chronic Hidden hyperventilation often goes unnoticed. Asthmatics overbreathe three or more
times the recommended volume of air. Long term "hidden hyperventilation" is the hinge upon
which Buteyko's discovery and method are based.

HAT ABOUT THE AIR WE BREATHE?


We are all aware of the dangers of pollution and the declining quality of our air. Many blame
asthma and other breathing disorders on pollution and the environment, yet asthma strikes
in the county as well as in the cities and some people who work in very polluted
environments never suffer with asthma or emphysema. Could there be another problem with
the air we breathe?

OUR CHANGING ENVIRONMENT


The problem faced by the evolving human organism has been the depletion of carbon dioxide
in our atmosphere from the tens of percent of ancient eras to the current level (1982) of
0.03%. Human evolution has dealt with this dilemma by creating an autonomous internal air
environment within the alveolar spaces of the lungs. These alveoli ideally contain around
6.5% of carbon dioxide, quite a contrast to the surrounding air. The gaseous mix in the
womb is also an interesting indicator of the ideal human environment - here there exists
between 7/8% carbon dioxide.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE OVER- BREATHE AND LOSE CARBON DIOXIDE?


Let's take a look at what carbon dioxide does for us, and from this we can ascertain what a
deficiency may mean:

1. Oxygenation
Carbon dioxide regulates oxygen departure from blood and a fall in carbon dioxide results in
reduced oxygenation of tissue and vital organs (Verigo-Bohr Effect). Poor oxygenation leads
to myriad complaints.

2. Acid/Alkali Balance and the Immune System


Carbon dioxide, through its conversion to carbonic acid, is the most important regulator of
our acid/base balance. A lowering of carbon dioxide results in a shift of the body's pH toward
alkalinity, which changes the rate of activity of all body ferments.
An alkaline system is much more susceptible to virus and allergy as it compromises the
immune system. A great deal of information is available about the role of pH in the process of
binding of the antibody with the antigen. A deviation of the pH from a certain optimum
results in a decrease in the affinity and therefore in the weakening of the immune reaction.

3. Vessels
Carbon dioxide is a smooth muscle tissue dilator; therefore a shortage of carbon dioxide can
cause spasms of brain, bronchi and other smooth muscle tissue. Asthma spasms and
migraines are prime examples of this situation.

4. The Nervous System


Carbon dioxide is a regulator of nervous system activity. A lowering of carbon dioxide in the
nerve cells heightens their excitability, alerting all branches of the nervous system and
rendering it extraordinarily sensitive to outside stimuli. This leads to irritability, sleeplessness,
stress problems, unfounded anxiety and allergic reactions. Concurrent with this, the
breathing centre in the brain is further stimulated, thereby causing an increase in breathing
rate and a further loss of carbon dioxide, and a vicious cycle begins.

5. The Cardiovascular System


Carbon dioxide is a regulator of the cardiovascular system. A depletion of carbon dioxide can
result in angina, chest pains, high or low arterial pressure, hypertension, stenocardia and
eventually sclerosis of vessels, myocardial infarcts and strokes.

6. The Digestive System


There is a direct relationship between the level of carbon dioxide and the activity of the
digestive glands, in particular the linear relationship between the intensity of gastric secretion
and the level of carbon dioxide. A shortfall of carbon dioxide can lead to ulcers and poor
digestion.

Note for medical professionals:


The above reference to carbon dioxide does not specify its form (i.e. dissolved carbon dioxide gas, carbonic acid, bicarbonates,
carbonates or carbamates). Furthermore the author has not explained the various shunts between defensive and
compensatory mechanisms that may lead to obvious paradoxes, such as high levels of CO2 in the blood of asthmatics, and the
compensating shifts between respiratory alkalosis and metabolic acidosis).

http://www.buteyko.co.uk/buteyko-theory.htm

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