Is mouth breathing making you sick? Based on the anatomical function of the respiratory system, nose breathing is the best way to strengthen the entire human system. Based on research of Joseph Pilates, he only advocated for nose breathing. Nose breathing filters all the rubbish with nairs (small hairs) and also effects the shape of the face, development of the teeth, actually is important for the way we move and most importantly your health and longevity (life force, prana, dentine).
Joseph Pilates emphasized the importance of nose breathing allowing for optimal oxygenation, as the nasal passages warm the air, ensuring it reaches the lungs effectively. Pilates taught that exhalation should be done deeply through the nose which helps to clear the lungs and prepare for fresh air, thus facilitating better oxygenation as the nasal passages filter and warm the air, ensuring it reaches the lungs effectively.
Pilates taught exhalation through the nose and encouraged diaphragmatic breathing, where the abdomen rise on an inhale and drops on an exhale. Sadly this is misunderstood with many pilates practitioners and fitness trainers holding the abdominals tight, hence creating a reverse breath pattern that facilitates the neck and shoulders, leading to more ill health.
According to the asthma and lung organization released on the 12th November 2024, 1.7 million admission to England hospitals last year were for respiratory issues. ‘Lung health has been long neglected, evident from figures that show breathing issues are the leading cause of all emergency admissions and the main driver of winter pressures. Last winter saw over 300,000 people admitted with breathing issues including almost 90,000 children. Breathing issues are responsible for 1 in 8 (13%) emergency admissions in England higher than heart disease, musculoskeletal conditions and cancer. To tackle the burden breathing issues heap on the NHS during winter, a more proactive, year-round approach needs to be taken to care rather than firefighting each winter.” 1
Our government website states: ‘Respiratory disease covers a wide variety of conditions, both acute and chronic upper and lower respiratory tract conditions, asthma, COPD, influenza and certain types of pneumonia. In this analysis, lung cancer and cystic fibrosis are not included. In the financial year ending 2025, there were 873,461 emergency admissions to hospital for respiratory disease in England, a rate of 1,442 per 100,000 population, a significant increase of 1.0% from the previous year. Emergency admissions from influenza doubled to over 56,000 in the financial year ending 2025 compared with the previous year.’2
How you breath is how you live! Mastering different breathing techniques including the rhythms of slow, fast and strong will build endurance, speed and strength not just for athletes but for 84 year old grandmas. Your state of being, physiology and attitude can be trained to be clear, calm and focused. When you train your breathing biomechanics it changes the way you live and feel about life. A healthy breath pattern works in conjunction with your core including the diaphragm, transversus abdominus, pelvic floor and full body fascial connections. Changing the amount of breaths per minute (minute ventilation) alters your central nervous system and blood, gas physiology.
‘The nose is crucial because it clears air, heats it, and moistens it for easier
absorption. Most of us know this. But what so many people ne er consider is
the nose’s unexpected role in problems like erectile dysfunction. Or how it can
trigger a caalcade of hormones and chemicals that lower blood pressure and
ease digestion. How it responds to the stages of a woman’s menstrual cycle.
How it regulates our heart rate, opens the vessels in our toes, and stores
memories.’ James Nestor
Shallow mouth breathing keeps you stuck in fight or flight. A nose breathing pattern can help to rewire in minutes but can only be sustained if the the physiology load is decreased. The majority of what I see are actually food allergies, that lead to mouth breathing and sleep apnea. This is why assessments are essential.
‘The mouth is for kissing, the nose is for breathing!’
Nose breathing also produces nitric oxide, which is antagonist to covid and other flu like symptoms. Remember the basics, we can have all the interventions in the world which make money including masks, pharmaceutical drugs and vaccines, but if the basics are not addressed, not taught and no one is made aware, nothing changes. This is why just turning upto breathing/pilates/yoga class alone without addressing nutrition, hydration, sleep, movement and thoughts will not work long term. Many clients come with all sorts of rhinitis issues including hay-fever, seasonal colds and flu. These are essential to build up our immune system. The immune system starts in the gut , so unless SIBO is addressed, the same problem reoccurs . Prevention is always better than cure. I always know how good my gut is by my hay-fever symptoms, the healthier I am, the less symptoms I get.
If you are snoring or your partner snores this means the nose is blocked—because of allergies, a cold, or chronic rhinosinusitis. People tend to mouth breathe, which bypasses the nasal passages and their supply of nitric oxide. Parents often notice more snoring, dry mouth, and unsettled sleep in these periods. An operation treats the symptom and does not address the root cause.
Many of the clients I have assessed actually have some sort of gluten intolerance, the problem being this is linked and intertwined with so many foods including:
Rye, Barley, Spelt, Polish wheat
Cows milk
Cassein (Alba & beta)
Casmorphin
Milk butyrophilin
Whey protein
Milk chocalate
Oats
Yeast
Coffee
Seseame
Buckwheat
Sorghum
Millet
Hemp
Amaranth
Quinoa
Tapioca
Teff
Soy
Egg – This is because of what the chickens are fed, E.G grains, antibiotics, growth hormones
Corn
Rice
Potatoe
Bibliography
Chris Gladwell media
James Nestor
1- Breathing issues are the leading cause of all emergency admissions | Asthma + Lung UK
2 – Respiratory disease profile: statistical commentary, May 2026 – GOV.UK