Your incredible nose

Love Your Incredible 

Nose 👃 

Use your nose!

When air enters your nose, the many small hairs in your nose imme­diately filter out larger particles. Air then proceeds to the nasal conchae where it is humidified and warmed, and at the same time, smaller par­ticles are filtered out by the surrounding mucous membranes. Indeed if we use our nose properly, we will be able to appreciate this extremely sensitive organ. The entire nasal cavity receives nerve fibers from the nervous system, and thus directly influences our health and state of mind. In the upper part of the nose there is a number of delicate sen­sory cells that can detect various smells and odors, and the information from these are directed via nerve fibers to the brain.

Many people don’t realize just how big the “inner nose” is! Here the flow of air is controlled, heated/cooled and moisturized.

In spite of its impressive sensory function, the nose does not receive much attention either culturally or medically in the Western world. This could be rooted in the fact that in our age, where information has to be fast and accessible, visual communication is preferred. In addition, as “civilized” human beings, we have left our original nature behind, and do not run around “sniffing” each other – perhaps because it is not vital for the survival of our species!

Your secret “radar”

However, unconsciously our nose is constantly in use and receives a wealth of information from our environment. We all know how odors can have an overwhelming effect on us, for example it may lead us back to a childhood experience or, if the smell is atrocious, make your stom­ach turn inside out. Primitive people use their nose much more and also dilate their nostrils more frequently than we tend to. Notice for instance how you smell a flower or perfume. You most probably dilate your nos­trils and draw air up high into the nose.

Unknown organs & a sixth sense!

As late as in 2004, the scientists Richard Axel and Linda Buck received a Nobel Prize for their discovery of an unknown group of odorant recep­tors on the olfactory receptor cells, their function and connection to the brain. This was a step towards a better understanding of how odors are intercepted and conceived. Nonetheless, there is still a great deal that we do not know about the nose. There is even an ongoing debate as to whether a sixth sense is present in humans – the so-called Jacobson’s organ.

By breathing through your nose, you not only clean and warm the air, but also detect a plethora of important information from your environ­ment. If you breathe through your mouth, this information is lost. In addition, NO (nitrogen oxide) from the sinuses are mixed with the inhaled air and passed to the lungs where it makes the blood vessels in the alveoli expand. This allows a greater volume of blood to pass, whereby more oxygen can be taken up. Nitrogen Oxide is also antibacterial.

 

Breathe for instant relaxation

Try to direct the air as high up in the nose as possible and sense it there. You can also visualize the air flow e.g. as a gently flowing golden wave. If you would like to know what your breath looks like, place a little mirror below your nostrils and exhale. Then you will be able to see the flow of air. If you stand in front of a large mirror and place a little mirror below your nose, the flow will be even more visible – especially if you blow hard. It will look like the heat waves on asphalt on a hot summer’s day, and will re­semble a little blazing fire.

When you breathe out slowly you will trigger the part of your nervous system that makes you feel relaxed and lower your heart rate. That is why this type of breathing is highly efficient to reduce stress and increase the feeling of wellbeing!

Nitrogen Oxide – A Pleasant Poison!

The unknown “miracle” gas!

Breathe through your nose! This applies to everybody, everywhere and at any time. There are numerous reasons for this, but here follows a physiological and very tangible explanation.

In 1998 the Nobel Prize in medicine was awarded to three American scientists for their discovery of nitrogen oxide’s ability to expand blood vessels. This phenomenon is called vasodilation. Nitrogen oxide (NO) simply makes the blood vessel walls relax thereby increasing blood flow.

In 2002 a research group from Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, found that NO is formed and released in human sinuses. Further they showed that the NO concentration in the nasal cavity increases as much as 15 times if you make a “buzzing sound”, because it creates vibrations, which mixes air from the sinuses with nasal air.

Their ingenious experiment discovered that blood is oxygenated 10-15% more, when you breathe through the nose compared to breathing through your mouth. When you breathe through your nose, NO flows with the inhaled air into the lungs where it makes the blood vessels in the alveoli expand. This allows a greater volume of blood to pass, whereby more oxygen can be taken up. When NO was given to those who breathed through the mouth, the same effect was registered. This showed that it is actually NO which mediates the marked rise in oxygenation.

It is problematic when people breathing through a respirator have a tube fitted directly to their trachea, because the nose is bypassed. In the study a simple pump sucked air from one of the nostrils of the patient and mixed it with the air of the respirator, which increased oxygenation of the blood by 10-20%.

This study firmly establishes the importance of breathing through the nose, but it is also another beautiful example of how easily and cheaply a standard treatment can be modified and improved. Likewise, it illus­trates that treatment with air or pure oxygen may not always be the best solution. Treatment-wise, it is not only patients using respirators that can benefit from NO’s ability to widen blood vessels. It also applies to patients suffering serious chronic illnesses such as high blood pres­sure (hypertension), pulmonary complications, cardiovascular diseases or those who have suffered a stroke.

 

A 1000-year old remedy

NO is also one of the active ingredients of nitroglycerine that is used as a heart medicine because it causes the blood vessels of the heart to relax and expand.

You may be familiar with the fact that heart patients, if feeling ill, can place a nitroglycerine pill under their tongue, because this compound rapidly enters the blood stream through the mucosa. How long this procedure has existed in the West is unknown, but it was described in Chinese medicine about a 1000 years ago. The recipe was discovered in a Buddhist cave at Dunhuang, and some of the scripture reads: “Putting under the tongue, to cause heart qi to flow freely. For treating symptoms such as struck by evil, acute heart pains and cold in the hands and feet which can kill a patient in an instant. (…) This is a sure cure.” Note that the scriptures use the term qi, which is identical with the Indian concept of prana – life energy, the power of the universe as described in yoga. Here the expression is used in a very specific context, and it makes sense since qi is precisely the energy that allows a terminally ill patient to regain vitality. This is a perfect example of East meeting West in the true spirit of yoga – even if it took 1,000 years to build this bridge!

 

Antibacterial

In addition, it should also be mentioned that NO has many other ben­eficial effects. It has a strong antibacterial effect, and can kill both bacte­ria and viruses. Indeed, studies have shown that NO successfully elimi­nates bacteria such as Salmonella and Shigella as well as other bacteria that often affect patients with pulmonary diseases caused by smoking or cystic fibrosis. Thus, the effect is not limited to an improved oxygena­tion of blood: the immune system is also spared and strengthened.

Furthermore, NO also has an amazing property, which reduces oxy­gen consumption of the cells without compromising the overall energy production. This quite peculiar quality is obviously beneficial to anyone, but particularly to people who are sick and need to optimize oxygen utilization in every conceivable way to become healthy quickly.

 

Exploiting the properties of NO

The gas molecule nitrogen oxide (NO) that we know is activated through the nose also contributes to relaxation and to expand blood vessels, like carbon dioxide. Add to this an antibacterial function, which can help to improve local conditions in an irritated lung. To further in­crease the concentration of NO – and thus the dilation of blood ves­sels – humming sounds during nose breathing can advantageously be employed. This rather special kind of breathing is beneficial because the buzzing sound has been shown to increase the concentration of NO in the nasal cavity up to 15 times, since the air in the nose more readily mixes with NO-rich air from the sinuses.

Moreover, the simple pressure equalizing Valsalva Maneuver can help as it presses air from the lungs to all the cavities in the skull, and there are indeed a lot around the nose and forehead. During a strong cold or if you have swum under water with a blocked nose, you may have experience a marked pain in the sinuses. The Valsalva maneuver is easy to perform and everyone can perform it right away, because it requires no prior knowledge. Close your mouth, pinch your nose shut and push air up in your head using your diaphragm and abdominal muscles. You may be able to hear air whistling through the Eustachian Tubes to the eardrum (psssttt).

The technique is widely used in diving, flying, mountain driving or in any instance where you need to equalize the pressure in your ears. If you maintain the air from the lungs in your head for 20-30 seconds after the Valsalva maneuver, a substantial amount of NO is added to the air, which can then be drawn into the lungs. 

Master Your Nervous System

A Twin-Forked System

The part of the nervous system that cannot be controlled by our will is called the autonomous nervous system. It consists of the sympathetic and the parasympathetic pathways that regulate the vital functions of the body. These can be influenced by inner and outer factors of both physical and mental origins. Both parts of the nervous system are con­tinuously at work and do it in an antagonistic way to maintain a healthy balance.

“Fight or Flight” versus “Rest and Digest”

The sympathetic nervous system is mainly activated by stress and pre­pares the body for a fight. In other words, it is a survival mechanism that increases heart rate, blood pressure, blood sugar and dilates the pupils. It is termed a “fight or flight” response. Evolutionarily, it is necessary to be able to react promptly when facing immediate danger, but if the sym­pathetic nervous system becomes overburdened by prolonged stress, mobbing or hard physical activity, it will wear on the organism and has the potential to lead to fatal consequences.

The parasympathetic nervous system, however, has a calming influ­ence. It lowers the heart rate and blood pressure and simultaneously promotes digestion and the uptake of nutrients. It is termed “rest and digest”. Hence, it is primarily during rest, eating and sleeping that the parasympathetic nervous system dominates and coordinates the body’s repose and regeneration. It is mainly this part of the nervous system that is advantageous to activate through breathing exercises.

The Vagus Nerve

Let us now consider one of the most fundamentally important ele­ments in the parasympathetic nervous system, the vagus nerve, which is the most complex of all of our nerves. In Latin, Vagus means “wander­ing”. It is termed so because from its origin in the brain stem it spreads nerve fibers to the throat and upper body, and through these nerve fib­ers signals wander to and fro between the body and the brain. In short, the vagus nerve connects the brain to everything from the tongue, pharynx, vocal chords, lungs, heart, stomach and intestines to different glands that produce enzymes and hormones, influencing digestion, me­tabolism, and much more.

The vagus nerve’s considerable influence on your lungs and heart and the connection to your brain is quite interesting. This trinity, brain-heart-lungs, rules your body and governs your mind. The key to managing your state of mind and stress level lies in being able to activate the calming parasympathetic pathways of your nervous system on command. Typi­cally, the will cannot control this part of the nervous system, but if you hold your breath for a brief moment and then slowly exhale, the vagus nerve is stimulated bringing peace to your body and mind.

In effect, strengthening the living nervous system can pay off. And the best tool you can use is an efficient training of your breath. You can mas­ter this yourself. The path to this goes through training your breathing, which can be achieved by means of yoga.

Instant relaxation

Relaxation is inextricably bound up with the parasympathetic part of your nervous system, the so called “rest and digest”. It belongs to the self-propelled autonomic nervous sys­tem, but by actively focusing on your breath and the movements of your diaphragm, you can influence the system enormously through the vagus nerve that spreads from your brain to your lungs, heart and other or­gans.

Try to activate your own vagus nerve. Simply breathe out very slowly. Can you feel how your heart rate drops and your mind relaxes instantly!