Close your mouth & stay healthy! Buteyko for kids & adolescents.

Does your child or teen have difficulty concentrating, suffer from panic attacks, asthma or poor sleep? These conditions are not rare nowadays, but anything but trivial. They may not only put the child, but the whole family and the teachers to the test. When it comes to improving the situation, the question worth asking is: “How does the child usually breathe? Silently through the nose or visibly through the mouth?”.

By nature, children breathe through their nose. Breathing healthily means breathing slowly, easily, and with a gentle movement in the belly. The airways of the nose are designed to support such breathing by offering resistance to the flow of air. However, if for example a child often suffers from a cold or hay fever, it may get into the habit of breathing through the mouth and not switch back to nasal breathing on its own.

Via mouth, due to the lack of resistance in the airways, we are able to inhale and exhale much faster and convert much more air per breath. Also breathing trough the mouth is very likely to be more shallow and by this, our body gets used to a faster, heavier and more superficial breathing pattern. Mouth breathing creates the opposite of healthy breathing and favors

  • sleep disorders

  • concentration disorders

  • anxiety and panic attacks

  • asthma

  • learning disabilities

  • dental malocclusions & caries

  • …

Conditions that can creep up slowly and for which mouth breathing might not be considered as a cause. So if the child keeps breathing through the mouth during the day and/or at night, it's worth taking action.

The good news is, that mouth breathing is reversible!

For parents, it can nevertheless be challenging to inspire their own children to do regular breathing exercises. Older children can tape their mouths at home and especially at night. The child must however be able to open his or her mouth at all times. For example, close the lips only at the corners of the mouth or use the specially developed Myotape. For safety reasons, the mouth of small children must not be taped. Teenagers may respond to TikTok films, that show that nose breathing produces more attractive facial features. Nevertheless, it is important that nasal breathing is promoted as an important pillar for healthy development not only at home, but also wherever children spend a lot of time. Schools or sports clubs, for example, directly benefit from it, in that nasal breathing increases both mental and physical performance.

It should be noted that blocked nasal airways can make breathing through the nose impossible. This can be due to severely enlarged tonsils or allergic reactions, for example. However, according to Patrick McKoewn, this is only the case in a small minority of mouth-breathing children. He recommends a simple test: the child takes a sip of water and holds it in their mouth for a minute. If the child continues to breathe without any problems during this minute, nasal breathing and therefore Buteyko breathing training is generally possible. Otherwise, medical clarification and, if necessary, treatment is required. If breathing through the nose is difficult but possible, it may be worth practising nasal breathing alongside medical treatment, because:

The more they breathe through the nose, the more these airways will open up and the easier healthy breathing becomes.

If parents, teachers, trainers and other caregivers understand how our breathing works, they can better support children. Many adults have little idea about this. Breathing is increasingly being addressed in medical education, but still rather incidentially. As a result, a few common and basic misconceptions around breathing remain quite persistent. For example, many people believe that breathing fast gives our muscles more oxygen, or that it is healthy to take frequent strong breaths. The opposite is true for both.

To be upfront: Mouth breathing is a common cause of health problems, but not the only one. The aim of us breath trainers is to make sure that all children and young people know that breathing through the nose is at least as important as brushing their teeth or eating a healthy diet. Children who breathe through their mouths also need support to restore healthy nasal breathing.

I was more than 40 years old when I - thanks to a free diving course - finally began to understand how my breathing works. This "aha" experience has changed my life in many positive ways. Today, conscious breathing through my nose helps me to relax and stabilise myself in demanding situations - whether I'm accompanying people into ice water, having a delicate conversation or sitting in front of a screen as I am right now. My wish is that children learn to use this valuable tool at an early age and can use it to lay a solid foundation on which they can build throughout their lives.


the effects of nasal breathing In children and adolescents:

1. Increased ability to concentrate, thanks to better oxygen diffusion from the blood to the brain.

Through the nose we automatically breathe slower and lighter. Breathing lightly means that we do not inhale and exhale an excessive amount of air per breath. Reduced breathing volume and pace means that we exhale less CO2 and the average CO2 level in the blood is higher than when we breathe through the mouth. An increased CO2 level is important, because CO2 dilates the blood vessels on the one hand and allows oxygen to diffuse better into the cells on the other (Bohr effect - see also “How fit are you really. Or: do you know your BOLT score?). The opposite is the case, when we are excited and therefore breathe faster and through the mouth: the CO2 level decreases, the blood vessels constrict and the blood flow towards the brain decreases. Also, lower the CO2 level in the body, the more strongly oxygen sticks to the red blood cells, which reduces its availability to the brain cells. This explains why a child has difficulty concentrating or responding to instructions in such a situation. Research also shows, that children with ADHD tend to breathe through their mouths more often than their peers. When the child breathes mostly through the nose, it is calmer and can thus focus and concentrate better in challenging situations.




2. Increased emotional stability and resilience, thanks to better regulation of the nervous system

Compared to mouth breathing, the nasal airways put up more resistance to the airflow. We therefore automatically activate our respiratory muscles and especially the diaphragm more, when we breathe through the nose. When we exhale, the movement of the diaphragm stimulates the vagus nerve and activates the parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic nervous system is the part of the autonomic nervous system, responsible for rest and digestion. Its counterpart is the sympathetic nervous system, which f.ex. is predominant, when we are in fight-or-flight mode. When the vagus nerve is active, the signals sent to the brain become calmer. This sets off a positive feedback loop, in which the brain lets the body know that it is safe and may relax. Imagine a child in a challenging situation. such as before an important exam: if it breathes through the nose, it will find it much easier to stay calm and confident. Also, being able to control the breathing, is probably the most important skill for anyone to prevent a panic attack.




3. Reduced symptoms of asthma and hay fever - thanks to better protection of the airways

When it comes to protecting our airways and lungs from negative external influences, the nose takes its job very seriously. It is an important first line of defense of our immune system. In comparison, the mouth allows free entry to virtually everything. The nasal airways temper and humidify the air and filter dust, pollen and other particles. This means that the air, that reaches the lungs is adapted to the body temperature and is cleaner than when we breathe through the mouth. The moisture protects the mucous membranes from drying out and the airways from inflammation, viruses and bacteria. Because nasal breathing is automatically slower and easier, the airways are also relieved because they have to filter less air overall. And did you know, that when we breathe in through our nose, a gas is formed that kills viruses, bacteria and fungi? It is nitric oxide NO and its effect was discovered in the 1990s. Unfortunately, children with asthma, hay fever or infections often breathe through their mouth because they feel they are not getting enough air through their nose. If children and adolescents know exercises with which they can clear their nose and better control their breathing, it is easier for them to break this negative cycle and protect their airways.



4. Better performance at school and less medication - thanks to better sleep

If a child breathes through his or her mouth during the day, there is a good chance that the mouth will remain open at night. An open mouth while sleeping promotes snoring and sleep apnoea. Even children are not immune to this. Patrick McKeown, the founder of the Buteykoclinic, cites several studies in his book "The Breathing Cure" that examine and prove the connection of sleep disorders in children with behavioural problems and poor school performance. Among them, there is a study with children who received medication such as tranquillisers, antidepressants or anti-allergics in everyday life. Almost half of these children were able to stop taking the medication once mouth breathing and sleep apnoea were considered as the cause of their condition and treated accordingly.




5. Better posture, jaw and teeth position, thanks to Better tongue position.

It may sound a bit unbelievable, but the way a child breathes can even influence his posture as well as its jaw and tooth position. The main reason for this, is the fact, that when we are breathing through the mouth, the tongue cannot naturally rest on the palate. Without the constant gentle pressure of the tongue, the palate does not develop in an arch shape, but rather like a peaked roof. Accordingly, the jaw is narrower and offers less space for the teeth. Children and adolescents who breathes through the nose can place their tongue on the palate and therefore have a better chance of an aesthetic and functional tooth position. If your child needs teeth straightening, it is worth looking for a dentist who takes this aspect into consideration during treatment. Such a dentist will rarely pull healthy teeth and usually use appliances, that not only straighten the teeth, but also guides the tongue back to its correct position. Last but not least: when the tongue is not placed on the palate, it sinks towards the throat, thereby reducing the diameter of the airway. A posture, that humans usually compensate for by unconsciously holding the head slightly forward, thus shifting forward the body's center of gravity. By breathing through the nose, a child or adolescent also supports its healthy and upright posture.


Get informed, become a role model & benefit yourself!

Did you ask yourself: "What about us adults? Can we equally benefit from relearning to breathe through the nose?" The answer, of course, is “Yes!”. Even if we probably can't correct crooked teeth or a body malposition quite as easily, all the other benefits are reason enough to say goodbye to mouth breathing. Not least because children unconsciously copy our facial expressions - and as the saying goes:

"We change the world with our example, not with our opinion."

Teachers and caregivers can find a few concrete ways to support themselves and their children under healthy breathing - easier studying- calm teaching. If you would like to find out more or prefer to practice with guidance, contact me and we can organize a workshop together, e.g. for your eam, or your school class.

 


Links & Literature

  • schoolbreathe.org British non profit organisation, who brings breathing techniques to schools, teaching both teachers and kids.
  • Oxygen Advantage Webseite Find valuable products, a free app and online trainings. For children, MyoTape in particular can be helpful, to safely keep its mouth closed during sleep.
  • Oxa is a new type of sensor integrated into a garment. I support the development of Oxa, as it gives us helpful feedback on how we breathe and how the effect on our stress level. Striking to me was f.ex. to see, how much we unconciously accelerate our breathing in front of a screen :-0. The associated app contains exercises, that can support children and adolescents on their way to a healthy breathing. If you use the code "jala" to get 5% off your order.

Books: