The KOPI Book CLUB!
As an Osteopath, I specialise in the bio-mechanics of the beautiful human body. I am the eternal student of the body, an absolute privilege.
My book reviews are written to help you better understand and nurture your physical body. I hope you enjoy reading them, and if you have any books to suggest, I would be very interested to hear about them.
Book Review: Breath, James Nestor.
"A fascinating scientific, cultural, spiritual and evolutionary history of the way humans breathe - and how we’ve all been doing it wrong for a long, long time."
- Elizabeth Gilbert.
Breath is pure magic - it gives us life.
I remember learning about the most crucial breath at university – the first breath after birth.
That first big (miraculous) inhale, which inflates our lungs for the first time - causes the foramen ovale in the heart to snap shut – meaning the heart then has the flow from the atrium to the ventricle (in the foetus this is different).
That first breath kickstarts everything. Since learning this, I have been fascinated with breathing.
I often think about all the other ways we do/can breathe and how our breath responds to physical activity, emotional pain, and stress, for example.
It is no wonder James Nestor’s book has been a “must-read” for me for a while, and it did not disappoint. I have gained so much knowledge and even more respect for the amazing human body.
Humans are the worst breathers of all species. Fact.
We get this automatic function so wrong day in and day out, which profoundly impacts our bodies.
Nestor explores this impact in colossal detail, backed up with solid research and experiments that leave the reader in no doubt that they really need to consider their own breathing.
Nestor looks at how breathing is often simply overlooked when we consider illness in the body from physical to mental. We (as individuals and the majority of the medical profession) don’t even stop to consider how we are breathing.
Nestor conducts on himself (under the watchful eye of Stamford University) a (gruelling and frankly hideous sounding) experiment where he forces himself to exclusively mouth breath for ten days – the effects on his blood pressure, sleep, and energy levels were staggering – even down to infections in his nasal passages.
But why are we breathing so poorly as a species?
Nestor looks at this from every angle - the effects of us de-evolving facially with a softer diet – meaning less chewing, which has caused smaller jaws, crooked teeth and smaller nasal passages and sinuses (for the effects of food on the body see the review on Ultra-Processed People by Dr Chris van Tulleken.
A more sedentary lifestyle has a lot to answer for, as does stress.
Nestor travels around the world and meets with doctors, researchers, free divers, and guides of the Paris catacombs (google that if you’re not squeamish!).
He goes back in time, looking at ancient skulls, to understand how we ought to breathe and how we are getting it so wrong now. Nestor explores the vastly different types of breathing – yes, there are lots – where they began (the fantastic discipline of Yoga again has me even more in awe) and the staggering effects this can have on people.
Take a look at Wim Hof running half-dressed across the North Pole and managing to control his body temperature through breathing when deliberately infected with E. Coli, all through control of breath—and not getting ill from this deliberate administration of the infection.
Nestor unearths that perfect breathing does, in fact, exist – (I will ask you to read the book to discover and understand what this is) and how this way of breathing has been used throughout history in various religious chants/prayers for centuries.
Nestor clearly says that breathing is NOT a cure-all, and we should always consult our doctor when we are unwell.
However, breathing “correctly” and in a beneficial way will only boost our physical and mental health.
An absolute must-read recommendation from me!