Why Breath Education is Critical to Preventing the Spread of COVID-19.
What Every Company, Organization, and School Needs to Know About Breathing and Virus Protection.
By David J. Bidler
Note: This article was originally published by David Bidler on March 12th, 2020. Since that time new research on the aerosolization of COVID-19 has come out of the New England Journal of Medicine further demonstrating the need for urgency in educating the public on the need for respiratory hygiene to prevent infection.
This article offers a simple suggestion followed by a critical plea.
The suggestion is that we take the respiratory system into account when discussing the airborne transmission of a virus.
Especially one that enters the lungs and causes respiratory illness.
Particularly in the face of a healthcare pandemic which may still be in its early stages.
(Washing your hands does not prevent viruses from entering your lungs. Viruses enter the body through mouths or noses-not hands.
By the end of this article I hope to pass along a simple, potent, toolkit for virus protection.
I aim to advocate for a proactive conversation on preventing the spread of airborne illnesses through the process.)
The plea is that we think critically together at a critical time.
Each and every one of us is a potential leader and we are collectively responsible for keeping ourselves, our families, and our communities safe.
As COVID-19 spreads through the air that we breathe our safety is predicated on understanding the basic physiology of breath.
Viruses are transmitted through air and breathing is the exchange of that air between our bodies, our environments, and each other.
What is COVID-19?
A new coronavirus, first identified in China in December 2019, has caused an outbreak of respiratory illness that the World Health Organization named COVID-19 in February 2020.
As of March 11th, 2020, COVID-19 is classified as a pandemic.
Eight countries — including the U.S. — are now each reporting more than 1,000 cases of COVID-19, caused by the coronavirus that has infected nearly 120,000 people worldwide as of this writing.
(Images from Johns Hopkins Medicine)
Airborne Transmission, Respiratory Droplets, and Why Breathing Matters:
The respiratory system is our breathing system.
Preventing the spread of a highly contagious virus that causes respiratory illness requires that we first understand how our bodies are designed to breath.
The proper way to breathe is through the nose. It filtrates air, removes harmful particles, and pools a potent antiviral agent known as nitric oxide into the paranasal sinuses. This gas is our bodies natural defense from viruses.
Many of us have been exposed to allergens at young age which can cause tonsils and adenoids to swell. This creates an obstruction to nasal breathing and oftentimes mouth breathing becomes the new norm-at the expense of our immune system.
Reclaiming our ability to activate the first line of defense against viruses-nasal breathing-and scaling this information throughout companies, organizations, and schools is one of the most important investments that we can make in personal, communal, and global health.
(David presenting a breath education seminar to educational leaders in the New Jersey public school system.)
How Hand Washing Became the Recommended Standard:
Hand washing is recommended in order to kill viruses that enter a shared environment and make their way to surface areas.
It is a basic daily hygiene practice which should be certainly be practiced with increased diligence in the face of a viral outbreak.
It is one half of one of the most important conversations of the present moment.
(Sales of hand sanitizer went up more than 70% this February with stores across the globe unable to keep shelves stocked.)
However, washing one’s hands is ineffective should a person carrying COVID-19 cough, sneeze, laugh, or exhale in a public space-which is how the virus actually spreads.
It is important to keep in mind that the COVID-19 virus can remain active and airborne even after a carrier has left the room. (All information regarding the transmission of COVID-19 comes from Johns Hopkins Medicine. See resources at the bottom of article.)
Your Nose is the Gateway Between You and COVID-19:
Your nose is the gateway to your immune system. It produces an antiviral and antibacterial gas (nitric oxide) in the paranasal sinuses to protect you from airborne illness.
In my experience communicating with workplace leaders, educators, and companies who are deluged with information and overwhelmed by responsibility the following misunderstanding is prevalent:
The term “droplets” has misled some people into believing that COVID-19 is not spread through airborne transmission. It most certainly is.
The term refers to respiratory droplets that have landed in a shared surface area or are are transmitted through breathing.
Regardless of how many times you’ve washed your hands the virus still needs to “enter” the body through an orifice-most commonly the nose or mouth.
To be clear: COVID-19 does not enter your body “through” your hand.
Hand washing is a precautionary measure to prevent you from bringing the virus within range of the respiratory system and inhaling it into the lungs.
When the mouth is closed you’ve blocked of the larger available portal for the virus to enter. As a result you have left a smaller inlet (your nasal pathways) equipped with an antiviral agent designed to protect against viruses as the gateway to your body.
This is a powerful gate.
Closing the Gate to COVID-19:
•When in crowded public spaces reduce or eliminate mouth breathing as much as possible. Remember, COVID-19 is spread through breathing and nasal breathing is your best defense against airborne illness.
•Inform others of the role that breath awareness and breath hygiene play in protecting against viruses.
I wrote this article due to the fact that this critical element of the transmission prevention conversation was simply not taking place on the public stage.
Posts to my social media accounts were met with some confusion, questions from other medical professionals, and even anger at the suggestion that we consider how breathing impacts the spread of airborne illnesses.
This is no ones fault. There is a lot of misinformation circulating at a very difficult time. It is hard to know what is valid.
As a culture we are taught very little about the respiratory system. It is no surprise that a little known gas (nitric oxide) that pools in nasal cavities and serves as an antiviral agent is not the topic of public conversation.
Yet, at a time of crisis related to a global viral outbreak which spreads from exhalation to inhalation and breath to breath it must become part of the public health and hygiene vernacular.
It can prevent the spread of an outbreak in your community and potentially save a life.
Below are a list of research papers and resources that you can scale throughout your company, organization, schools, and communities.
Our company, Breathe to Perform, is offering complimentary consultation to organizations, schools, and businesses around preventing the spread of COVID-19 through breath education.
Here is a short video PSA to highlight the main points of this article.
An educated public upholding the standards of basic hygiene is critical in the face of a global health pandemic. Please, do not hesitate to reach out if we can be an educational resource in your community.
Here’s to supporting one another through a difficult transition and emerging healthier and safer tomorrow.
Research and educational resources:
Turbulent Gas Clouds and Respiratory Pathogen Emissions. Potential Implications for Reducing the Spread of COVID-19. (Journal of the American Medical Association.)
Coronavirus at a Glance: John Hopkins Medicine
The Health Benefits of Nasal Breathing
Nitric Oxide and Virus Infection
Nitric Oxide and the Paranasal Sinuses
David J. Bidler is the President of the nonprofit organization, Physiology First.
Physiology First provides breath education to public schools in order to teach breathing hygiene and as well as simple breathing techniques to better manage stress and anxiety in the classroom.
David owns and operates The Distance Project: Strength and Conditioning in Freeport, Maine. The Distance Project is an endurance training center specializing in respiratory physiology and biomechanics for endurance athletes.
David provides breath education workshops/seminars and professional development offerings to corporations, organizations, and Universities throughout the country and online through his company, Breathe to Perform.
Breathe to Perform: 3 Simple Breathing Exercises to Reduce Stress, Improve Energy, and Peak Athletic Performance by David J. Bidler will be published and available on Amazon this April.
(David Bidler and NYC based neuroscientist Dr. Jose Herrero. Bidler and Herrero are collaborating on research related to breathing and the brain, specifically in the area of epilepsy and epileptic seizure management.)
