Raising Your Performance and Mental Health by learning the Art and Science of Breathing.

1. Copyright Sharath Martin
The Art and Science of Breathing
Raising Your Performance and Mental Health

2. Copyright Sharath Martin
About the presenter
• Sharath Martin is a senior business risk
management professional who learnt the
hard way how breath affects quality of
life in many respects.
• When he turned 40, he was hit with
chronic sinusitis and asthma.
• To overcome dependance on steroid
based medication, he delved deep into
the science and art of breathing and
discovered how breath affects physical
and mental health.
• Sharath is keen to share this knowledge
with business executives who grapple
with poor health, lack of concentration
and focus and stress related conditions
(physiological and mental)

3. Copyright Sharath Martin
Productivity loss from ill health

4. Copyright Sharath Martin
UK

5. Copyright Sharath Martin
1.2 million people suffer from illness caused or made
worse by work. (HSE, 2014, UK)
140 million working days lost to sickness absence
£15 bn p.a. cost of sickness absence (Black and Frost (2011)
report, UK)
£15 bn p.a. loss from presenteeism due to mental ill-
health (Centre for Mental Health, 2011, UK)

6. Copyright Sharath Martin
45 per cent are subject to unrealistic time
pressures, another significant cause of productivity
loss.
Other factors associated with presenteeism: strained
relationships at work.

7. Copyright Sharath Martin
Malaysia

8. Copyright Sharath Martin
RM6billion in lost productivity (Malaysian Employers
Federation)
RM1.18billion in medical costs for hospitalised
employees
RM46.3million in non-hospitalisation medical
costs

9. Copyright Sharath Martin
Impact on Malaysian GDP
1.4% absenteeism
3.1% presenteeism
1.7% early retirement
U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s
Global Initiative on Health and the Economy (2015)

10. Copyright Sharath Martin
Modern workplace contributes to this

11. Copyright Sharath Martin
Increased job demands
Multi-tasking
Unrealistic time pressures
Workplace stress
Strained relationships at work
Desk-based

12. Copyright Sharath Martin
Outside of work factors

13. Copyright Sharath Martin
Financial concerns
Caring for ill family members
Lack of sleep
Musculoskeletal and other (chronic) health conditions

14. Copyright Sharath Martin
How do we improve workplace health and productivity

15. Copyright Sharath Martin
Occupational-health programmes
Job-stress education
Lifestyle-guidance programmes
Counselling with mental-health clinicians
Cognitive behavioural therapy
Breath re-training programme

16. Copyright Sharath Martin
Why Breath

17. Copyright Sharath Martin
What do the experts say

18. Copyright Sharath Martin
Practicing regular, mindful breathing can be calming and
energizing and can even help with stress-related health
problems ranging from panic attacks to digestive
disorders.”
Andrew Weil, M.D (Harvard Medical School)
“The repercussions of chronic overbreathing include
cardiovascular, neurological, respiratory, muscular,
gastrointestinal, and psychological effects”
Dr. Mercola, New York Times best-selling author

19. Copyright Sharath Martin
Diet and exercise are important health
modalities
… but many are unable to sustain

20. Copyright Sharath Martin
Breathing .. is not optional
It is just a matter of learning how

21. Copyright Sharath Martin
Signs you are not breathing
right
• Do you sometimes breathe through your mouth as you go about daily activities?
• Do you breathe through your mouth during your sleep? (If unsure, do you wake
up with a dry mouth in the morning?)
• Do you snore in your sleep?
• Can you visibly notice your breathing during rest? Observe your breathing now
for a few minutes. Look at how your chest and abdomen moves as you breathe
• When you breathe, do you see your chest move more than your abdomen?
• Do you regularly sigh during the day?
• Do you sometimes hear your breathing during rest?
• Do you experience nasal congestion, fatigue or light-headedness?

22. Copyright Sharath Martin
Risks of “over-breathing”
• Diameter of blood vessels reduces by < 50% ,
effectively leading to blood flow decreases by <
4 times. (Dr. Daniel M. Gibbs, American Journal of
Psychiatry:1992)
• Fatigue, poorer concentration - important
implications for workplace productivity
(Presenteeism)
• The Bohr Effect

23. Copyright Sharath Martin
Role of Food
• Acidic-forming foods such as dairy, meat,
coffee, tea, sugar and processed foods
stimulate breathing

24. Copyright Sharath Martin
The link with heart disease
• 1996: University of Patras, Greece (Alexopoulos
et al) ST segment depression in ECG results.
• 1990: Elborn et al, patients with chronic heart
failure breathed excessively
• 2004: European Journal of Cardiovascular
Prevention and Rehabilitation

25. Copyright Sharath Martin
How should we breathe
• Through the nose
• Use the abdominal area

26. Copyright Sharath Martin
Be “Nosy”
• 50 percent more resistance to the air stream.
Important to maintain elasticity of the lungs. Results in
10-20 percent more O2 uptake
• Warms, humidifies, and cleanses the air before it
enters the lower airways.
• Nasal mucosa, with its blanket of cilia and network of
arteries, veins, and lymphatics, provides a protective
barrier against germs and bacteria present in the air
• Allows utilization of Nitric Oxide

27. Copyright Sharath Martin
Nitric Oxide
• Improves vasoregulation – the opening and closing of blood vessels
• Improves homeostasis – the body’s ability to maintain a state of
balance physiologically
• Improves neurotransmission – the messaging system within the brain
• Improves immune defence and respiration
• Helps in preventing high blood pressure
• Helps in lowering cholesterol
• Keeps the arteries young and flexible
• Prevents the clogging of arteries with plaque and clots

28. Copyright Sharath Martin
How do we increase
production of NO
• Humming increases NO by 15 times and helps ventilate
sinus cavities. (2002: Drs Weitzberg and Lundberg, American
Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine)
• Mid-intensity exercise (brisk walk, light jog or bicycle
ride) increases NO and blood flow.
• Less intensive exercises did not do so
• High-intensity exercises led to blood flow deterioration
(2003: Hiroshima University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences).

29. Copyright Sharath Martin
Breathing techniques
(live demo)
• Diaphragmatic breathing
• Frontal lobe activation
• Bellows breathing
• “Darth Vader” breathing
• Alternate nostril breathing

31. Copyright Sharath Martin
Diaphragmatic breathing
• Improves blood circulation
• More efficient O2 and CO2 exchange
• Rebalances chest breathing (activates flight or
fight syndrome)

32. Copyright Sharath Martin
Frontal lobe cleansing
• cleansing effect on lungs
• good for respiratory disorders
• tones digestive organs
• energizes the mind for mental work and removes
sleepiness

33. Copyright Sharath Martin
Bellows breathing
• increases metabolic rate
• flushes out toxins and wastes
• balance and strengthens nervous system

34. Copyright Sharath Martin
“Darth Vader” breathing
• Soothes nervous system
• calms the mind
• relieves insomnia
• slows down the heart rate
• lowers stress

35. Copyright Sharath Martin
Alternate nostril breathing
• Provides extra supply of oxygen
• Brain centers stimulated to work nearer optimum
capacity
• Clarity of thought and concentration
(recommended for mental work)
• Lowers STRESS