Causes of Shortness of Breath: Only If Body O2 Is Low
Shortness of breath
has a simple measurable cause. Each person with shortness of breath suffers from low body
O2 content caused by overbreathing. Two additional factors (mouth breathing and chest breathing)
worsen this sensation of air hunger or dyspnea.
Every person with shortness of breath suffers from fast and usually deep breathing (increased tidal volume) at rest. This causes reduced CO2 levels in airways and reduced brain and body oxygenation.
Here are some clinical studies that show the exact measurable cause of shortness of breath. Heavy breathing, as hundreds of clinical studies testify, is present in people with nearly any chronic disease.
Minute ventilation rates (chronic diseases)
| Condition | Minute ventilation |
Number of people |
All
references or click below for abstracts |
| Normal breathing | 6 L/min | - | Medical textbooks |
| Healthy Subjects | 6-7 L/min | >400 | Results of 14 studies |
| Heart disease | 15 (±4) L/min | 22 | Dimopoulou et al, 2001 |
| Heart disease | 16 (±2) L/min | 11 | Johnson et al, 2000 |
| Heart disease | 12 (±3) L/min | 132 | Fanfulla et al, 1998 |
| Heart disease | 15 (±4) L/min | 55 | Clark et al, 1997 |
| Heart disease | 13 (±4) L/min | 15 | Banning et al, 1995 |
| Heart disease | 15 (±4) L/min | 88 | Clark et al, 1995 |
| Heart disease | 14 (±2) L/min | 30 | Buller et al, 1990 |
| Heart disease | 16 (±6) L/min | 20 | Elborn et al, 1990 |
| Pulm hypertension | 12 (±2) L/min | 11 | D'Alonzo et al, 1987 |
| Cancer | 12 (±2) L/min | 40 | Travers et al, 2008 |
| Diabetes | 12-17 L/min | 26 | Bottini et al, 2003 |
| Diabetes | 15 (±2) L/min | 45 | Tantucci et al, 2001 |
| Diabetes | 12 (±2) L/min | 8 | Mancini et al, 1999 |
| Diabetes | 10-20 L/min | 28 | Tantucci et al, 1997 |
| Diabetes | 13 (±2) L/min | 20 | Tantucci et al, 1996 |
| Asthma | 13 (±2) L/min | 16 | Chalupa et al, 2004 |
| Asthma | 15 L/min | 8 | Johnson et al, 1995 |
| Asthma | 14 (±6) L/min | 39 | Bowler et al, 1998 |
| Asthma | 13 (±4) L/min | 17 | Kassabian et al, 1982 |
| Asthma | 12 L/min | 101 | McFadden & Lyons, 1968 |
| COPD | 14 (±2) L/min | 12 | Palange et al, 2001 |
| COPD | 12 (±2) L/min | 10 | Sinderby et al, 2001 |
| COPD | 14 L/min | 3 | Stulbarg et al, 2001 |
| Sleep apnea | 15 (±3) L/min | 20 | Radwan et al, 2001 |
| Liver cirrhosis | 11-18 L/min | 24 | Epstein et al, 1998 |
| Hyperthyroidism | 15 (±1) L/min | 42 | Kahaly, 1998 |
| Cystic fibrosis | 15 L/min | 15 | Fauroux et al, 2006 |
| Cystic fibrosis | 10 L/min | 11 | Browning et al, 1990 |
| Cystic fibrosis* | 10 L/min | 10 | Ward et al, 1999 |
| CF and diabetes* | 10 L/min | 7 | Ward et al, 1999 |
| Cystic fibrosis | 16 L/min | 7 | Dodd et al, 2006 |
| Cystic fibrosis | 18 L/min | 9 | McKone et al, 2005 |
| Cystic fibrosis* | 13 (±2) L/min | 10 | Bell et al, 1996 |
| Cystic fibrosis | 11-14 L/min | 6 | Tepper et al, 1983 |
| Epilepsy | 13 L/min | 12 | Esquivel et al, 1991 |
| CHV | 13 (±2) L/min | 134 | Han et al, 1997 |
| Panic disorder | 12 (±5) L/min | 12 | Pain et al, 1991 |
| Bipolar disorder | 11 (±2) L/min | 16 | MacKinnon et al, 2007 |
| Dystrophia myotonica | 16 (±4) L/min | 12 | Clague et al, 1994 |
Hyperventilation leads to tissue hypoxia (or low cell-O2 levels). This is also true for the brain, heart and all other vital organs, as independent research studies confirmed.
Shortness of breath can appear only in people who have less than 20 seconds for the simple DIY body-oxygen test (see the link below). If a person gets over 30 s for body and brain oxygenation, his or her shortness of breath disappears. Here is a short video about shortness of breath:
Reference pages: Breathing norms and medical facts:
-
Breathing
norms: Parameters, graph, and description of the normal
breathing pattern
- 6 breathing myths: Myths and superstitions about breathing
and body oxygenation (prevalence: over 90%)
- Hyperventilation: Definitions of
hyperventilation: their advantages and weak points
- Hyperventilation syndrome:
Western scientific evidence about prevalence of chronic hyperventilation in patients with chronic conditions
(37 medical studies)
- Normal minute ventilation: Small and
slow
breathing at rest is enjoyed by healthy subjects (14 studies)
- Hyperventilation prevalence: Present in
over 90% of
normal people (24 medical studies)
- HV and hypoxia:
How and why deep breathing reduces oxygenation of cells and tissues of
all vital organs
- Body-oxygen test (CP test)
: How to measure your own breathing and body oxygenation (two in one) using a simple DIY test
- Body oxygen in healthy:
Results for the body-oxygen test for healthy people (27 medical
studies)
- Body oxygen in sick
: Results for the body-oxygen test for sick people (14 medical studies)
- Buteyko
Table of Health Zones: Clinical description and ranges for breathing zones:
from the critically ill (severely sick) up to super healthy people
with maximum possible body oxygenation
- Morning hyperventilation: Why people feel
worse and critically ill people are most
likely to die during early morning hours
References: pages about CO2 effect:
- Vasodilation: CO2 expands arteries and arterioles facilitating perfusion
(or blood supply) to all vital organs
- The Bohr effect:
How and why oxygen is released by red blood cells in tissues
- Cell oxygen levels: How alveolar CO2 influences
oxygen transport
- Oxygen transport: O2 transport is controlled by
vasoconstriction-vasodilation and the Bohr effects, both of which rely on CO2
- Free radical generation:
Reactive oxygen species are produced within cells due to anaerobic cell respiration caused by cell hypoxia
- Inflammatory response: Chronic inflammation
in fueled by the hypoxia-inducible factor 1, while normal breathing reduces
and eliminates inflammation
- Nerve stabilization: People remain calm due to calmative or
sedative effects of carbon dioxide in neurons or nerve cells
- Muscle relaxation: Relaxation of muscle cells
is normal at high CO2, while hypocapnia causes muscular tension, poor posture
and, sometimes, aggression and violence
- Bronchodilation: Dilation of
airways (bronchi and bronchioles) is caused by carbon dioxide, and their constriction
by hypocapnia (low CO2)
- Blood
pH: Regulation of blood pH due to breathing and regulation of other bodily fluids
- CO2: lung damage: Elevated carbon
dioxide prevents lung injury and promotes healing of lung tissues
- CO2: Topical carbon dioxide can heal skin and tissues
- Synthesis of glutamine
in the brain, CO2 fixation, and other chemical reactions
- Deep breathing myth:
Ignorant and naive people promote the idea that deep breathing and breathing
more air at rest is beneficial for health
- Breathing control: How is our
breathing regulated? Why hypocapnia makes breathing uneven, irregular and erratic.
Or go back to Symptoms of hyperventilation
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