Fresh air can make us feel better, but what exactly does it do, and how? In this blog I’ll be explaining 11 ways that fresh air can improve your health.
1. Fresh Air Can Make us Happy
When we breathe in fresh air, we are getting more oxygen into our body as fresh air generally has more oxygen in it than stale or polluted air. A study(*1) by McGill University in Montreal showed that increasing blood oxygen levels can increase Serotonin. Serotonin is a happy hormone. Put simply, it is a chemical that spreads happiness through your body!
2. Fresh Air Can Improve Blood Pressure and Heart Rate
As we’ve talked about above, fresh air can increase our oxygen levels. Our heart is responsible for pumping blood and oxygen around our body. The less oxygen we breathe in, the harder our heart has to work to give our organs what they need. When we are getting plenty of oxygen through fresh air, our body doesn’t have to work so hard. This therefore brings your heart rate down as it will be pumping oxygen more efficiently, and consequentially the blood pressure then comes down.
High blood pressure is a problem for a lot of people in current times due to the lifestyle a lot of people lead, and sometimes genetics. In fact, according to the CDC(*2), 47% of adults in America suffer from hypertension (high blood pressure). Getting fresh air may not cure someone suffering from long term or severe hypertension, but it can help. Small changes to lifestyle can make big differences.
3. Fresh Air Can Help Your Immune System
We have white blood cells in our body which are responsible for fighting infections. Those white blood cells work their way through our body looking for things like viruses and bacteria. If they find these, they will attack them. We need these white blood cells to be healthy, to enable them to fight off infections and keep our immune system working well.
When we get more oxygen into our body through taking breaths of fresh air, our white blood cells are getting more oxygen to keep them healthy and functioning well. Fresh air can therefore help your chances of your body fighting off illness.
4. Fresh Air Can Help Aid Digestion
You can probably see a theme by now. Oxygen. Oxygen is responsible for keeping us healthy in many ways, and our digestive system is no different. If you suffer from digestion issues, try getting some fresh air. It may sound a bit far fetched that getting fresh air can help digestion, but our digestive system needs plenty of oxygen to metabolise food and turn it into energy. If you feel sluggish after eating, try getting some fresh air to help.
5. Being Outside Amongst Nature Can Reduce Stress
A study(*3) conducted in 2015 found that being outside in nature reduces stress levels. In the study, those who walked for 90 minutes amongst nature had lower activity levels in the parts of the brain responsible for stress than those who went on an Urban walk for 90 minutes.
There are likely many different factors at play here so I am not claiming this reduced stress is all due to the fresh air. However, it is likely to have been a contributing factor as the air would probably have been much cleaner on the nature walk. Cleaner air equals more oxygen, which means you would have a higher chance of serotonin being released by your brain (the happy hormone I mentioned earlier).
6. Fresh Air Can Help Clean Your Lungs
As adults, we often take shallow breaths, especially indoors. If you look at a baby breathing, you will see their little belly filling right up when they breathe, as naturally we are built to take full breaths. However, as we get older we often develop that learned behaviour of shallow breathing.
When we breathe out, we get rid of toxins from our body. Around 70% of toxins are released through our breath! When we go outside and take deep breaths of fresh air, on exhaling we are getting rid of more toxins than we would be when taking shallow breaths indoors. This helps clean our lungs out and keeps them working efficiently.
7. Fresh Air Can Increase Energy Levels
Fresh air helps our body run more efficiently through the increase of oxygen. Sometimes if we are feeling tired, we might tell someone we “need some fresh air”. Instinctively we know this helps wake us up. It can help fuel your body with the energy it needs.
8. Fresh Air Can Improve Concentration
Breathing in fresh air sends more oxygen to your brain, meaning your brain will find it easier to think clearly and work more effectively.
9. Fresh Air Can Help With Insomnia and Improve Sleep
There are several reasons behind fresh air helping people sleep. Having your window open when you go to bed can help you wake less at night because the fresh air improves the oxygen flow in the room. This in turn helps your body function more efficiently and enables you to have a more restful sleep.
Another reason fresh air when sleeping can be beneficial is that it can keep you at a more comfortable temperature. A hot stuffy room can make for a bad nights sleep!
Fresh air can also be good for allergy and asthma sufferers as a dry room with stale recycled air can aggravate allergies. That said, you will need to be mindful of pollen coming in if you suffer from seasonal allergies.
10. Fresh Air and Vitamin D
Fresh air doesn’t always mean sun exposure, but if you are outside getting your dose of air in the sunshine, the chances are you will get a good dose of vitamin D whilst your out there too! Vitamin D can keep your bones, teeth and muscles healthy.
11. Fresh Air Can Help Your Whole Body and Mind
Fresh air is hugely beneficial to not only the human body, but also to the mind. Try to take some time out today to go outside, find a nice spot amongst nature and take some nice deep breaths.
Hydration is another important element when staying healthy. You can read my blog post on hydration here.
If you have enjoyed this blog post, please consider subscribing.
Sources:
*3 National Academy of Science, US. Nature experience reduces rumination and subgenual prefrontal cortex activation. 29 June 2015
Pingback: 8 Benefits of Mindful Walking -