What is the Theoretical Basis?

Hyperventilation
It has long been recognised that subjects with asthma frequently hyperventilate and cough during the early stages of an attack.

It is easy to understand how the combined effect of cooling, drying and traumatising an already inflamed respiratory endothelium serves to stimulate more bronchial reactivity and therefore worsens bronchospasm.

Buteyko exercises teach the asthma sufferer how to avoid this initial hyperventilation phase and allow any partial bronchospasm to subside naturally over the course of a few minutes.

Nose Breathing
In addition many patients suffering from asthma and other breathing disorders are habitual mouth breathers.

Buteyko exercises show these individuals how to clear any functional nasal obstruction and restore a nasal breathing pattern.