Smoking and Lung Conditions Increase Risk of Dysfunctional Breathing
Dr. Joseph Mercola - Take Control of Your Health
Briana Mercola
4.6 • 1.5K Ratings
🗓️ 24 December 2025
⏱️ 7 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
- More than one in 10 adults experience dysfunctional breathing symptoms like air hunger and chest tightness, even without having diagnosed lung disease
- People who currently smoke, or have a history of smoking and respiratory illness, face a dramatically higher risk of developing dysfunctional breathing patterns
- Dysfunctional breathing leads to overuse of neck and chest muscles, creating tension, fatigue, and shallow breathing that feeds a vicious cycle of stress and exhaustion
- Poor breathing habits interfere with heart function by reducing heart rate variability and disrupting the body's natural balance between oxygen and carbon dioxide
- Smoking worsens immune function, promotes oxidative stress, and triggers long-term biological changes that increase your risk for cancer, chronic illness, and dysfunctional breathing
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | What if the tightness in your chest and the air hunger you feel aren't coming from weak lungs at all, |
| 0:05.0 | but from a breathing pattern that's quietly working against you? |
| 0:08.0 | Welcome to Dr. Mercola's cellular wisdom. |
| 0:11.0 | Stay informed with quick, easy-to-listen summaries of our latest articles, perfect for when you're on the go. |
| 0:17.0 | No reading required. Subscribe for free at Mercola.com for the latest health insights. |
| 0:21.7 | Hello and welcome to Dr. Mercola's cellular wisdom. You're about to learn how smoking |
| 0:27.5 | and common lung conditions raise your risk for dysfunctional breathing and what you can do today |
| 0:32.6 | to start correcting it. I'm Ethan Foster and I'll guide the discussion so you can connect the research to your daily habits. |
| 0:39.3 | I'm Alara Sky. We're focusing on dysfunctional breathing or irregular breathing patterns |
| 0:45.3 | that cause symptoms like chest tightness, dizziness, palpitations, and breathlessness, |
| 0:51.3 | even when you're not exerting yourself. |
| 0:58.9 | Many people never get a clear diagnosis, because standard tests often miss it, |
| 1:03.0 | yet the symptoms affect your energy, mood, and stamina. |
| 1:07.4 | A large study from Japan used the Naimagan questionnaire to screen more than 29,000 adults and found that roughly 11% showed signs |
| 1:13.5 | of dysfunctional breathing. That means more than one in 10 people may be living with avoidable |
| 1:18.6 | symptoms. The strongest risk signals appeared in those with a history of asthma, COPD, bronchitis, or |
| 1:26.3 | pneumonia. |
| 1:29.9 | Current smoking stood out as a major driver. |
| 1:34.5 | People who smoked had significantly higher rates of dysfunctional breathing than those who never smoked or had quit, |
| 1:37.5 | and smoking stacked risk on top of any existing respiratory illness. |
| 1:41.9 | The analysis made clear that smoking plus lung disease dramatically |
| 1:45.3 | raises the likelihood that your breathing pattern will become inefficient and symptomatic. |
... |
Transcript will be available on the free plan in 25 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Briana Mercola, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Briana Mercola and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.