The Miracle Molecule

As you sit there right now, your body is producing a gas so powerful, it is dubbed as a ‘pancea’ (cure-all). The one and only, winner of the 1998 Nobel prize, Nitric Oxide (NO).

If you’ve been going to a lot of raves, or watching too many Fast & Furious movies, you may have confused it with Nitrous Oxide (NOS) – but they are definitely not the same thing!

What exactly does NO do in your body?

·      Signals within the nervous system and immune system

·      Dilates blood vessels & airways

·      Repairs damage, and reduces inflammation in arteries & airways

·      Delivers Oxygen to the mitochondria in our cells

·      Generates antioxidants

·      Inhibits the growth of pathogens in our sinuses

·      Powerful anti-viral

This list is just a small insight, researchers unearth a new benefit of NO seemingly every day!

It can make it easier to breathe, increase blood flow and gas exchange, fight inflammation, and even protect against respiratory illnesses. No wonder this gas is held in such high regard by scientists, athletes, and even the Viagra industry.

Where does NO come from?

This miracle gas is produced by various cells in the body, the most widespread being endothelial cells A.K.A. the cells lining the inside of our blood vessels.

The largest concentration of NO producing endothelial cells sits right behind nose, in your sinuses. By breathing in through the nose, we are able to get a nice dose of NO, which we don’t get during mouth-breathing.

 How can we get more NO?

The great news is, we can increase our levels of NO, on command.

Simple techniques that chanting, and breath holding - increase the body’s production of Nitric Oxide. But perhaps the most powerful of all, humming has been found to increase NO in the sinuses by 15x - huge!

Check out my tutorial for Bhramari Pranayama to try it for yourself!

In the meantime, keep up that nasal breathing, and get high on your own NO supply.

Enjoy!