Welcome to Greendale Breathwork! I’m thrilled to launch this space where I’ll be sharing insights about breathwork, wellness practices, and the science of breathing.
Why Breathwork?
Most of us take around 20,000 breaths a day without giving a single one much thought. But what if paying attention to just a few of those breaths could change how you feel, think, and perform?
That’s the promise of breathwork — and it’s backed by a growing body of research.
What’s true for adults is true for children: good sleep is quiet. Not just peaceful, but actually quiet. The open mouth, the snore you think is sweet, the damp pillow, the head tipped back off the edge of it aren’t the texture of deep rest. They’re a small body working harder than it should to do the one thing it’s supposed to do effortlessly: breathe.
The nose is built for that work. It warms the air, wets it, filters it, conditioning around fourteen thousand litres a day before any of it reaches the lungs (Naclerio, 2007). And just moving air through the nose during sleep helps hold the airway open. If the mouth falls open instead, then that gentle muscle tone slackens. The open mouth isn’t only how the air is getting in, it’s a sign the easy road is blocked.
Snoring Is Not Just Annoying — It’s Aging Your Arteries
Most people think of snoring as a nuisance, something that bothers a bed partner but doesn’t actually hurt the snorer. A large 2026 study suggests otherwise: snoring, even without sleep apnea, is independently associated with stiffer arteries, one of the strongest predictors of heart attack and stroke.[1]
The study. Researchers tracked nearly 30,000 adults across 20 countries for about four years using under-mattress sleep sensors and smart bathroom scales. Each person contributed a median of 252 nights of sleep data, far more than a typical one-night sleep study. The scales measured arterial stiffness (how rigid your blood vessels have become), which is one of the best-validated markers of cardiovascular risk. For every 1 m/s increase in arterial stiffness, mortality rises about 15%.[1]