The Importance of Deep Breathing, Fresh Air and Vitamin D for Cancer Prevention

It may be surprising that something as simple as breathing fresh, outdoor air daily can help prevent cancer. But clean, fresh air is more immediately vital to our bodies than is food or water. We can go without food for many days, without water for 48 hours, but without air for mere minutes.

Cancer occurs in a low oxygen environment, so it’s particularly beneficial to breathe in such a way as to enrich the blood with as much oxygen as possible. Because people who are seriously depressed tend to breathe shallowly, an astute doctor may check them for cancer while treating the depression.

Because breathing is an automatic, continual process, very few of us pay attention to the breathing process. But those who practice yoga, the martial arts and other bodily disciplines have long been aware of how important proper breathing is. Though many of us do not involve ourselves in those practices, we all need to know that not only does deep breathing enrich the oxygen content of the blood, but that the process of exhalation is vitally important for expelling bodily waste such as carbon dioxide and other toxins. The exhalation of these substances is, in fact, one of the body’s major means of detoxification. A few minutes of focused, deep breathing daily is a very good way to lower your chances of developing cancer.

An appropriate amount of sunlight daily is another important but often overlooked component of good health. When weather permits, try to expose a large area of your skin to direct sunlight for 15 to 20 minutes a day. Those with light skin, in particular, as well as everyone else, need to be careful not to burn themselves.

The best time to get sunlight is in the morning, before the sun gets hot, and later in the afternoon, when the sun has lost some of its intense noonday heat. This exposure to sunlight causes the body to manufacture Vitamin D, a vital nutrient for the prevention of cancer of many different kinds, as well as a vitamin that is helpful for preventing many other illnesses.

According to the Vitamin D council, () an excellent website compiled and maintained by the world’s foremost Vitamin D researchers in the world, current research has implicated vitamin D deficiency as a major factor in the pathology of at least 17 varieties of cancer as well as heart disease, stroke, hypertension, autoimmune diseases, diabetes, depression, chronic pain, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, muscle weakness, muscle wasting, birth defects, periodontal disease, and more. The importance of getting sufficient Vitamin D for maintaining good health and disease prevention can neither be over-emphasized or ignored.