Mouth breathing is a very common habit, present in more than 50 percent of children. It is caused by airway obstruction or small airway size. Common risk factors include swollen adenoids and tonsils or a blocked, stuffy nose. Breathing through an open mouth is detrimental to the development of the face, teeth and upper airways. Left untreated in childhood, the habit results in abnormal facial features and smaller airways in adulthood. This perpetuates poor breathing habits and leads to a lifetime of health issues. When a child mouth-breathes, the brain receives insufficient oxygen. Long term ..read more

Do you struggle with breathing while wearing a face mask? Wearing a face mask is an essential part of our daily lives and, while it may not be comfortable, it is important for protecting our health and slowing the spread of COVID-19 in our community. Many people feel it impacts their breathing which may result in anxiety and stress.   For most people wearing a face mask is just merely uncomfortable but for some it can bring about a sensation of breathlessness and feelings of anxiety, panic and fear of suffocation.  While these feelings are real for many people, I would like ..read more

Stress is a fact of modern life. We enjoy unprecedented levels of convenience and technological advancement and our daily lives are busy and high pressured, even for our children. Our body’s autonomic nervous system has sophisticated mechanisms designed to deal with stress and danger.  Unfortunately these mechanisms have not evolved to adjust to our modern busy lifestyles and the constant stressors we face every day.  As a result it is easy for us to end up in fight or flight mode constantly which results is chronic stress and emotional exhaustion. It’s well recognized that events ..read more

The Buteyko breathing technique was introduced to Australia from Russia in the early 1990s. Early on the method was popular with adults and children suffering from asthma. However, recently, the Buteyko Method has shown to be efficacious in helping improve a number of breathing related health problems such as: Respiratory: asthma, rhinitis, hay fever Neurological: Anxiety, stress and panic attacks Childhood development: dental health, craniofacial development and ADHD Sleep disordered breathing: insomnia, snoring, sleep apnea Digestive disorders: IBS, chronic constipation and diarrhoea D ..read more