What is Buteyko? (pronounced bew-tey-ko)
The Buteyko method is the most effective drug-free approach for the management of asthma and other breathing related problems. It can be learned by both adults and children, and it gives quick and consistent results.
Learning the method involves attending a small group course (or 1 to 1 sessions), to learn and practise a series of breathing exercises, relaxation methods, and simple lifestyle guidelines, specifically designed to reduce over-breathing and restore normal breathing.
Bringing breathing volume towards normal levels results in a significant improvement in common breathing related problems. These include asthma, anxiety, nasal problems, snoring, and sleep apnoea. The effectiveness of the Buteyko method in treating asthma is evidenced by the fact that the world’s leading asthma expert body (GINA) gives Buteyko Breathing Techniques an evidence level rating of ‘A’.
What does a typical Buteyko course/workshop involve?
A typical course consists of 3 or 4 training sessions usually held over 3 or 4 consecutive weeks. Class sizes are generally kept to a maximum of 10 participants to ensure significant individual attention. A course involves participants being taught a number of simple breathing exercises and practising them. The Buteyko theory is also explained to enable course participants to understand the rationale for the exercises and to help motivate them to practise them.
Outside of the training sessions, it is crucially important that participants practise the exercises assigned to them and, when appropriate, make some lifestyle changes, so as to experience the benefits. The exercises can be practised in a manner which will cause minimal disruption to participants’ normal daily activities.
How does the Buteyko Method work?
The essence of Buteyko theory is that the Buteyko Method normalizes breathing. The exercises result in a gradual reduction in the overall intake and output of breath. Oxygen levels remain optimal, as with normal rate breathing oxygen levels are 98%, but what does change are the levels of carbon dioxide that are exhaled. This important gas is produced in the body and serves to keep the airways open and improve oxygen absorption.
What can Buteyko do for me?
By practising the Buteyko exercises and other aspects of the method, you can greatly reduce the symptoms of asthma, allergies, snoring, sleep apnoea, breathlessness, fatigue, anxiety and panic. It is also likely that, under the supervision of your medical doctor, you may be able to significantly reduce your asthma medication or your use of a CPAP machine. You can also improve your sports performance or physical activity level. You will develop a capacity for controlling your condition, rather than it controlling you.
Why is Buteyko breathing therapy not widely known?
There are a number of reasons for this. These include:
• Professor Buteyko’s theory challenges some fundamental assumptions of conventional medical science. The biomedical paradigm holds that the more oxygen you breathe the better. Carbon dioxide which is often viewed as a waste gas is as necessary for physiological health as is oxygen. At the end of the 19th century, scientists Bohr and Verigo discovered what seemed to be a strange law: a decreased level of carbon dioxide in the blood leads to decreased oxygen supply to the cells in the body including the brain, heart, kidneys etc. Carbon dioxide (CO2) was found to be responsible for the bond between oxygen and haemoglobin. If the level of carbon dioxide in the blood is lower than normal, then this leads to difficulties in releasing oxygen from haemoglobin.
• Professor Buteyko developed his theory and its clinical application in the former Soviet Union during a period when there was almost no collaboration in research and exchange of clinical research findings with countries in the western world. Buteyko reached the western world via the route of ‘practitioner’ training among non-medically trained individuals and therefore did not become established within the western world’s orthodox medical practice. This situation is however destined to change as a result of the world’s leading asthma expert body (GINA) giving (in May 2014), Buteyko Breathing Techniques an evidence level rating of ‘A’ for the strength of clinical research evidence supporting Buteyko’s efficacy in asthma treatment.
• Conventional medicine is inherently drug oriented. However, the Buteyko method empathises a non-drug solution which empowers patients with knowledge and skills to exercise control over their condition and enable them (under medical supervision) to become less dependent on asthma medication.
• Because the Buteyko breathing method is not a drug based approach, pharmaceutical companies are understandably not interested in financially supporting clinical trials on Buteyko or in allocating any of their marketing budgets to make the medical profession aware of the Buteyko method and its benefits. This would not make economic sense because their business is focused on selling drugs.
How soon will I see an improvement in my condition?
An individual’s rate of improvement depends on the severity of their condition and the time and commitment they put into practising the exercises. Most people experience improvements within the first few days of practising the exercises. The kind of improvements which occur are: better sleep, reduced mucus, improved digestion, better energy levels, and usually a reduction of the need for relief medication. More profound systemic improvements occur over a longer period of time with continued practice.
Can young children learn the Buteyko Method?
Yes. Children from age 5 upwards can learn the Buteyko exercises provided they can follow simple instructions and are encouraged by a parent or guardian to practise the exercises. During the initial stage parents should arrange time for their children to do breathing exercises regularly and supervise them. Children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian when participating in a Buteyko course or when having one to one instruction.
Are there any terms and conditions relating to participation in a Buteyko instruction programme?
Yes. Participants must remain on their prescribed medication(s). After practising the exercises over a period of time, and upon substantial improvement in their symptoms, participants should attend their doctor to have a medical assessment and a review of their medication(s). Each participant in a Buteyko Asthma Care course must sign a contract stating that they will not change or alter their medication(s) without prior consultation and recommendation by a medical doctor. All course participants (and those attending one to one sessions) who are under the age of 18 must be accompanied ‘free of charge’ by a parent or guardian.
Where are Buteyko Asthma Care courses available?
The majority of courses are held in Dublin. However, courses are also available in other locations countrywide, in response to demand.
Are private lessons available?
Yes, lessons are available on a ‘one to one’ basis in Greystones, County Wicklow.
Why does it matter if we breathe out too much carbon dioxide?
There is an optimum level of carbon dioxide which our body needs for normal functioning. If we have too little within our system the result will be the onset of symptoms.
Does it work for all types of asthma?
According to Professor Buteyko, over-breathing causes all types of asthma, and therefore, all will respond to normalization of breathing. For example, the following types of asthma will benefit from the Buteyko Method:
• Asthma due to allergies from dust mites, animal fur, pollens, feathers etc.
• Exercise-induced asthma
• Asthma related to colds and flu
• Seasonal asthma
• Food-related asthma
• Asthma triggered by irritants such as smoke, pollution, cold temperatures, fumes, and vehicle exhausts
• Nocturnal asthma
• Occupational asthma
Does the Buteyko Method have any side-effects or contraindications?
Buteyko is a non drug approach and no side effects have been observed in any of the clinical trials. However, some patients may encounter some discomfort (cleansing reactions). This is temporary and is part of the improvement process. For people with asthma, the most common reaction is excess mucus from the nose and airways. For a short period, the nose may be runny, especially during physical activity with nasal breathing.
Persons with particular serious medical conditions should not participate in the Buteyko Method programme and others should only practise particular exercises which are suited to them. More information is available on request and as an appendix of the contract which course participants must sign before commencing the programme.
Buteyko Breathing Clinics (Dublin and County Wicklow)