Air is the most vital element for humans and animals. We could survive for weeks without food, or days without water, but deprived of air, we would perish within minutes.

The Facts

The human body must have oxygen; each of its 100 trillion cells must receive steady, fresh supplies to survive. Every day, you take more than 17,000 breaths to keep your body fueled. The heart sends blood to the lungs where it drops off carbon dioxide for elimination and picks up fresh oxygen for delivery to every cell in the body.

Fresh air has many health benefits. It improves the brain's ability to function, gives clarity to the mind, improves concentration, and boosts learning abilities. It gives a sense of happiness and well-being by altering brain levels of serotonin. It promotes quality sleep, and kills bacteria and viruses in the air. Pollution causes air to lose these capabilities.

Environmental impurities affect people in a number of ways. Symptoms include sore throats, burning eyes, coughing, sluggishness, nausea, headaches, dizziness, exhaustion, and depression. Pollution is also associated with increased asthma and other respiratory problems, and many of pollution's contaminants have been linked to increased rates of cancer and other illnesses.

In closed areas the same air can be breathed and re-breathed. The oxygen content decreases, and the carbon dioxide and other wastes increase. When we breathe this stale air, the supply of oxygen is insufficient to keep the cells fueled. Impure air increases tension, anxiety, irritability, and headaches. It promotes depression and chronic feelings of fatigue and exhaustion.

Natural Healing

Supplying the body with pure air is important enough to determine the difference between health and sickness—between life and death. It is amazing how much misunderstanding there exists even today about fresh air and the role it plays in the health of the body. It's almost unbelievable how many homes are poorly ventilated, stuffy, and ill smelling. Even offices and hospital wards lack fresh air, mainly because of the controlled air systems, and the windows that are structured to remain closed permanently. Oxygen makes all processes of life possible.

One of the functions of air in the body is the burning up of waste products that are constantly forming in the body cells. When the supply of air is sufficient, waste matter is disposed of efficiently. Air is a colorless, sluggish gas. Ninety people out of 100 are under the impression that all that is necessary for proper ventilation is to have a window in a room open. This is a mistake, for air is a very sluggish substance. If the wind happens to be blowing from any other direction but that in which the window is facing, the air in the room will be stagnant, and the constant exhalations of the occupants will make the air poisonous in a few hours. There must be circulation.

The continual supply of fresh air is so important that our breathing process goes on at all times without any attention on our part. Air starvation is much more deadly than food starvation.

While fresh air is of utmost importance to all, it is especially important to the sick person confined to bed. Under these circumstances, the body is releasing great quantities of poisons into the atmosphere. If the proper provision for carrying off this foul air is not made, the patient will take longer to recover. We can see how few realize this by the fact that most of the sick rooms have an offensive and stuffy odor.

Remember, fresh, pure air is the most vital requirement for those who are sick, as well as those who are well. Air is an indispensable healing agent. No wound will heal without air. You can prove this by applying plaster to a cut. As long as the plaster excludes the air from the wound, it will not heal. The same rule applies to internal wounds. Unless the blood is charged with a sufficient amount of oxygen from the air, it will not accomplish its purpose. Not only that, if this blood is charged with impure air, it will hinder the recovery. Read Tips for Getting More Fresh Air

Air: God's gift to us

Deep breathing induced by natural exercise will work wonders in overcoming fear, developing courage, and strengthening the entire nervous system. It was God's plan that we should breathe pure, fresh air from the moment we are born until the moment we die, without a single minute's break.

It is important that each room of our dwellings have a large window, which should be opened much of the time. The windows should not be blocked or covered with awnings, shades, or curtains, for all these things interfere with the free passage of the air and also act as dirt collectors. It has been estimated that in order to keep the air of an occupied chamber pure, each pair of lungs operating in it must receive 3000 cubic feet of fresh air every hour.

Read about the next law of health, Sunlight

Ventilation

Open the windows or set heating and air conditioning units to bring in fresh air. Air out your house every day. Keep proper ventilation in mind wherever you are. Avoid car exhaust, tobacco smoke, and stuffy ill-ventilated rooms.

Deep Breathing

Take several deep breaths to clear your mind and increase your energy level:

1. Find the freshest air available. Go outdoors if possible.
2. Stand erect.
3. Draw as much air into your lungs as they will hold. Imagine it going right down into your belly. Feel your stomach expand.
4. Hold your breath for a few seconds.
5. Empty your lungs as completely as possible; use your stomach muscles to gently push out the last bit of air.
6. Repeat the process five or six times.
7. Take a fresh air break several times daily.

Most people use less than half of their lung capacity. They are not getting all the potential benefits from the air they breathe. Consciously use your stomach muscles to fill and empty your lungs several times a day, and deep breathing will soon become a habit.

Exercise

A good workout forces you to breathe deeply and speeds up the circulation of oxygen-rich blood throughout the body; this saturates each cell with oxygen.

Whenever possible, exercise outdoors and in the morning, when the air is cleanest.

Posture

The way we stand and sit affects the amount of air the lungs can hold. When we sit up straight and walk tall, we allow them to enlarge and work at full capacity. When we habitually stoop or slouch it is impossible to breathe deeply. Superficial breathing soon becomes a habit and the lungs lose their power to expand and receive a sufficient supply of oxygen.

Clothing

What we wear affects the amount of oxygen available for our use. Loose comfortable clothing allows the lungs freedom to inflate; tight, constrictive clothing around the abdomen tends to restrict breathing.

Plants

From the rainforest to the city park to the home, plants serve the very important function of recycling the atmosphere. They absorb carbon dioxide from the air and produce oxygen for us to breathe. Some provide the added advantage of removing toxic pollutant from the air.

A Rural Environment

Fresh air has a different chemical makeup from the indoor air most of us breathe; it is ionized or electrically charge, which is the primary reason for its multitude of health advantages. This air is produced in natural settings, around trees and moving water, in sunlight, and after thunderstorms.

Fresh country air soothes the nerves, stimulates the appetite, and induces sound, refreshing sleep.

Read about the next law of health, Sunlight