ZOE Host

Thanks for tuning in and see you next time.

Welcome to ZOE Science and Nutrition, where world-leading scientists explain how their research can improve your health.

The experiment was simple, but deeply uncomfortable.

Two healthy men deliberately interfered with the body's most basic behavior, breathing.

Their noses were sealed shut for 10 days.

They inhaled and exhaled only through their mouths while researchers tracked markers of health.

The changes were dramatic.

Blood pressure climbed.

Sleep became fragmented.

Cognitive function dropped.

Stress hormones surged.

Within days, their physiology began to resemble that of people decades older.

But this wasn't an extreme stress test.

It closely mirrors how many people breathe every night, unaware of the strain that it places on their body.

In this episode, we sit down with investigative journalist James Nestor, author of the international bestseller, The New Science of a Lost Art.

He shares the science and history of breathing and how it can subtly impact your health.

By the end, you'll see breathing not as something automatic, but as a powerful biological lever hiding in plain sight.

And you'll know exactly what to do to get your breathing back on track using simple exercises.

James, thank you so much for joining me today.

Thanks for having me.