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4 Thoughts

1. Wim Hof & Diabetes: A Complete Guide to the Benefits and 5 Real Dangers

This is a complex topic I get a lot of questions about. I made a 40-min class on it, but attempted to put the most critical information into this free post:

You can read it here.

It’s pretty long, but I hope it’s thorough and genuinely helpful, especially if you have diabetes or are a WHM coach. 🙏

2. Word Etymology and Why We Can All Do Asanas, Yogi or Not

“The word asana is made up of two parts: as ‘to sit’ and ana, ‘breath.’ To do an asana is to literally sit with your breath, or to sit in a special way and breathe.”
- Eddie Stern, One Simple Thing

This is awesome word etymology (thanks, Eddie). And, it’s an excellent reminder that sometimes abstract words are straightforward to implement.

So, I say we all channel our inner yogi and do some more asanas, today 🧘‍♂️

3. Why Coherence Fuels Purpose: Finding Internal & External Safety for Growth

“The need for coherence is the form of meaning that is most strongly tied to the need for safety. Does my immediate environment make sense? Is there any predictability and comprehensibility in my life? Coherence is necessary to even get a chance to pursue one’s larger purpose or pursue various ways that one can matter in this world.”
- Scott Barry Kaufman, Ph.D., Transcend

Researchers tell us to “pursue one’s larger purpose,” we need external coherence with our environment, which allows us to feel safe.

Conversely, we know that slow breathing (~5-6 breaths/min) provides internal coherence—a predictability in our nervous system that makes us feel safe.

And in my opinion, this second type is even more potent because it’s always available, and our inner state determines how we relate to our external world.

So let’s breathe slowly, find some internal coherence (and maybe even external, too), and use this feeling of safety to pursue our bigger purpose.

***

Related Quote: “The unseen design of things is more harmonious than the seen.” - Heraclitus

4. Two Small Thoughts on Breath and Presence

Physically, wherever you find your breath, you find yourself.
Spiritually, whenever you find your breath, you find your self.

Extra Thought: Top 5 Breathing Exercises to Practice Daily (and the Best Times to Do Them)

I wrote another guest blog for ResBiotic. I hope this one is super practical and can help you or someone you know get started with breathing. Enjoy!

Top 5 Breathing Exercises to Practice Daily (And the Best Times to Do Them)

1 QUOTE

“This illustrates the most empowering point of all. The key to our own experience lies within our bodies all the time.”

— The Tibetan Yoga of Breath

1 ANSWER

Category: The Lungs

Answer: The alveoli have a mixture of lipids and proteins called this, which prevent them from collapsing during low lung volume.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

…

Question: What is surfactant?

In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”

P.S. thanks for buying this gum

Available Now:

THE BREATHING FOR DIABETES SELF-PACED WORKSHOP

If you like geeking out on breathing, or just want to live an overall healthier life, I’m confident you’ll love the workshop (diabetes or not).

By the end of the workshop, you’ll have:

The ideal breathing rate for you.
A daily practice plan designed around human behavior science rather than discipline and “motivation.”
A tool to reduce stress and calm your nervous system anytime, any place.

Plus, you get:

A 40-min Wim Hof and Diabetes Mini Masterclass.
- If you’re interested in the WHM, I think you’ll find a lot of information in here you’ve probably never seen before—like why you should only practice it in the morning and why you don’t have to hold your breath to get the same results.
A PDF of 100 inspiring breathing quotes.
A Breath Matching worksheet to grow your practice.
A simple 10-day plan for implementing what you learn.

And if you don't like it, it’s 100% refundable, so you have nothing to lose.

LEARN MORE AND VIEW THE COURSE CURRICULUM

* An asterisk by a quote indicates that I listened to this book on Audible. Therefore, the quotation might not be correct, but is my best attempt at reproducing the punctuation based on the narrator’s pace, tone, and pauses.

Sign Up For The Breathing 411

Each Monday, I curate and synthesize information from scientific journals, books, articles, and podcasts to share 4 thoughts, 1 quote, and 1 answer (like "Jeopardy!") related to breathing. It’s a fun way to learn something new each week.

The Wim Hof Breathing Method (WHM) is used by millions of people worldwide. And if you search around, you’ll find some hefty claims, along with some inspiring success stories. It seems to help with just about everything.

But what about diabetes?

As a type-1 diabetic, a researcher, and an intermittent WHM practitioner (see my full story here), I recently decided to dig into the science and feasibility of the WHM for diabetes. I found some fascinating things about inflammation and quality of life that make it appealing.

But, at the same time, some real dangers might be overlooked by non-diabetics who practice and teach Wim’s method. And there might be better approach for people with diabetes.

However, I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start off with the basics.

What is the Wim Hof Breathing Method?

The WHM generally consists of controlled hyperventilation and breath holds. Most people use the following steps:

30 big breaths (nose or mouth) at a comfortable pace.
After the last breath, hold with your lungs empty (after exhaling).
Hold as long as it is comfortable for you.
When you hit your limit, inhale fully and hold for another 10-15 seconds.
Repeat

That is considered “one round.” Wim generally suggests 3-4 rounds every day, first thing in the morning (this turns out to be critical).

In addition to the breathing, the full WHM consists of cold exposure and meditation. But for our purposes, we’ll focus on the breathing because that’s what gets a lot of attention (and the most common starting point before getting into the cold).

Validated by Science: Direct Control of the Autonomic and Immune Systems

The WHM is one of just a few breathing methods with scientific studies published directly on it.

The most famous is the 2014 PNAS study. PNAS is a top-notch journal, so this one put Wim on the map scientifically.

In the study, participants learned the WHM from Wim himself over a few days. Then, they were brought into a lab and injected with an endotoxin. Lots of people have been injected with this toxin, so scientists have a pretty good idea of what happens afterward: fever, chills, nausea, headache, and so on.

Thirty minutes before injection, the participants started doing the WHM breathing. Then, they were injected and continued doing the breathing (they modified it slightly after 1 h) for another 2.5 h. That’s a total of 3 hours of WHM breathing (!). But the results were incredible.

All the WHM-trained participants reduced basically every symptom associated with the endotoxin injection.

Moreover, they significantly increased anti-inflammatory cytokines while suppressing pro-inflammatory ones.

This was the first time (basically ever) that a person could take direct control of their autonomic and immune systems. I call this study the “4-minute mile” of breathing.

“The PNAS Wim Hof study is the “4-minute mile” of breathing, showing that the impossible was possible.”

What about Chronic Inflammation?

Those results are pretty intriguing since a huge problem with diabetes is immune and autonomic dysfunction. But most of us diabetics probably don’t want to hyperventilate for 3 hours a day to reduce our inflammation.

Fortunately, another study decided to investigate the more long-term effects of the WHM on inflammation in people with spondyloarthritis.

Participants practiced the WHM for 8 weeks. (Note that this was the full WHM, which includes cold. However, recent research still in pre-prints has shown that the breathing alone is really helpful for inflammation.) It looks like they spent about 45- 60 min a day doing these exercises (still a lot, but much better than hyperventilating for 3 hours).

After the 8 weeks, measurements showed that they reduced overall levels of several inflammatory markers. Moreover, the participants’ quality of life scores all went up.

Sounds great so far, right?

Well, yes. But we next need to learn how it works, which will shed more light on how it might impact diabetes specifically.

How Does the WHM Work? Stress, Stress, and More Stress

As mentioned, the WHM consists of hyperventilating and holding your breath. Both of these are stressors. In fact, they are really, really stressful. The PNAS study we mentioned earlier found that when the participants did the breathing, their adrenaline rose higher than people bungee jumping for the first time. That’s a lot of stress.

Counterintuitively, it turns out that intense short-term stress is actually good for you. I won’t go into the details here (and honestly, I don’t understand it enough to speak intelligently on it), but separate fields of science called “psychoneuroendocrinology” and “neuroimmunology” have shown that short-term stress boosts our immune system and lowers inflammation.

It appears that the WHM might trigger this effect perfectly.

“Short-term stress boosts our immune system and lowers inflammation.”

Intermittent Hypoxia

Moreover, during the breath-hold portion, people drop their blood oxygen saturation significantly (sometimes to half of where they started). This is yet another short-term stressor that can also be therapeutic.

It turns out that intermittent bouts of low oxygen, followed quickly by normal oxygen levels, can improve insulin sensitivity, lower blood sugar, boost immune function, and increase blood flow to the brain.

Together, we see that the WHM combines two intense stressors over a short period: hyperventilation and breath holds. These trigger some positive adaptations that at least partially explain the benefits of the WHM (although there’s a lot of brain stuff happening, too—see the WHM & Diabetes Masterclass below for more).

All of this brings us back to diabetes and this question: Isn't stress bad for people with diabetes?

The 5 Dangers of WHM and Diabetes

Here’s where things get interesting for diabetics.

1. Blood Sugar

Because the WHM is an intense stressor, it will almost certainly raise your blood sugar in the short term (of course, everyone is different, but this has been my experience).

Thus, if your blood sugar is already high, practicing the WHM might not be a good idea.

(Paradoxically, there is also a chance it could improve insulin sensitivity over time due to the intermittent hypoxia. This has never been proven with Wim’s method, just my logical deduction.)

2. Anxiety and Panic Disorder

Here’s another thing to consider. The WHM involves hyperventilation, which is a common symptom associated with anxiety and panic attacks.

People with diabetes have a much higher prevalence of anxiety and panic disorder. Thus, we run a much higher risk of experiencing adverse effects from this aspect of the WHM.

Putting our body through that intense stress and the associated blood sugar increase might leave us feeling worse than when we started.

3. Autonomic Dysfunction

Additionally, people with diabetes generally have worse autonomic nervous system functioning than their non-diabetic counterparts. This shows up consistently as lower heart rate variability (HRV) levels and lower baroreflex sensitivity, even in seemingly healthy diabetics.

Thus, putting our nervous system into fight-or-flight overload might exacerbate underlying nervous system issues rather than alleviate them.

4. Cardiovascular Complications and Hypoxia

People with diabetes suffer from higher rates of cardiovascular disease than non-diabetics (and it’s the #1 cause of death in people with diabetes). Thus, dropping our blood oxygen saturation to the extremely low levels experienced during the WHM might put too much stress on our hearts. (Again, my speculation, but there isn’t any research on WHM and diabetes to know for sure.)

5. Poor Everyday Breathing

Lastly, because WHM encourages hyperventilation, there is a chance this would carry over into your everyday breathing. Of course, this is not what Wim suggests, it’s just a side-effect many people experience—myself included—if you’re not taught proper breathing in addition to the WHM.

If you’re constantly taking bigger breaths, especially through the mouth, it will put you in a chronic state of low-grade stress, intensifying the above-mentioned dangers. This could cause more cardiovascular stress, more nervous system dysregulation, more anxiety, and worse blood sugar control.

So, What Should We Do as Diabetics?

Let’s recap.

The potential benefits:

Improved quality of life
Lower inflammation
Better immune function
Better insulin sensitivity (my speculation)
More energy (we didn’t talk about this, but it’s something most practitioners say)

The potential dangers:

Short-term increase in blood sugar
Increase in symptoms of anxiety and panic
Dysfunctional nervous system
Added stress on your heart
Poorer everyday breathing

With this information, I hope you can decide whether the WHM is suitable for you (or for your clients if you work with people with diabetes). And if you are going to practice the WHM, I suggest finding a certified coach to start out safely. There are tons of them listed here.

If You Want More Information

If you want more information, I put together a 40-min Wim Hof and Diabetes Mini Masterclass ($99 value) as a free bonus to my Breathing for Diabetes Online Workshop. This class goes into more detail than is possible here.

And, by getting the workshop, you’ll learn where I suggest you start before diving into the WHM: slow breathing.

If you’re interested, you can learn more below.

The Breathing for Diabetes Online Workshop

Created for diabetics, by a diabetic.

From Wim Hof to slow breathing, this workshop covers everything you need to know to use breathing to reduce your stress, improve your sleep, better manage the inevitable ups & downs, and live an overall healthier life with diabetes.

Learn More about the Breathing for Diabetes Online Workshop

Top 5 Daily Breaths, a Guide to Wim Hof, and Coherence Fuels Purpose