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| website = [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/547761/breath-by-james-nestor/ penguinrandomhouse.com]
| website = [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/547761/breath-by-james-nestor/ penguinrandomhouse.com]
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📘 '''''Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art''''' is a popular science book by journalist James Nestor, published by Riverhead Books on 26 May 2020. <ref name="PRH2020" />
It argues that breathing habits—especially nasal versus mouth breathing and slower, lighter rhythms—shape sleep, cardiovascular and mental health, weaving history, physiology, and self-experiments such as a Stanford trial alternating enforced mouth- and nose-breathing. <ref name="PWReview2020">{{cite web |title=Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/9780735213616 |website=Publishers Weekly |date=19 March 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref>
The book is structured in three parts and ten chapters (e.g., “Nose,” “Exhale,” “Slow,” “Less,” “Chew,” “Hold It”). <ref name="MarmotTOC" />
Reviewers describe the prose as engaging, reported narrative that blends travelogue with accessible science. <ref name="Kirkus2020">{{cite web |title=BREATH: THE NEW SCIENCE OF A LOST ART |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/james-nestor/breath-new-science/ |website=Kirkus Reviews |date=20 April 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref><ref name="BGlobe2020">{{cite news |last=Miller |first=Stuart |title=Yes, changing how you breathe will help you live longer |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/05/21/arts/living-breathing/ |work=The Boston Globe |date=21 May 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref>
It became a New York Times bestseller and a Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of 2020, and—according to the publisher—has sold more than three million copies in 44 languages. <ref name="PRH2020" /><ref name="WPostNotable2020">{{cite news |title=50 notable works of nonfiction in 2020 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/50-notable-works-of-nonfiction-in-2020/2020/11/16/37f4c4de-2069-11eb-b532-05c751cd5dc2_story.html |work=The Washington Post |date=19 November 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref>


== Chapter summary ==
== Chapter summary ==
Line 49: Line 55:


⏱️ '''10 – Fast, Slow, and Not at All.'''
⏱️ '''10 – Fast, Slow, and Not at All.'''

== Background & reception ==

🖋️ '''Author & writing'''. Nestor is a science journalist and author of ''Deep'' (2014); the publisher notes that ''Breath'' follows his reporting across labs, ancient burial sites, Soviet facilities, choir schools, and city streets to examine how breathing works and why it went awry. <ref name="PRH2020" /> He frames the book as a “scientific adventure,” linking breathing patterns to health and recounting how recurrent respiratory issues led him to test claims first-hand. <ref name="PWReview2020" /> A central episode is a Stanford-run experiment overseen by an otolaryngologist that forced mouth-only breathing for 10 days before switching to nose-only breathing, with diary-style measurements of snoring, apnea events, and blood pressure. <ref name="SleepReview20201204">{{cite news |last=Roy |first=Sree |title=A Popular New Book Elicits Gasps of Delight & Concern from Sleep Specialists |url=https://sleepreviewmag.com/sleep-health/sleep-whole-body/lungs/breath-james-nestor-sleep-medicine/ |work=Sleep Review |date=4 December 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref> The book’s voice mixes reportage, history, and practical techniques across three parts and ten concise chapters. <ref name="Kirkus2020" /><ref name="MarmotTOC" />

📈 '''Commercial reception'''. Nestor’s site records that ''Breath'' spent 20 weeks on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list. <ref name="NestorAbout2025">{{cite web |title=About — James Nestor |url=https://www.mrjamesnestor.com/about |website=MRJAMESNESTOR |date=2025 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref> In the sales week ending 30 May 2020, ''Publishers Weekly'' reported the book’s debut at #12 on Hardcover Nonfiction. <ref name="PWBestSeller20200608">{{cite news |last=Juris |first=Carolyn |title=This Week's Bestsellers: June 8, 2020 |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/83532-this-week-s-bestsellers-june-8-2020.html |work=Publishers Weekly |date=5 June 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref> It was also selected as a Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of 2020. <ref name="WPostNotable2020" /> The publisher attributes more than three million copies sold and translations into 44 languages. <ref name="PRH2020" />

👍 '''Praise'''. ''Kirkus Reviews'' called the book “a welcome, invigorating user’s manual for the respiratory system.” <ref name="Kirkus2020" /> ''Publishers Weekly'' praised it as a “fascinating ‘scientific adventure’” that convincingly argues everyday breathing is “vital to get right.” <ref name="PWReview2020" /> The ''Boston Globe'' highlighted its “entertaining, eerily well-timed” explanations of proper breathing and its potential to change daily habits. <ref name="BGlobe2020" /> ''Library Journal'' deemed it “highly recommended,” noting the clear synthesis of research, interviews, and techniques. <ref name="LJ2020">{{cite web |title=Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art |url=https://www.libraryjournal.com/review/breath-the-new-science-of-a-lost-art |website=Library Journal |date=1 May 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref>

👎 '''Criticism'''. In the ''Wall Street Journal'', Sam Kean faulted the book for not applying enough skepticism to “dicey” evidence and for underplaying placebo effects. <ref name="WSJReview2020">{{cite news |last=Kean |first=Sam |title='Breath' Review: Eager Breather |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/breath-review-eager-breather-11590953832 |work=The Wall Street Journal |date=31 May 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref> Psychiatrist Kate Womersley, writing in ''The Spectator'', argued that Nestor leans heavily on anecdotes and makes overbroad claims about nitric oxide and CO₂, cautioning against turning “enhanced breathing” into a commercial self-optimization trend. <ref name="Spectator20200801">{{cite news |last=Womersley |first=Kate |title=We all breathe – 25,000 times a day – so why aren’t we better at it? |url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/we-all-breathe-25-000-times-a-day-so-why-aren-t-we-better-at-it/ |work=The Spectator |date=1 August 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref> A trade article in ''Sleep Review'' welcomed the book’s accessibility but warned that popular practices like mouth-taping should not displace clinical diagnosis and care. <ref name="SleepReview20201204" /> Beyond reviews, a 2023 meta-analysis of randomized trials found small-to-moderate benefits of breathwork for stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, while urging caution due to moderate risk of bias and heterogeneity in studies. <ref name="SciRep2023">{{cite journal |last=Fincham |first=Guy William |author2=Clara Strauss |author3=Jesus Montero-Marin |author4=Kate Cavanagh |date=9 January 2023 |title=Effect of breathwork on stress and mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised-controlled trials |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=13 |pages=432 |doi=10.1038/s41598-022-27247-y |url=https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9828383/ |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref>

🌍 '''Impact & adoption'''. ''Fresh Air'' devoted a full episode to Nestor on 27 May 2020, amplifying the book’s core ideas to a national audience. <ref name="FreshAir20200527">{{cite web |title=How The 'Lost Art' Of Breathing Can Impact Sleep And Resilience |url=https://freshairarchive.org/guests/james-nestor |website=Fresh Air Archive (WHYY/NPR) |date=27 May 2020 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref> The book was shortlisted for the 2021 Royal Society Science Book Prize. <ref name="RSShortlist2021">{{cite web |title=Shortlist for 2021 Royal Society Science Book Prize revealed |url=https://royalsociety.org/news/2021/09/book-prize-shortlist-2021/ |website=Royal Society |date=29 September 2021 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref> Nestor later created a long-form course, “The Power of Your Breath,” for BBC Maestro, reflecting mainstream uptake of breathwork education. <ref name="BBCMaestro2025">{{cite web |title=James Nestor — The Power of Your Breath |url=https://www.bbcmaestro.com/courses/james-nestor/the-power-of-your-breath |website=BBC Maestro |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref> Educational outreach also included contributions to The Global Classroom’s breathing programming for schoolchildren in 2021. <ref name="GlobalClassroom2021">{{cite web |title=The Global Classroom’s Top Five Breathing Techniques for Children |url=https://www.theglobalclassroom.com/the-global-classrooms-top-five-breathing-techniques-for-children/ |website=The Global Classroom |date=25 March 2021 |access-date=19 October 2025}}</ref>


== Related content & more ==
== Related content & more ==

Revision as of 22:32, 19 October 2025

Template:Breath by James Nestor/random quote
Breath by James Nestor
Full titleBreath: The New Science of a Lost Art
AuthorJames Nestor
LanguageEnglish
SubjectBreathing; Respiration; Health
GenreNonfiction; Popular science
PublisherRiverhead Books
Publication date
26 May 2020
Publication placeUnited States
Media typePrint (hardcover); e-book; audiobook
Pages304
ISBN978-0-7352-1361-6
Goodreads rating4.1/5  (as of 19 October 2025)
Websitepenguinrandomhouse.com

📘 Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art is a popular science book by journalist James Nestor, published by Riverhead Books on 26 May 2020. [1] It argues that breathing habits—especially nasal versus mouth breathing and slower, lighter rhythms—shape sleep, cardiovascular and mental health, weaving history, physiology, and self-experiments such as a Stanford trial alternating enforced mouth- and nose-breathing. [2] The book is structured in three parts and ten chapters (e.g., “Nose,” “Exhale,” “Slow,” “Less,” “Chew,” “Hold It”). [3] Reviewers describe the prose as engaging, reported narrative that blends travelogue with accessible science. [4][5] It became a New York Times bestseller and a Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of 2020, and—according to the publisher—has sold more than three million copies in 44 languages. [1][6]

Chapter summary

This outline follows the Riverhead hardcover edition (26 May 2020; ISBN 978-0-7352-1361-6).[1][7][3][8]

I – The experiment

🐒 1 – The Worst Breathers in the Animal Kingdom.

👄 2 – Mouthbreathing.

II – The lost art and science of breathing

👃 3 – Nose.

💨 4 – Exhale.

🐢 5 – Slow.

➖ 6 – Less.

🦷 7 – Chew.

III – Breathing+

➕ 8 – More, on Occasion.

⏸️ 9 – Hold It.

⏱️ 10 – Fast, Slow, and Not at All.

Background & reception

🖋️ Author & writing. Nestor is a science journalist and author of Deep (2014); the publisher notes that Breath follows his reporting across labs, ancient burial sites, Soviet facilities, choir schools, and city streets to examine how breathing works and why it went awry. [1] He frames the book as a “scientific adventure,” linking breathing patterns to health and recounting how recurrent respiratory issues led him to test claims first-hand. [2] A central episode is a Stanford-run experiment overseen by an otolaryngologist that forced mouth-only breathing for 10 days before switching to nose-only breathing, with diary-style measurements of snoring, apnea events, and blood pressure. [9] The book’s voice mixes reportage, history, and practical techniques across three parts and ten concise chapters. [4][3]

📈 Commercial reception. Nestor’s site records that Breath spent 20 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. [10] In the sales week ending 30 May 2020, Publishers Weekly reported the book’s debut at #12 on Hardcover Nonfiction. [11] It was also selected as a Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book of 2020. [6] The publisher attributes more than three million copies sold and translations into 44 languages. [1]

👍 Praise. Kirkus Reviews called the book “a welcome, invigorating user’s manual for the respiratory system.” [4] Publishers Weekly praised it as a “fascinating ‘scientific adventure’” that convincingly argues everyday breathing is “vital to get right.” [2] The Boston Globe highlighted its “entertaining, eerily well-timed” explanations of proper breathing and its potential to change daily habits. [5] Library Journal deemed it “highly recommended,” noting the clear synthesis of research, interviews, and techniques. [12]

👎 Criticism. In the Wall Street Journal, Sam Kean faulted the book for not applying enough skepticism to “dicey” evidence and for underplaying placebo effects. [13] Psychiatrist Kate Womersley, writing in The Spectator, argued that Nestor leans heavily on anecdotes and makes overbroad claims about nitric oxide and CO₂, cautioning against turning “enhanced breathing” into a commercial self-optimization trend. [14] A trade article in Sleep Review welcomed the book’s accessibility but warned that popular practices like mouth-taping should not displace clinical diagnosis and care. [9] Beyond reviews, a 2023 meta-analysis of randomized trials found small-to-moderate benefits of breathwork for stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, while urging caution due to moderate risk of bias and heterogeneity in studies. [15]

🌍 Impact & adoption. Fresh Air devoted a full episode to Nestor on 27 May 2020, amplifying the book’s core ideas to a national audience. [16] The book was shortlisted for the 2021 Royal Society Science Book Prize. [17] Nestor later created a long-form course, “The Power of Your Breath,” for BBC Maestro, reflecting mainstream uptake of breathwork education. [18] Educational outreach also included contributions to The Global Classroom’s breathing programming for schoolchildren in 2021. [19]

Related content & more

YouTube videos

CapSach articles

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Breath by James Nestor: 9780735213616". Penguin Random House. Penguin Random House. 26 May 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art". Publishers Weekly. 19 March 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Breath : the new science of a lost art". Marmot Catalog. Marmot Library Network. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "BREATH: THE NEW SCIENCE OF A LOST ART". Kirkus Reviews. 20 April 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Miller, Stuart (21 May 2020). "Yes, changing how you breathe will help you live longer". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "50 notable works of nonfiction in 2020". The Washington Post. 19 November 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  7. ↑ "Breath : the new science of a lost art". WorldCat. OCLC. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  8. ↑ Krasowski, J. A. (2020). "Breath, The new science of a lost art". Medical Reference Services Quarterly. doi:10.1080/08869634.2020.1823793. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Roy, Sree (4 December 2020). "A Popular New Book Elicits Gasps of Delight & Concern from Sleep Specialists". Sleep Review. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  10. ↑ "About — James Nestor". MRJAMESNESTOR. 2025. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  11. ↑ Juris, Carolyn (5 June 2020). "This Week's Bestsellers: June 8, 2020". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  12. ↑ "Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art". Library Journal. 1 May 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  13. ↑ Kean, Sam (31 May 2020). "'Breath' Review: Eager Breather". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  14. ↑ Womersley, Kate (1 August 2020). "We all breathe – 25,000 times a day – so why aren't we better at it?". The Spectator. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  15. ↑ Fincham, Guy William; Clara Strauss; Jesus Montero-Marin; Kate Cavanagh (9 January 2023). "Effect of breathwork on stress and mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised-controlled trials". Scientific Reports. 13: 432. doi:10.1038/s41598-022-27247-y. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  16. ↑ "How The 'Lost Art' Of Breathing Can Impact Sleep And Resilience". Fresh Air Archive (WHYY/NPR). 27 May 2020. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  17. ↑ "Shortlist for 2021 Royal Society Science Book Prize revealed". Royal Society. 29 September 2021. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  18. ↑ "James Nestor — The Power of Your Breath". BBC Maestro. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
  19. ↑ "The Global Classroom's Top Five Breathing Techniques for Children". The Global Classroom. 25 March 2021. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
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