4 Tips to Increase Oxygen Level While Sleeping

Proper breathing and a night of good sleep are more intricately linked than you might think. Without the appropriate oxygen levels, you could suffer from a deadly condition called hypoxemia while sleeping. 

Hypoxemia occurs when the oxygen levels in your blood dip down, and various factors add up to the causes. Some of these include improper oxygen content in the air, unclear breathing channels, or even the inability of blood to absorb the oxygen you breathe in properly. 

Hypoxemia can often occur when you’re sleeping. This is because your breathing patterns are irregular while sleeping, you might sleep in an improper position, or you simply suffer from a medical condition that interferes with your breathing. Whatever the reason, it’s essential to address the issue and reduce the chances of hypoxemia while sleeping. 

Sweet Island Dreams cares about every aspect of your sleep and wants to ensure you have a sound and healing sleep. That is why we’ve prepared the following guide with tips to increase oxygen levels while sleeping. 

Increase Your Oxygen Levels While Sleeping with the Following Tips

Change Your Sleeping Position

Sleep positions that compress your lungs are one of the most common causes of decreased oxygen levels while sleeping. Changing your sleeping position can help with proper oxygen intake and relieve back and neck pain. Here are some sleeping positions you should try if you’re looking to increase your oxygen intake while sleeping:

• Sleep on your side for better breathing. Sleeping on the back compresses your lungs. This can sometimes hamper your breathing, especially if you already suffer from breathing issues due to an underlying ailment like asthma or bronchitis. 

• Elevate your back and neck with a soft pillow underneath. This position can help you breathe easily, especially if you also have asthma. 

• Keep a pillow between your legs and lie on your left side. This position is excellent for people with asthma or temporary breathing difficulties due to throat/nose congestion. 

• Lie on your back with your head on a firm pillow and a sift beneath your knees. This position is excellent for people who move around a lot in their sleep and may move their heads off the pillow, making breathing difficult. The additional pillow stabilizes them. 

• Avoid sleeping on your stomach. If you’re a stomach sleeper, this might sound super difficult. But sleeping on the abdomen will severely restrict the air pathway and prevent you from getting enough oxygen while sleeping. 

Remove Allergens and Impurities

Staying free of allergens is key to staying well-oxygenated. This is even truer for people who frequently suffer from sinus infections. Before going to bed, make it a point to clean your room thoroughly. Use an air purifier if possible. 

Also, clean your nasal passage before going to bed every night. Using a neti might help. Try to limit neti use to once or twice a day, but never more than two times. 

Do Breathing Exercises

Doing breathing exercises right before going to bed or right after waking up every day is another excellent method to increase oxygen levels while sleeping. Breathing exercises help clear your diaphragm. They even have a therapeutic effect on your mind. 

Practice deep breathing by taking in air, holding it in for a few seconds, and then breathing out. Make sure you fill your lungs with air each time and feel your diaphragm stretching. You can also try holding one nostril closed with your hands while taking in air from the other nostril and alternating between the two nostrils. 

Quit Smoking

Smoking can harm your breathing. People who smoke often suffer from shortness of breath and poor circulation. Both of these can interfere with oxygen levels while you’re sleeping. 

Not to mention, smoking cigarettes invites many other health problems too. For a sound sleep with proper breathing, abandon cigarettes completely. 

Conclusion

We hope that our tips to increase oxygen level while sleeping will help you improve your overall health and sleep quality. By doing so, you will also significantly decrease your chances of getting hypoxemia. 

Have more questions about sleeping well? Leave them down below in the comments for us!