Many feel refreshed, rested, and invigorated when they visit natural environments, such as walking in a forest, visiting a waterfall, or spending a day by the ocean. Why is this? Is it just in our minds, or are there other reasons? Why is it that we don’t get that same feeling of being refreshed when we walk about day in and day out in smoggy, air-polluted environments? Is there an explanation? Let’s find out. We’ll start by taking a look at what God originally intended for us to breathe and the health benefits of it.

The Creator’s Plan

Where did God place Adam and Eve? In a garden! Did they have a house? AC or heat? How about windows and doors? Were they ever deprived of fresh air? When they worked, was it indoors? When the slept, was it indoors? No, there was a constant exposure to pure, fresh air. What about the patriarchs? Did they live in houses with closed doors and glass windows? No, they lived in tents, with a lot of fresh air circulating throughout the living quarters. Did they work inside at a desk all day with an AC running and the windows closed? No! God did not intend for us to be shut up in locations without free access to fresh air at all times, because He knew what a benefit it would be to us. How many of us would seriously consider how much the lack of fresh air in our modern lives contributes to distress, debility, and death? We have to seriously consider what our obligations to our Creator are in regards to keeping this body of mine (His holy temple, see 1 Corinthians 6:19,20) healthy—including consistent exposure to fresh air.

Here is a list of just some of the many health benefits of fresh air.

Fresh air:

• Helps increase the rate and quality of growth in both plants and animals
• Helps the airways of your lungs to dilate more fully and improves the cleansing action of your lungs
• Helps to improve your heart rate, blood pressure, and metabolic rate
• Helps your immune system fight off disease more effectively
• Soothes your nerves. It will leave you feeling more refreshed and relaxed
• Will stimulate your appetite and will help your food to digest more effectively. That is why it’s great to take a brisk walk outside after you eat
• Will help you sleep more soundly at night
• Helps to clear your mind, improves your concentration, and helps you to think more clearly
• Alters your brain levels of serotonin which helps to improve your mood and promote a sense of happiness and well-being
• Helps your body get rid of accumulated impurities
• Provides enough oxygen for cellular metabolism
• Helps to kill bacteria and viruses in the air thanks to its rich oxygen content. Polluted air cannot do this
• Strengthens your immune system by supplying it with the oxygen it needs. White blood cells require more oxygen when working to kill and destroy bacteria, viruses, and germs. Enough oxygen will ensure that they are able to function properly

Fresh air will prove far more beneficial to sick persons than medicine, and is far more essential to them than their food. They will do better and will recover sooner when deprived of food than when deprived of fresh air. {RH, December 5, 1899 par. 3}

Many seem to think that if they exclude the air from their rooms because it is damp and foggy, they have an atmosphere in their houses perfectly safe to breathe. But we have to breathe in damp and foggy days as well as in pleasant, sunny weather. We must accept the air which God gives us, which is subject to atmospheric changes, sometimes dry and invigorating, while again it is damp, chill, and penetrating. We must meet these changes as they come, and make provision the best we can to guard ourselves from the effects of damp and chilly atmosphere, and not subject ourselves to a greater evil by breathing air over and over again that has lost its vital properties. {HR, February 1, 1874 par. 7}

The health of the entire system depends upon the healthy action of the respiratory organs. In order to have good blood, we must breathe well. The lungs, in order to be healthy, must have pure air. Your lungs, deprived of air, will be like a hungry person deprived of food. Indeed, we can live longer without food than without air, which is the food that God has provided for the lungs. The strength of the system is, in a great degree, dependent upon the amount of pure, fresh air breathed. If the lungs are restricted, the quantity of oxygen received into them is also limited, the blood becomes vitiated, and disease follows.--H. R. {HL 171}

Tips for Getting a Healthy Dose of Fresh Air

Follow these tips to make sure you get a healthy dose of fresh air every single day.

• While on your breaks at work, step outside and take some slow, deep breaths. This will banish that tired, sluggish feeling and will leave you feeling more energized and focused
• Open your windows regularly and air out your house as often as you can. If there happens to be a smog warning in effect, wait until later on at night or very early in the morning when the air is much cleaner
• If you can, sleep with your bedroom window open. You can also leave your bedroom door open to increase the transfer of air
• Do not smoke in your home and do not allow other family members or guests to smoke in your home either. Even second hand smoke contains hundreds of harmful chemicals
• Avoid breathing in car exhaust. Do not allow cars to idle near your windows or in the garage attached to your house
• Try not to stay in stuffy rooms for long periods of time
• Make sure that your clothes dryers, gas cooking ranges, heaters, and fireplaces are properly vented to the outdoors
• Be sure to maintain your heating and air-conditioning units on a regular basis
• Get your air ducts and furnace filters cleaned regularly
• Do some deep breathing exercises every day. Work them into your regular routine
• Get some exercise on a daily basis. When you can, try to exercise outside. Exercise gets your circulation going and floods your body with oxygen
• Don’t forget about your posture. Sit up straight and stand tall to allow your lungs to expand so that you can take in enough oxygen
• Wear loose, comfortable clothing that allows you to breathe deeply and freely without being restricted. Try not to wear clothes that are tight around your chest or abdomen
• Avoid using air fresheners, and other artificial fragrances in your home. Use natural alternatives instead
• Keep plants in your home and work environment to help improve the air quality. Plants produce oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide from the air. Some plants can even remove toxic pollutants from the air