With his title Breath Taking, Michael Stephen M.D. refers both to the lungs as an extraordinarily beautiful and complex organ as well as to what inhibits and challenges the lungs’ wellbeing.
He begins with the origin of oxygen – going into fascinating detail about the discovery of the photosynthetic pigment of cyanobacteria – and the journey from water to land, accompanied by the simultaneous development of lungs and legs. From being on land, the lungs interact with the environment, our own immune system as well as the immune systems of others. In ancient Greece, the workings of the lungs were first studied and Michael Stephen traces them from Hippokrates and Galen to the present day.
The largest part of the book is devoted to lung pathologies like Asthma, COPD, Tuberculosis, and especially Cystic Fibrosis, interspersed with anecdotes from his own practice as a pulmonologist, and insights into the factors causing these diseases. To Michael Stephen, lung health should be a first priority and what makes Breath Taking stand out as a book about breathing is that it not only looks at the lungs’ past and present but at their future.
Here is an excerpt from Breath Taking:
“With every breath, the wonder of gas exchange happens with apparent calm and ease. Underneath this calm, though, an incessant battle is occurring that we are only beginning to appreciate. The lungs have built up a complex immune system over millions of years to guard against the constant threat of invasion by viruses, bacteria, and parasites. Every minute, hundreds of different cells and cell types come and go in and out of our lungs as part of a finely coordinated effort with a simple goal – to kill invaders that mean us harm. Viewed in real time through a high-powered microscope, this battle can resemble a game of Pac-Man – a hungry inflammatory cell, such as the neutrophil, chasing a bacterium, each angling and weaving, with the determined neutrophil finally cornering, engulfing, and destroying the invader.”