Experiencing increased shortness of breath, unusual fatigue and an inability to perform the physical activities you've been accustomed to doing may not necessarily be a sign of normal aging.
The combination of the aforementioned could actually be a sign of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD as it is more commonly known.
COPD is an umbrella term describing a group of progressive lung diseases that restrict airflow, making it a challenge just to draw breath. There currently is no cure for COPD, however, treatment can help control it and minimize the damage it causes.
The two key culprits that typically make up COPD include emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
Emphysema occurs when the air sacs (alveoli) in the lungs are gradually destroyed making a patient progressively more short of breath. Chronic bronchitis occurs when the lining of the bronchial tubes - which carry air to and from the lungs - become inflamed.
According to the American Lung Association, COPD affects an estimated 24 million Americans and is the third-leading cause of death in the United States after heart disease and cancer.
COPD most often occurs in people 40 years of age and older who have a history of smoking. These individuals may be current or former smokers. While not everybody who smokes gets COPD, studies have shown most of the individuals who have COPD (about 90 percent of them) have smoked.
COPD may also present in patients with no smoking history thanks to environmental and genetic factors, among others.
• Environmental factors: Long-term exposure to industrial particulate matter, vapors, fumes, gases and chemicals can increase the chance of COPD. Similar prolonged exposure to secondhand smoke and air pollution can also lead to the disease.
• Genetic factors: Sometimes, genetic factors can cause people who neither smoke nor are exposed to industrial dust to develop COPD. This happens in rare cases where a patient has low levels of the protein alpha-1 antitrypsin (alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency), a disorder that runs in families.
The best way to prevent COPD is to not smoke or if you do smoke, quit - now. Smoking cessation helps slow damage to the lungs, and returns the rate of lung function loss to nearly the same as that of a nonsmoker.
Yes, it's tough to quit tobacco use, but there are several options available to those ready to make a healthy change including prescription medications and nicotine product replacements. There also are non-traditional or integrative lifestyle medicine options such as medical hypnosis and health coaching. A physician can help personalize such a cessation plan.
Regular exercise, healthy eating and vaccinations against respiratory illnesses like the flu and pneumonia can help reduce the risk of COPD. Physicians commonly work with patients to create individualized plans for further reducing COPD risk.
BayCare Clinic, http://www.baycare.net, is the largest physician-owned specialty-care clinic in Northeast Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. With its 100-plus physicians, BayCare Clinic offers expertise in more than 20 specialties, serving clinical locations in 13 regional communities. Based in Green Bay, Wis., BayCare Clinic is a joint partner in Aurora BayCare Medical Center.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Dr._Lynn_Wagner/2203097
The combination of the aforementioned could actually be a sign of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD as it is more commonly known.
COPD is an umbrella term describing a group of progressive lung diseases that restrict airflow, making it a challenge just to draw breath. There currently is no cure for COPD, however, treatment can help control it and minimize the damage it causes.
The two key culprits that typically make up COPD include emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
Emphysema occurs when the air sacs (alveoli) in the lungs are gradually destroyed making a patient progressively more short of breath. Chronic bronchitis occurs when the lining of the bronchial tubes - which carry air to and from the lungs - become inflamed.
According to the American Lung Association, COPD affects an estimated 24 million Americans and is the third-leading cause of death in the United States after heart disease and cancer.
COPD most often occurs in people 40 years of age and older who have a history of smoking. These individuals may be current or former smokers. While not everybody who smokes gets COPD, studies have shown most of the individuals who have COPD (about 90 percent of them) have smoked.
COPD may also present in patients with no smoking history thanks to environmental and genetic factors, among others.
• Environmental factors: Long-term exposure to industrial particulate matter, vapors, fumes, gases and chemicals can increase the chance of COPD. Similar prolonged exposure to secondhand smoke and air pollution can also lead to the disease.
• Genetic factors: Sometimes, genetic factors can cause people who neither smoke nor are exposed to industrial dust to develop COPD. This happens in rare cases where a patient has low levels of the protein alpha-1 antitrypsin (alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency), a disorder that runs in families.
The best way to prevent COPD is to not smoke or if you do smoke, quit - now. Smoking cessation helps slow damage to the lungs, and returns the rate of lung function loss to nearly the same as that of a nonsmoker.
Yes, it's tough to quit tobacco use, but there are several options available to those ready to make a healthy change including prescription medications and nicotine product replacements. There also are non-traditional or integrative lifestyle medicine options such as medical hypnosis and health coaching. A physician can help personalize such a cessation plan.
Regular exercise, healthy eating and vaccinations against respiratory illnesses like the flu and pneumonia can help reduce the risk of COPD. Physicians commonly work with patients to create individualized plans for further reducing COPD risk.
BayCare Clinic, http://www.baycare.net, is the largest physician-owned specialty-care clinic in Northeast Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. With its 100-plus physicians, BayCare Clinic offers expertise in more than 20 specialties, serving clinical locations in 13 regional communities. Based in Green Bay, Wis., BayCare Clinic is a joint partner in Aurora BayCare Medical Center.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Dr._Lynn_Wagner/2203097
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