Ayurvedic Treatment Of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
What is Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease or copd is a chronic inflammatory lung disease that makes you hard to breathe. It is a progressive and incurable disease, causes due to imbalance airflow from the lungs. Because of copd regular activities such as walking or getting dressed become hard. People with COPD are at increased risk of developing heart disease, lung cancer and a variety of other conditions.
It’s estimated that about 30 million people in the United States have COPD. As many as half are unaware that they have it.
Types of COPD
There are two main forms of COPD:
- Emphysema: This occur from damage of the walls of the alveoli (air sacs), located at the end of the bronchial tubes. As The damage walls disappear inside the alveoli, causes them to merge into one giant air sac. These larger sacs are not able to exchange oxygen and carbon dioxide between the lungs and the blood. Also the lungs become stretched out and lose their springiness because of damaged alveoli. So, the airways become flabby and air gets trapped in your lungs causing you to feel short of breath.
- Chronic Bronchitis: Chronic Bronchitis results from irritation and swelling of bronchial tubes. This causes coughing and shortness of breath. If mucus comes up with the cough and lasts at least three months for two years in a row, the bronchitis has become chronic bronchitis. There are tiny hair-like fibers lining the bronchial tubes called cilia help to move mucus out. In chronic bronchitis, you lose your cilia. This makes it harder to get rid of mucus, which makes you cough more, which creates more mucus. Mucus can build up in the lungs. This can cause more damage.
Causes of COPD
The two primary causes of COPD are cigarette smoking and alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency. Air pollution and occupational dusts might also contribute to COPD, especially when the person exposed to these substances is a cigarette smoker. Genetic causes other than AAT deficiency are also likely to contribute. COPD often occurs in people exposed to fumes from burning fuel for cooking and heating in poorly ventilated homes.Only about 20 to 30 percent of chronic smokers may develop clinically apparent COPD, although many smokers with long smoking histories may develop reduced lung function. Some smokers develop less common lung conditions. They may be misdiagnosed as having COPD until a more thorough evaluation is performed.
Symptoms Of COPD
Symptoms of COPD can vary for each person, but common symptoms are:
- Shortness of breath
- A cough that won’t go away
- Shortness of breath with mild exercise (walking, using the stairs, etc.)
- Wheezing
- Blue lips or fingernails
- Chronic, productive cough (with mucus)
- Frequent colds
- A feeling of “tightness” in the chest
- Losing weight without trying
- Having to clear your throat a lot
- Chest tightness
- Lack of energy
Diagnosis Of COPD
There’s no single test for COPD. Diagnosis is based on symptoms, a physical exam, and diagnostic test results.
When you visit the doctor, be sure to answers to the following questions:
- Do you smoke regularly?
- Have you had chronic exposure to dust or air pollutants?
- Are you short of breath during exercise?
- Are you exposed to lung irritants on the job
- Are you exposed to a lot of secondhand smoke
- Do you you have a family history of COPD
- Do you have asthma or other respiratory conditions
- Do you cough up excess mucus?
