Learn About Your Lungs

Millions of people suffer with a medical condition called asthma. Anyone of any age can have asthma. However, it normally starts during a person’s childhood. It also usually runs in the family but not always. Asthma causes the smaller airways of the lungs to constrict. This makes it hard for the person to breathe because little air can get in or out of the lungs.

This also encourages the airway to create extra mucus closing it off even more. The tighter these airways are squeezed and the longer they stay that way are the determining factors that dictate how serious this medical condition becomes. This tightness is caused by inflammation although no one really knows what causes this to happen. 

When a person has asthma, some of the symptoms they may experience include shortness of breath, wheezing, coughing and a tight feeling in their chest. If you have mild asthma you will usually only notice symptoms when you have some type of upper respiratory or chest infection or when you’re exercising. Normally, you won’t even notice there is a problem any other time.

If you have moderate asthma, you will notice the symptoms every once in a while but they may be worst real early in the morning or late at night. Many times you may wake up during the middle of the night from coughing or because your chest feels tight. A person is considered to have severe asthma when they have symptoms the majority of the time. It can make it hard to talk from time to time and regular hospital visits are expected. In very rare cases when the asthma is not treated, death has occurred.

It’s been proven that certain things can trigger an asthma attack and by avoiding or controlling these triggers you can reduce your symptoms. Here are a few known triggers that cause many people to start having symptoms: Pollen, moulds, smoking, dust, infections, emotions, exercise and certain foods. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you should never exercise. It simply means that you should be aware it can cause symptoms to occur but done in moderation it can even help the symptoms.

Related articles: Lung and Breathing, Lung Infections, Lung Diseases. 

Just a quick announcement about an addition to our parent website, Health Information Articles.

A new section dealing with throat health added. Articles include the following topics: sore throat, strep throat and throat cancer.

If you’re one of those folks who thinks only smokers get lung cancer, some new research may surprise you.

The American Cancer Society looked at 13 separate studies covering 40 years and more than 2 million subjects, concluding that 10-15 percent of lung cancerers have never smoked. The study also indicated that male non-smokers are more likely to die from lung cancer than female non-smokers, although both are susceptible.

As many as 24,000 men and women who have never smoked die of lung cancer annually in the United Srtates alone. Experts believe genetic factors, exposure to certain carcinogens and inhaling passive smoke are among the causes.

African Americans and Asians living in Korea and Japan, but not in the U.S., are more likely to die from the disease than are those of European descent.

Related article on the lungs and breathing.

Cases of whooping cough been rising in recent years, which prompted the 2005 approval of two vaccines that protect adults and adolescents against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (also known as whooping cough).

Babies younger than twelve months are most at risk.In fants less than a year old accounted for about nineteen percent of whooping cough cases and ninety-two percent of whooping cough deaths in the United States from 2000 to 2004, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Newborns should get their whooping cough vaccinations at two months, four months, six months and fifteen to 18 months, and a booster vaccination before starting school. A Tdap vaccine is recommended between ages eleven and twelve.

A class-action lawsuit has been filed against FEMA and some mobile home makers manufacturers by residents suffering from “Katrina cough” and respiratory or flu-like illnesses.  The residents believe formaldehyde inside their mobile homes has contributed to cough, runny nose, sneezing, and an array of other lung-related ailments.

Sean Trundy, an attorney who represents the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, also says that several Indiana workers, hired temporarily by the mobile home manufacturers, contacted him. They had come down with illnesses while working on the trailers.

To read more on the story, see http://www.alternet.org/katrina/48004.

A recent federal study suggests parents may have unknowingly risked poisoning infants and toddlers by giving them common over-the-counter cough medications.

In January, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released a report saying 1,519 children younger than 2 were admitted to U.S. emergency rooms between 2004 and 2005 for treatment of “adverse effects” after taking cough and cold medicines.
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News reports in Washington DC say a number of companies who manufacture over-the-counter cough medicines have announced that these medications are being abused by an increasing number of teenagers, and the problem is more serious than many parents realize.

The Partnership for a Drug-Free America estimates that one in 10 youths have used the cough medicines to get high. It said ingesting huge amounts of cough medicines can produce a hallucinogenic effect along with side effects such as vomiting and rapid heartbeat.
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Interesting item about cough and flu.

An Andover, MA newspaper is reporting that local health professionals are using federal funding to start the “Cover Your Cough” campaign. The goal of the “Cover Your Cough” campaign is to raise awareness about daily habits people can form to stop the spread of a  cough and, if needed, a more serious pandemic flu.

What is pneumonia?

Pneumonia is a term used to describe general types of infections of the lungs. Pneumonia can be caused by different things such as viruses, bacteria, parasites or fungi. Pneumonia quite often occurs after an upper respiratory tract infection and may come after a cold or flu. When this happens, the signs of pneumonia usually appear two to three days after a cold or a sore throat.

Often people think they just have a worsening of their upper respiratory infection and they don’t realize it has progressed to pneumonia.

Pneumonia symptoms and causes.

Some signs and symptoms of pneumonia are fever, chills, cough, rapid breathing, difficulty breathing, breathing with wheezing or grunting sounds, chest pain, vomiting, decreased activity, fatigue, rib muscles that contract with breathing, loss of appetite, and in some extreme cases also a gray color of the lips and fingernails.

In some cases, rapid breathing may be the only symptom and if the person was already sick, they may not realize how it has progressed into pneumonia. The term “double pneumonia” refers to infection which has happened in both lungs.

While there are different things that can cause pneumonia, the most common is a virus. Some viruses that can lead to this condition are rhinovirus, flu, RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), and adenoviruses. The duration that pneumonia lasts will vary according to the severity of the case and what caused the pneumonia. Bacterial pneumonia is usually cured in 1 to 2 weeks where viral pneumonia can last 2 weeks or longer.

While pneumonia itself is not contagious, the viruses or bacteria that cause it can be. These are spread through direct contact with the person or with the fluid from the mouth and nose of the infected person. To prevent pneumonia, there are a few things you can do. First, there are vaccines that prevent certain types of pneumonia. Another way to prevent it is to stay away from people who have it. If you live with someone or must care for someone with pneumonia, you can use extra careful precautious when being around them to be sure you don’t contact it as well.

Because pneumonia affects the lungs, the more times you have it and the more severe it is, the higher your risk of contracting it again. Many children with pneumonia end up spending year after year in the hospital due to re-contracting the condition. You can also prevent it by trying to prevent the things that cause pneumonia. Get your flu vaccine every year and there are some antiviral medications that can be given to high risk people. There are also vaccines for RSV, which leads to pneumonia in many children.

Related articles: walking pneumonia

The Washington Post is reporting that people with COPD or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease may get some help from a new computer program. The program is designed to help COPD sufferers gain better control over their breathing and breathe more efficiently.

To read more, click on COPD Computer Program 

There’s also information at the parent website of this blog, HealthInfoArticles.com/COPD.