The week oxygen was discovered
references: http://elkodaily.com/lifestyles/professor-hanington-s-speaking-of-science-oxygen/article_e5c5eb04-41cd-599a-94e1-b8585624e8ca.html
Trying to avoid lung disease
People used to speak of emphysema or chronic bronchitis, but Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (or COPD as it is generally referred to) is a collective term used to describe several chronic lung diseases, which limit airflow to and from the lungs.
COPD is much more than a so-called "smoker’s cough". It's a serious, progressive life-threatening disease, which causes ongoing breathing difficulties – and, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2015 it killed more than three million people worldwide.
A large international study established that the highest prevalence of Stage 2 or higher COPD was among people in Cape Town, South Africa, and it surmised that both smoking and occupational dust were responsible.
The causes of COPD
Tobacco smoke (this includes second hand exposure), pollution (especially indoor air pollution from cooking fuels in low-income contries) and fumes, as well as frequent lower respiratory infections during childhood can all be causes of COPD. Many people are exposed to fumes, dust and pollution while at work.
Required lifestyle changes if you have COPD
It is essential that you stop smoking, and also avoid spaces where other people smoke. Also avoid polluted or dusty areas. A healthy diet and regular exercise are both also essential to maintain your health and manage your COPD.
To people with COPD, even a common cold can easily lead to a more serious lower respiratory tract infection, making it even more difficult to breathe than usual. People with COPD need to alert their doctor if their COPD symptoms get worse. Treatment may include inhaled medications, oxygen and antibiotics. It is important to note that antibiotics can help to treat a bacterial infection, but not any condition (like the common cold) caused by a virus.
reference: http://www.health24.com/Medical/Asthma/From-our-sponsors/how-to-avoid-chronic-lung-diseases-20170704
Get stronger lungs with these exercises!!
Exercise is a fanastic way to help strengthen muscles and improve heart function all at the same time. It will also give a person overall health benefits and motivation to feel good.
So how does this help you if you have a condition like asthma?
There are breathing exercises that, like aerobic exercises, can strengthen the lungs to relieve asthma symptoms or, in some cases, even prevent the recurrence of asthma attacks.
To make up for the lessened functionality of the lungs through asthma, the body uses other muscles for breathing – such as your neck, back and chest. This, however, doesn’t assist with breathing; it only adds more stress to your body, which is not good for people living with asthma.
With the following breathing exercises, asthma patients can strengthen their lungs and, thus, improve their breathing.
Pursed-Lip Breathing
With a pursed lip, breathe into your nose and breathe out at least twice through your mouth.
Belly Breathing
Breathe into your nose and breathe out through you mouth at least two times. Make sure that each exhale is as long as your inhale. This helps with training your diaphragm to do most of the work while breathing, which builds up the strength to fill and empty your lungs.
If you begin to feel dizzy while practicing any of these exercises, stop immediately.Once you feel better, try again. If the dizziness continues, you should contact your doctor for help.
refernce : Jason Hughes, tricounty
A cold glass of white wine might not be the best option for you
If you suffer from asthma or hayfever - especially at this time of year it has been claimed that some types of refreshing alcoholic drinks may not be a good option for sufferers.
There are some similarities between allergic asthma and hay fever, they are both triggered by an allergen (such as pollen). Summer and al fresco dining are common but your choice of drink may worsen symptons even more.
It's usually the substances found in alcoholic drinks rather than the alcohol itself that can trigger symptoms, says Asthma UK.
Beer contains histimine which is the same substance that's released in the body when you have an allergic reaction. So it could trigger asthma symptoms or make hay fever worse.
And sulphites are preservatives found in many alcohol drinks (like white wine) which can also exacerbate symptoms.
So which ones are better?
Clear spirits like gin and vodka are better options as they're very low in both substances as they're very low in both substances.
When trying to work out which may be best if any trigger your symtoms it is best to avoid...
Any concerns speak with your GP.
reference: netdoctor.co.uk
Interactive Medical Drones
The doctor could give instructions on taking readings such as blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, or sugar or oxygen levels, using equipment dropped by the drone. And the doctor could talk a survivor through ways of giving aid, such as applying tourniquets, cleaning, clotting or bandaging wounds, and injecting medicines.
WILLIAM CAREY UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE
Reference:Huff Post
It may not just be aging signs with breathlessness
Coughing and experiencing a lack of breath and slow breathing be just down to age. You may never have smoked but you could still develop or be at risk for COPD and other lung diseases.
"While about 80% of COPD cases are related to having smoked, 20% are not," says Dr. Bartolome Celli, a pulmonologist with Harvard-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital.
Symptoms include a chronic cough, shortness of breath, wheezing, frequent respiratory infections, fatigue, excess phlegm, and even a blue tint to the lips or fingernails. But many of these are brushed aside.
"People may feel their symptoms are normal consequences of aging or having smoked. They don't look for help until later in the course of the disease," says Dr. Celli.
Early detection and prevention are key by quitting smoking; decreasing your exposure to air pollutants; getting vaccinations for influenza and pneumonia; and getting the medications necessary.
References (www.health.harvard.edu/COPD).
Sleep is so important
In a recent journal by SciTechnol explains how expensive measuring respiratory flow is and how a more practical method would be to use a non-contact mcirophone for audio signal recordings taken from a sleep lab or at home to help improve sleep quality.
Sleep is so important for all of us to funtion correctly, mentally and efficiently for our health and well-being. The amount of sleep a person requires differs from one person to another; most adults need about seven to eight hours of sleep each night to feel alert and well rested.
It is important that each and every one of us maintain a healthy sleep pattern. Stress, anxiety, diet and fluids all play their role in which could really affect our sleeping habits.
references and image credit: Journal of Sleep Disorders: Treatment & Care
Passport, bag and oxygen...
Holiday and travel to some people is the one period of time we feel relaxed, refreshed, indulged or even liberated. Travelling is a luxury and for some a necessity to free themselves from the every-day pressure of work life but for others with the need for supplemental oxygen, life threatening respiratory illnesses; sourcing and organising medical oxygen is the first item on the list when going on holiday.
Oxygen Worldwide was setup to make travelling with oxygen a seamless service without it becoming a problem just part of the holiday check list. With the experience, 24hour customer service line and extensive network of oxygen suppliers internationally Oxygen Worldwide can arrange your holiday with oxygen effectively, efficiently and tailor-made to your needs.
For those oxygen patients who love to travel and don’t want to be tied down by conventional oxygen therapy you can purchase direct from OxygenWorldwide’s outlet site new and reconditioned portable oxygen concentrators.
With proper planning and guidance, you can go on a weekend getaway or a week-long vacation without worry with OxygenWorldwide.
Organising oxygen for tomorrow
Rutger Berntsen and Noor Pijnenburg, both Dutch, manage a unique company.
Manage your COPD breathing with Yoga
Will yoga exercises help COPD patients manage breathlessness better?
Many people who suffer from a lung disease find it very hard to exercise. Often even the thought of physical activity makes them feel breathless. But there is a way to overcome these fears that only lead to a downward spiral of both physical and mental decline, practising yoga. This low impact form of exercise will not only help raising your energy levels, it also clears your mind from worry. Being good for everybody, it is also more and more recommended especially for people with lung diseases, like emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and other lung diseases commonly known as COPD.
Why can yoga exercises be especially beneficial for COPD patients?
In yoga practice there are two essential parts that complement each other in a synergistic way. One part is the Asanas, physical posture that improve range of motion, balance, flexibility and strength of the body. The other part is the Pranayamas, breathing techniques that teach you how to control your breathing and keep your lungs more fully. It also strengthens your respiratory muscles. The two combined will help you improve your general fitness and make breathing easier and more efficient. Additional meditation helps relieve stress and anxiety, which allows you to extend the benefits of the pranayamas and asanas.
Pranayamas, breathing techniques, that can be beneficial for COPD patients are:
Pursed-lip Breathing
This is an exercise especially suitable to learn control your breathlessness. While leaning slightly forward you slowly breath out with your lips pursed, imagine you are blowing a kiss or cooling your soup. This slows down the exhalation and stimulates the abdominal muscles to contract and forces the diaphragm upwards, so the lungs will empty themselves better. Instead of long inhalations and short exhalations, which is a common reaction to breathlessness, you learn to do it the other way around, with an ideal rhythm being to make the exhalation twice as long as the inhalation. Not only will this calm you down and relieve the breathlessness, it also help to strengthen the breathing muscles.
Abdominal or Belly Breathing
COPD patient can benefit especially from the abdominal breathing technique, as it stimulates the diaphragm moving upward and downward, so more oxygen can be taken into the lower lobes of the lungs and spread through the body. At the same time the abdominal organs are massaged by the moving diaphragm, thus improving their intake of oxygen and functioning. By doing the belly breath your body relaxes and becomes re-energized at the same time.
Ujjayi Breathing or Ocean Breath
This is a special form of breath, typically used while practicing asanas. It is used to slow down the breath and make an audible sound by creating a constriction in the base of your throat, like you do when blowing out to create a fog on a mirror. It helps you to stay calm during the practice while focusing on the sound and avoiding breathlessness. It also is said to create heat in your body, which helps to keep up your energy levels throughout the practice. The diaphragm controls the length and the speed of your breath and will become stronger in doing so.
Correct breathing is an essential part of yoga; as the blood will be provided with more oxygen, which makes it possible to control energy levels and this will help you relax and calm your mind. Once you have controlled your breath by practicing pranayamas, you will feel more comfortable and confident to start practicing asanas.
Asanas, physical postures, recommended for COPD patients are:
Standing Mountain Pose
This is a straightforward pose, from which all other standing poses are performed. It requires you to stand tall, either with your arms raised or left hanging loosely at your sides. It teaches you to align your spine and balance the weight of your body, while focusing on your inner self. Your chest will open up and breathing will become easier.
Standing Back Bend
This pose is performed from the Standing Mountain Pose by placing your hands on your lower back with the fingers pointing down and arching your spine back. It helps to release tension in your neck and shoulders and opens up the respiratory system.
Standing Side Bends
These bends not only improve your posture by standing taller, it also regulates your breathing. The basic standing side bend is easily performed from the Standing Mountain pose. By exhaling with each bend, you stretch alternately to the left and to the right. This calming pose improves the flexibility of your rib cage and helps to strengthen your diaphragm to make breathing easier.
Seated Forward Bends
There are several seated forward bends, performed from either a chair or the floor. These poses calm the brain, stimulate the organs and stretch the spine and the shoulders to give more room to your lungs and help you to relax.
These are only a few examples of pranayamas and asanas that you can practice to help improve your lung condition. If reading this story triggered your enthusiasm to give it a try, do take some precautions before you begin. Things to consider are for example:
- Consult with your doctor or respiratory therapist about what is possible in your condition
- Always join a recognized yoga school, don´t go practicing by yourself without any coaching
- Be sure the yoga teacher of your choice is qualified, also for training special groups like COPD patients
- During class, always keep your inhaler or oxygen supply at hand
- Don´t overexert yourself, take a rest if you get exhausted or experience shortness of breath
With these precautions in mind and a good yoga teacher, you will surely be able to experience the benefits that can yoga give you, a fitter body and a mind more at ease.
Websites consulted:
http://www.healthline.com/health/copd/yoga#1
http://yogachicago.com/2014/03/yoga-for-chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease-copd/
https://www.doyogawithme.com/yoga_breathing
