How To Take Care of Your Lungs and Live Well With COPD

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive one that worsens over time. It can deteriorate one's quality of life as time passes. Making some lifestyle modifications can go a long way in improving one's quality of life. In an exclusive interaction with The HealthSite, Dr. Arvind Kate, Pulmonologist at Zen Multispecialty Hospital, Chembur shares some vital tips to manage this condition and live well.

Do you have symptoms such as breathing problems, cough, mucus production, and wheezing? It could be due to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). If you have been already diagnosed with COPD, you need to learn about the strategies that are very useful in managing the condition. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) can be termed as a chronic inflammatory lung disease leading to obstructed airflow from the lungs. Chest tightness, tiredness, swelling of feet, ankles, legs, unintentional weight loss, and frequent respiratory infections are some of the other symptoms of it. Smoking, long-term exposure to dust particles, and other respiratory infections can cause COPD. The doctor will determine the proper line of treatment for you after evaluation.

Tips To Take Care Of Your Lungs When You Have COPD

Below, Dr. Kate gives you a quick low down on the strategies to swear by when you have COPD. 

Vaccination: You can take the flu and pneumonia vaccine at least once before age 65, as recommended by your doctor.

Hand washing: This is the key to eliminating germs and enjoying a disease-free life. Avoid dust, allergens, and molds to manage this condition.

Bid adieu to smoking: Smoking can kill. But many people fail to take this warning seriously. Smoking can not only lead to COPD but even lung cancer. You will have to opt for a smoking cessation program.

Opt for an air purifier: COPD tends to trigger breathlessness and cough. Indoor air can be polluted. Thus, it will be a good idea to use a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter. The purifier can filter even the fine particles and toxins. In addition, always make sure the house is clean by washing the carpets, rugs, and bedding.

Exercise daily: You will have to stay physically active in order to enhance the circulation and help the body use oxygen more efficiently. You will have to maintain an optimum weight too. Exercising furthermore strengthens the immune system, and keeps allergies and infections at bay. You can choose activities like swimming, cycling, walking, jogging, aerobics, yoga, Pilates, Parkour, and Zumba. But, before starting any fitness routine, just consult a fitness expert.

Eat a well-balanced diet: It is a good idea to opt for fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Avoid junk, spicy, oily, canned, and processed foods. Do not have sodas, colas, and fruit juices. Eat nutritious meals and avoid eating heavy meals. The meals should not be high in calories. 

De-stress: Yoga or meditation is a great way to de-stress. Plus, you need to get enough sleep of 8 hours on a daily basis. Keep your medication handy and stock it properly. Stay in touch with the doctor, if there are abnormal changes in the body.

Breathing exercises: Doing these exercises can increase lung capacity and help you breathe freely. You can ask the experts regarding the exercises that are suitable for you.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.   

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SalivaDirect: A Cheaper Technique for COVID-19 Testing

Widespread and rapid testing to detect coronavirus infections is key during the ongoing pandemic. Catching an infection early could help contain the spread of the virus and thus help save lives. Countries around the world have been frustrated over testing shortages and delays for months now. But a new saliva-based test for COVID-19 could offer a fast and inexpensive solution to millions of people.

This laboratory diagnostic test has been developed by researchers at the Yale School of Public Health and has been granted authorization from the Food and Drug Administration recently. 

 

In a recent paper, published on August 4 on the preprint server medRxiv, a team led by Yale postdoc Chantal Vogels explained the new tool called 'SalivaDirect'. Another team, comprising of many of the same researchers, had earlier this year detailed that saliva could be collected in any sterile container and that it remained mostly stable, without the need for special tubes or preservatives. 

 

“This is a huge step forward to make testing more accessible,” said Chantal Vogels, a Yale postdoctoral fellow, who led the laboratory development and validation along with Doug Brackney, an adjunct assistant clinical professor. “This started off as an idea in our lab soon after we found saliva to be a promising sample type of the detection of SARS-CoV-2, and now it has the potential to be used on a large scale to help protect public health. We are delighted to make this contribution to the fight against coronavirus.”

How useful is SalivaDirect? 

Until now, detecting the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 involved the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction test. This “RT-PCR” test is conducted by collecting a sample from the back of a person's nose or mouth. While effective, the nasopharyngeal swabbing is unpleasant and isn’t cheap either. However, it was chosen as the preferred sampling technique because of its effectiveness in detecting respiratory infections over the years. 

 

Unfortunately, there’s a limit to the amount of COVID-19 testing that can be conducted through this method. This is where the new saliva-based test could be a game-changer as it promises to be quicker, cheaper, more flexible, and widely accessible. With saliva being quick and easy to collect, this test could indeed be a turning point in COVID-19 diagnostics.

 

So far, the results have shown that SalivaDirect is highly sensitive and produces similar results as nasopharyngeal swabbing. Now, further tests are being conducted to see if the method can be successful as a test for asymptomatic individuals, too. Also, compared to nasopharyngeal swabs, the authors found a “high agreement” of more than 94 percent in detecting true positives between the two methods.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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The impact of zinc deficiency on our immunity

As doctors, scientists and researchers globally are still studying the novel Coronavirus and discovering how the infection works and new ways to treat it, there is an avalanche of information that might be conflicting sometimes. However, doctors world over have to come to the consensus that building a robust immune system will give you a better chance of combating the virus should you contract it. Zinc is one such micronutrient that helps in building immunity and recent studies show that zinc inhibits coronavirus by blocking a key enzyme. Scientific evidence documented in the past few decades shows that consumption of zinc plays a significant role against viral infections including human respiratory infections because of its immuno-nutrient properties. According to a study by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health- ‘Inadequate zinc intake in India: past, present and future’ inadequate zinc intake has been rising in India for decades, causing tens of millions of people to become newly deficient in it. Zinc deficiency has caused a malnutrition problem worldwide. The study states that the highest rate of inadequate zinc intake was concentrated mainly in the southern and northeastern states of India with rice-dominated diets: Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Manipur and Meghalaya. Thus, zinc intake for Indians is of paramount importance.

Coronaviruses is the old common cold virus which causes 30-40% of common colds discovered in the Common Cold Unit in 1964 form UK .Zinc has been studied for more than four decades in common cold therapies . The odds of getting a cold with people taking zinc preventatively is one third less . Essentially Zinc’s properties help in reducing the severity and duration of the cold. It is an essential mineral that our body cannot make by itself, hence we need to make sure our diet is zinc-rich along with other nutrients.

Zinc deficiency is one of the most common nutritional deficiencies in the world, yet it is essential for healthy immune function. Zinc is needed for immune cell development and communication and plays an important role in inflammatory response. Zinc supplementation may prove beneficial against coronavirus infection by providing an additional immunity defense. This given point in time, keeping your immunity system strong and making healthy lifestyle choices is the need of the hour.

Also, assessment of nutritional status of COVID19 patients before administration of general treatment is important as immune response is weakened due to inadequate nutrition. We all need to build strong immnunity in corona and covid times like a safety net or “kavach” around us.

Fortifying your immunity system against colds and flu’s is essential now more than ever. A balanced diet and attention to macro and micronutrients is the basis of building a vigorous immune system. Your meal needs to have the right amount of vitamins, minerals and carbohydrates. Zinc also should be consumed judiciously because an overdose of zinc can cause indigestion, headaches and nausea. Zinc not only has immunity-boosting properties but also makes sure your metabolism is strong. Its important to have the right amount of zinc in your body. 

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     

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