As well as Movember, November is COPD Awareness Month. COPD stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease which is a set of conditions that affects millions of people across the United Kingdom.
COPD is actually a blanket term for a range of different lung diseases including:
- Chronic bronchitis: An inflammation of the breathing tubes due to a damaging of hair-like structures which clear mucus.
- Refractory asthma: A form of asthma which cannot be cured through traditional asthma means.
- Emphysema: When the air sacs or alveoli in your lungs are damaged making your lungs get bigger and it harder for you to direct air in and out.
Worried that you might have a COPD? Well, symptoms differ from person to person, but the most common ones are:
- A frequent shortness of breath
- Frequent coughing
- Wheezing
- Chest tightness
If any of these affect you regularly, then it’s time to consult with your doctor to get to the bottom of it. Even if it’s not a COPD, there’s a high chance that you might have something else affecting your health.
Thankfully, there are things that you can do to make your COPD better if you have one, and also, there are things to avoid getting a COPD if you don’t. Over the week. I’ll be sharing some advice on how to manage your COPD and avoid getting one in the first place.