Coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, shortness of breath… What’s your first thought? I think many people might say asthma! These symptoms, along with—sometimes—coughing up sputum (known as mucus or phlegm) from the lungs, are also classic symptoms of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, or COPD—types of COPD include emphysema, chronic bronchitis,

Not one disease but an umbrella term for several lung diseases that cause some degree of “obstruction” in the lungs, COPD essentially means that even when a person is at their healthiest, their lungs still have damage, so  the ability of the lungs to move air in and out is decreased in some way–the airways may become swollen, and the alveoli, or “air sacs” in the lungs may become stretched and be unable to help oxygen move efficiently from the lungs to the bloodstream, and carbon dioxide (the waste product created after our bodies use the oxygen our lungs have brought in) into the lungs to be exhaled from the body. The most common forms of COPD are emphysema and chronic bronchitis, most often linked to smoking, but also sometimes to air pollution. Other forms of COPD can be caused by genetics, such as alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency, repeated lung infections, or inhaling dust, specifically that containing silica, or even—rarely—inhaling cooking smoke frequently [1]. While breathing tests can help diagnose COPD, and COPD can also be characterized by increases in symptoms, called “flares” or “exacerbations”, and similar medications may be taken by both people with asthma and COPD, it differs from asthma in that lung function does not always improve in response to medication, and symptoms will gradually worsen over time… which does not mean that you can’t live well with COPD!

How do you live well with COPD?

What are your tips for living well with COPD? Share them with us in the comments!