7 tips to a healthy breathing lifestyle
Pollution levels across the country are reaching an all-time high. Unless we all do something about it proactively, those levels will keep rising. Breathing in polluted air can be life-threatening and is one of the primary reasons for the increase in the number of reported cases of Asthma, COPD and other lung ailments.
While there is a need to curb the pollution levels, the need to mitigate the effect of pollution on the quality of your life is urgent. This article attempts to provide you insights on how you can maintain a healthy respiratory system in spite of all the pollution around.
COPD is an umbrella term that includes emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and asthma. All these illnesses are largely influenced by the kind of air you breathe. Your respiratory system will deteriorate if these ailments are not tended to during the early stages. Although you can’t really control the quality of the air you breathe, there are some good practices that you can adopt to alleviate the problems caused due to air pollution.
- Avoid Smoking: One of the most stereotypical topics of discussion isn’t it? If you (reader) are a smoker, it is harder said than done! But you wouldn’t be helping your case much if you don’t even try. Avoid smoking in its entirety, refrain from passive smoking as well. Cigars to the local beedis to E-Cigarettes, say no to everything.
- Drink Lots of Water: With COPD, accumulation of mucus in your airways is common and it is persistent. This can be reduced by staying hydrated. Drink plenty of water!
- Healthy Diet Plan: A healthy diet can help manage and improve COPD symptoms. Your diet should have plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits to ensure you’re getting lots of vitamins, minerals and fiber. Steer clear from processed, canned and frozen foods; the additives, preservatives and food dyes used in them are also known for contributing to breathing issues.
- Reduce Stress: Stress is associated with depressive symptoms and worse quality of life in individuals with COPD, much more than in those without COPD.
- Exercise: By regularly getting exercise, especially cardio workouts, you can strengthen your respiratory muscles. Obesity has been associated with decreased lung-function and with increased prevalence of several lung diseases and with compromised pulmonary function.
- Pranayama: Breathing exercises (pranayama), mainly expiratory exercises, improve lung function and should be made a regular on your schedule.
- Avoid Dust: Dust in your respiratory tract will lead to more mucus secretions aggravating your troubles. Face mask in dusty environments will help keep the dust off your respiratory tract.
Though the above-mentioned tips don’t provide instant relief, they definitely help in the long run. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle that entails all the above tips will certainly help improve the symptoms of breathing-related issues.