As we can see that the science has been making new and improved researches every now and then and despite of the fact that there has been so much development as compared to previous times we can see that many new diseases have started to prevail and a number of people get under attack of these diseases.

However, when we talk about a very common issue that has been affecting the lungs of people nowadays we may easily guess the name of COPD.

COPD stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and has been getting very common nowadays among people; this kind of condition exists to block the air passage that takes the air flow from the lungs to the other parts of the body. This condition tends to develop by inhaling certain smoke for a longer period of time, for instance people who inhale smoke of cigarettes are at a risk of developing this condition. However, this condition may occur no matter you directly smoke or not, smokers are at a higher risk of developing this condition but even if a person lives with someone who smokes a lot may get associated with COPD.

How Is COPD Caused?[i]

As discussed earlier it is the fumes or smoke that causes COPD, however, when it comes to analyzing the COPD causes in detail there could be numerous reasons this could arise and may trouble the people by causing dysfunction to their lungs.

  • Smoking and Tobacco Consuming

A very common and one of the primary causes of COPD are smoking and even if a person consumes tobacco, COPD may get caused. Smoking releases fumes and these fumes are pretty much harmful, other than exhaling the smoke people also inhale some at the same time and through nostrils as well as mouth, this smoke causes irritation and blocks the air flow from the lungs. Due to lack of air passage lungs get dysfunctional and this could cause a severe issue with the people and the condition of COPD arises. Similarly, when we talk about tobacco even the same situation applies but since tobacco doesn’t release smoke it has irritable matter used in the making that is responsible to block the air passage.

  • Air Pollution and Dust

People living in countries that are too much polluted and face a lot of environmental issues also are found to be inclined towards developing COPD. The fumes and gases released by vehicles and factories also contain substances that may irritates and cause obstruction for the air to pass appropriately to and from the lungs leading to development of this kind of disease among people. On the other hand, a number of people have also been observed of developing the COPD disease due to the dust in the air and its fumes, since dust is also filled with several such substances that cause a huge trouble in breathing and all this accumulates in their air passage.

  • Genetic Issues

The most common cause of the development of COPD is smoking however, on the other hand some people or you may say a very tiny percentage of people also develop the condition of COPD due to genetic issues. The main problem associated with this condition in terms of it being genetic is the deficiency of a particular kind of protein which is known as Alpha – 1 antitrypsin. This is a very uncommon cause but still may take place among people to have this rare kind of deficiency and it may terribly attack lungs.

Risk Factors Associated with COPD[ii]

Like every disease has some risk factors which may lead to severe distress similarly COPD also has some serious risk factors which could turn out to be much terrible and harmful for a person. A few such commonly observed risk factors that maybe observed among people suffering from COPD may include the following:

•     People who suffer from COPD tend to catch flu and viral infections quicker as compared to the ones who do not suffer from this disease, the lungs of people with COPD get weaker and therefore the bacteria attacks in a powerful way.

•     Lung cancer is one of the most common risks of COPD since the direct impact is on the lungs therefore lungs are at a serious risk.

•     People who suffer from COPD also tend to get a heart attack at any time since the pressure on the heart also increases due to blocked air flow.

Signs of COPD Suffering[iii]

Like every disease there are a few COPD signs that may alert a person and make them think about the possible suffering so that immediate COPD treatment could take place, a few commonly observed symptoms among people suffering from COPD may include the following:

•     Since due to COPD the respiratory issues turnout to be the primary ones the very common symptom turns out to be shortness of breath, this could be observed much clearly when a person lifts weight or does an exercise since it puts pressure on heart and lungs.

•     Blocked throat with irritation and inability to talk when you wake up in the morning.

•     Release of yellowish white mucus from the mouth while coughing.

•     Feeling drowsy due to lack of energy and sudden loss of weight with a faster pace.

•     Swelling of the body due to the inability of the lungs to function properly.

Treating COPD[iv]

The above highlighted signs and symptoms are very common with COPD and therefore as soon as a person encounters this kind of condition immediate COPD treatment must be taken. However, before providing treatment your doctor would diagnose the condition by performing a CT scan or maybe a lab tests and then only you would be suggested the relevant treatment. Treatment options for COPD vary from medications to therapies and also it may lead to surgeries if the condition is serious and medications don’t seem to work. The best way through which COPD could be avoided is to take relevant precautions and avoid the intake of tobacco and leaving the habit of smoking as this is one of the most common reason of COPD.

[i] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/copd/symptoms-causes/syc-20353679

[ii] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/copd/symptoms-causes/syc-20353679

[iii] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/copd/symptoms-causes/syc-20353679

[iv] https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/copd/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20353685