Poweful Natural Home Remedies To Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease COPD (2016/2017)

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

   Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a common lung disease. Having COPD makes it hard to breathe.
There are two main forms of COPD:

• Chronic bronchitis, which involves a long-term cough with mucus
• Emphysema, which involves damage to the lungs over time

Most people with COPD have a combination of both conditions.

Causes

Smoking is the main cause of COPD. The more a person smokes, the more likely that person will develop COPD. But some people smoke for years and never get COPD.
In rare cases, nonsmokers who lack a protein called alpha-1 antitrypsin can develop emphysema.
Other risk factors for COPD are:

• Exposure to certain gases or fumes in the workplace
• Exposure to heavy amounts of secondhand smoke and pollution
• Frequent use of a cooking fire without proper ventilation

Symptoms

 

Symptoms may include any of the following:

• Cough, with or without mucus
• Fatigue
• Many respiratory infections
• Shortness of breath (dyspnea) that gets worse with mild activity
• Trouble catching one's breath
• Wheezing

Because the symptoms develop slowly, some people may not know that they have COPD.

Exams and Tests

The best test for COPD is a lung function test called spirometry. This involves blowing out as hard as possible into a small machine that tests lung capacity. The results can be checked right away.
Using a stethoscope to listen to the lungs can also be helpful. But sometimes, the lungs sound normal, even when a person has COPD.
Imaging tests of the lungs, such as x-rays and CT scans, can be helpful. With an x-ray, the lungs may look normal, even when a person has COPD. A CT scan will usually show signs of COPD.
Sometimes, a blood test called arterial blood gas may be done to measure the amounts of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood.

Treatment

There is no cure for COPD. But there are many things you can do to relieve symptoms and keep the disease from getting worse.
If you smoke, now is the time to quit. This is the best way to slow lung damage.
Medicines used to treat COPD include:

• Inhalers (bronchodilators) to help open the airways
• Inhaled or oral steroids to reduce lung inflammation
• Anti-inflammatory drugs to reduce swelling in the airways
• Certain long-term antibiotics

In severe cases or during flare-ups, you may need to receive:

• Steroids by mouth or through a vein (intravenously)
• Bronchodilators through a nebulizer
• Oxygen therapy
• Assistance from a machine to help breathing by using a mask, BiPAP, or through the use of an endotracheal tube

Your health care provider may prescribe antibiotics during symptom flare-ups, because an infection can make COPD worse.
You may need oxygen therapy at home if you have a low level of oxygen in your blood.
Pulmonary rehabilitation does not cure COPD. But it can teach you to breathe in a different way so you can stay active and feel better.
LIVING WITH COPD
You can do things every day to keep COPD from getting worse, protect your lungs, and stay healthy.
Walk to build up strength:

• Ask the provider or therapist how far to walk.
• Slowly increase how far you walk.
• Avoid talking if you get short of breath when you walk.
• Use pursed lip breathing when you breathe out, to empty your lungs before the next breath.

Things you can do to make it easier for yourself around the home include:

• Avoid very cold air or very hot weather
• Make sure no one smokes in your home
• Reduce air pollution by not using the fireplace and getting rid of other irritants

Eat healthy foods, including fish, poultry, and lean meat, as well as fruits and vegetables. If it is hard to keep your weight up, talk to a provider or dietitian about eating foods with more calories.
Surgery may be used to treat COPD. Only a few patients benefit from these surgical treatments:

• Surgery to remove parts of the diseased lung, which can help less-diseased parts work better in some patients with emphysema
• Lung transplant for a small number of very severe cases                                                                                
  

  Outlook (Prognosis)

  COPD is a long-term (chronic) illness. The disease will get worse more quickly if you do not stop smoking.
  If you have severe COPD, you will be short of breath with most activities. You may be admitted to the hospital more often.
  Talk with your provider about breathing machines and end-of-life care as the disease progresses.

  Possible Complications

  With COPD, you may have other health problems such as:
  

  • Irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia)
  • Need for breathing machine and oxygen therapy
  • Right-sided heart failure or cor pulmonale (heart swelling and heart failure due to chronic lung disease)
  • Pneumonia
  • Pneumothorax
  • Severe weight loss and malnutrition
  • Thinning of the bones (osteoporosis)
  • Debilitation
  • Increased anxiety

  When to Contact a Medical Professional

  Go to the emergency room or call the local emergency number (such as 911) if you have a rapid increase in shortness of breath.

  Prevention

  Not smoking prevents most COPD. Ask your provider about quit-smoking programs. Medicines are also available to help you stop smoking.

  Alternative Names

  COPD; Chronic obstructive airways disease; Chronic obstructive lung disease; Chronic bronchitis; Emphysema; Bronchitis - chronic

Natural Cure For COPD

COPD or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a lung disease which obstructs normal breathing. In this condition, the lungs are affected and the airways or respiratory tract gets clogged, interfering with the passage of air when breathing.
Mucous accumulates in the bronchial tubes and prevents the air from flowing easily in and out resulting in excessive coughing, wheezing, breathlessness and chest pains.  COPD is another term for diseases like chronic bronchitis and emphysema.

The immunity of the lungs becomes very weak permitting bacterial infections which damage and inflame the walls of the air sacs which supply oxygen to the blood capillaries and throw out carbon dioxide. As the condition advances the lining of the airways starts thickening due to excess mucous formation and breathing becomes extremely difficult.
It is mainly caused by smoking but other factors like polluted air, long term exposure to chemical fumes and dust and certain drugs also contribute to it. Home cures can do much to alleviate the severity of the disease and result in comfort.

Tips To Cure COPD

Black Tea

Black tea is rich in tannins and certain chemicals which increase immunity by eradicating viruses and bacteria. They also reduce swelling, and pain and help to clear the respiratory tract. Consumption of hot, black tea decongests the airways, expands the passages and eases breathing. Drink three to four cups of black tea on a regular basis for maximum relief and comfort.

Garlic

There is nothing to beat garlic in medicinal virtues and healing qualities. It is full of antibacterial, antiviral and antibiotic properties. It inhibits mucous formation, clears up the accumulated mucous from the bronchial tubes, reduces swelling, and relieves the pain in the chest. It cleanses and sterilizes the lungs of all impurities.

Crush four cloves of garlic. Heat half teaspoon of pure ghee and roast the garlic in it for fifteen seconds. Eat it hot and do not drink water or any other liquid for half an hour. Ghee helps in dislodging the mucous from the tubes and lubricates and soothes the inflamed and irritated walls. Daily intake of garlic will not only bring untold relief but will also mitigate the disease.

Ginger

Ginger is found in every home and is widely used in day to day cooking and in treating a number of ailments and dysfunctions of the body. It has a stimulating effect on the lungs and acts as an expectorant.

It clears the excessive build up of phlegm from the tubes, eradicates all types of infections in the chest and eases breathing and coughing. Grate a big piece of fresh ginger to get one teaspoon of ginger juice. Warm the juice slightly and take it with one teaspoon of honey. Take this mixture three times a day for a long period of time.

Black Pepper

Black pepper has a great capacity for reducing and eliminating mucous. It has a heating and drying effect in the body. It stimulates the blood circulation and improves the nervous system. Crush ten to twelve pepper corns and swallow them with a teaspoon of honey.

Ajwain Leaves

Chew a few ajwain leaves everyday. They will relieve the cough; improve the impaired lung function and clear congestion.
Photo Credit : http://www.medtogo.com/chronic-obstructive-pulmonary-disease.html

Caution: Please use Home Remedies after Proper Research and Guidance. You accept that you are following any advice at your own risk and will properly research or consult healthcare professional. 

 

Herbal medicines for the treatment of COPD:

 

Supplements and Herbal Medicine for COPD

 

Vitamin D

People with COPD may not have enough vitamin D. That could happen for several reasons:

• Not enough time outside. (Sunshine helps the body make vitamin D.)
• Because of their age. "Most COPD patients are older," Hatipoglu says, and with age, it's harder for the body to make vitamin D.
• Not enough vitamin D in their diet. Vitamin D is added to milk and some other fortified foods. It's also available in supplements.

Higher levels of vitamin D have been linked to better lung function test results, Mikolai points out. But does that mean that supplements will help treat COPD? We don't know yet, Hatipoglu says.

In a 2012 study, high doses of vitamin D did not reduce the number of flare-ups for most COPD patients. The only people who benefited were those who had extremely low levels of vitamin D. The study was small, though, so it's not the final word.

Hatipoglu checks his patients' levels every one to three months and recommends supplements if their vitamin D levels are lower than normal.

Ginseng

An herb with a long history of use in Chinese medicine, ginseng has shown some promise in treating COPD symptoms. However, studies touting its benefits have been questionable, Hatipoglu says.

"There have been ten or twelve such studies, the quality of which are very poor," he says. "It may have a use, but I don't use it for my patients. It really requires good quality ... studies, but I remain curious about it."

Mikolai says ginseng may improve lung function. But, he stresses, it should only be taken after consulting with a doctor or other health professional, because it interferes with several types of medications, including blood thinners, stimulants, diuretics, some antidepressants, and drugs that suppress the immune system.

"You and your doctor have to decide if the benefits outweigh the risks," Mikolai says. He also points out that most ginseng studies lasted no longer than three months.

"We don't know about its long-term safety," he says.

Safety First

Be sure you discuss any supplements you take with your doctor or other health care professional, so they can watch for any side effects or interactions with your medications.

"Many people have the misconception that natural medicine is harmless," Mikolai says, "but if it has the power to help, it also has the power to harm."

It's also crucial to work with someone who is knowledgeable about complementary and alternative treatments, MacKay says.

"The variable is working with a qualified person rather than simply rolling into a health food store," he says. "The type of clinician who has the right kind of knowledge can have an immense impact."

His advice is to find a doctor who is a "holistic thinker" who will add lifestyle changes, nutrition, and other appropriate interventions into your treatment plan.

"Not letting the disease progress -- that's the name of the game," MacKay says.