Lung Capacity and Its Relation to Health

Lung capacity is lung capability inside holds air while breathing. Decreased and increased lung capacity can have an impact on your health condition. Check out more in the following reviews!

Under normal circumstances, both lungs can hold about 6 liters of air. As age increases, lung capacity and function will decrease after entering the age of 35 years.

Some body changes that occur naturally as we age can indeed cause a decrease in lung capacity. This can have an impact on breathing, where the sufferer will feel a little more difficult to breathe.

As we get older, the diaphragm muscles become weak, the elasticity of the lung tissue that helps open airways can also decrease, so the respiratory tract becomes narrower. Likewise with the movement of the ribs become more limited due to the age factor, so that the lungs are less able to inflate optimally.

Related Medical Conditions of Decreasing and Lung Capacity Improvement - p aru

In addition to age, there are several conditions associated with decreased lung capacity. The condition is a restrictive lung disease, a condition where the lungs can not store too much air. The ability of the lungs to store air is influenced by external or internal factors of the body.

Some factors in the lung organ that cause decreased lung capacity include pneumonia, pleural effusion, idiopathic lung fibrosis, decreased lung volume after lung operation, pulmonary swelling, nerve damage in the respiratory muscle, interstitial lung disease, and scoliosis. Under normal conditions, the lung tissue is flexible and can expand and deflate well to support the respiratory process. However, in the above-mentioned medical conditions, a person may find it more difficult to breathe because the damaged lung tissue has decreased elasticity, or because of respiratory muscle problems so the body is not able to breathe with maximum.

Lung capacity can also increase. This condition can occur in obstructive pulmonary disease. Some medical conditions associated with increased lung capacity, namely chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, bronchiectasis, and cystic fibrosis . These conditions make the air moving outward more slowly than usual, so it feels more difficult when exhaling. Patients also tend to experience shortness of breath during heavy activity.

Measuring Lung Capacity - p aru

To find out the amount of lung capacity, the most commonly used method is spirometry. Spirometry is a test to measure how much air can be exhaled maximally in one breath. This test is performed by a doctor using a spirometer tool.

Spirometry can be used to help diagnose a medical condition related to the lungs, or when your doctor suspects you have a lung-related illness. In addition to undergoing physical examination and support such as chest X-ray, your doctor may also recommend that you perform a spirometry test if you have persistent or persistent cough or breathing symptoms, or if you are over 35 years of age and have heavy smokers.

Some conditions that can be known from spirometry tests include asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis , and pulmonary fibrosis. Spirometry can also be performed to check the severity of the condition or to see the progress of your condition after treatment.

How to Keep Lung Capacity - p aru

Decreased lung function is a normal part of the aging process. Even so, there are steps you can take to strengthen your lungs, including:

• Apply active life, especially active physically with regular exercise. You can do various exercises to strengthen lung function and capacity, such as diaphragmatic breathing exercises, mouth breathing techniques, and stretching exercises.
• Stop smoking and avoid exposure to cigarette smoke and environmental pollution.
• Apply a healthy diet with lots of antioxidant intake.
• Improve indoor air quality. Use an indoor air filter and reduce pollutants, such as artificial fragrances, cigarette smoke, mold, and dust.
• Make sure you get your vaccinations on time, like flu vaccines and pneumonia vaccines. This can help prevent damage from lung infections.

Although the decrease in lung capacity due to age can make breathing a little heavier, but stay alert if there is difficulty breathing or shortness of breath accompanied by a long cough and not healed. If you have respiratory-related problems, please do not hesitate to consult a pulmonary specialist for proper examination and treatment