Ten Ways to Improve Your Respiratory Health
If you’re reading this post, you’re right on time!
There’s no better time than now to be more intentional towards the well-being of your lungs/respiratory system.
Your respiratory system is your first line of defense. If you give adequate attention to your respiratory health today, you’re more likely to live longer with healthier lungs. That means, you’re more likely to continue to breathe without difficulty at an old age.
Your respiratory system—which typically comprises of your throat, nose, lungs, and windpipe, allows you to take in air for breathing. In the lungs, the bloodstream receives the oxygen from each breath and transfers it to the body cells, where they are crucial sustaining life.
Unlike other organs in the body, your lung’s delicate tissues are directly exposed to the environment. Because of this, whatever you breathe in can affect your lungs positively or negatively—this includes air, germs, dust particles, smoke, harmful chemicals or substances, etc. The respiratory ailments that can result from damaged lungs are enormous. They can range from pneumonia, lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, and other allergies.
How to Stay Healthy
Most people ignore respiratory signals like persistent coughing, shortness of breath, etc. Irrespective of your medical history, it is wrong to draw any conclusions on your own or to give up. Should you notice these kinds of warning signs, you should quickly check in with your physician.
However, you don’t have to wait until the red flags emerge before you take action. To help you develop and maintain a rock-solid respiratory system that’s capable of resisting against infectious attacks, here’s what you need to do:
Cardiovascular Exercises
Out of the many ways that you can protect your lungs and the overall well-being of your respiratory system, exercise is crucial. It doesn’t matter whether you are old or young; there are always various exercises you can engage in. Generally, a consistent and regulated exercise routine will help to keep your lungs healthy, improve your breathing, build stronger muscles (especially around your lungs and heart), as well as help to make your heart healthier.
Cardiovascular exercises are an excellent means for a healthy respiratory system. These vigorous exercises help to improve your cardiovascular system. Some activities to engage in include: Running, bicycling, basketball, skiing, swimming, kickboxing, aerobics, etc.
Breathing Exercises
Most people ignore this entirely or hardly ever give it any practice. However, engaging in breathing exercises is critical if you are looking to build a more efficient respiratory system that can endure longer. Also, breathing exercises are vital for people with chronic lung ailments such as COPD and asthma, etc.
Eat Healthily
You have probably come across several instances where you are simply asked to “eat health!” Well, this is because healthy eating is critical! If you do every other thing right and fail to eat healthily, you are still very likely not to get the desired results.
As far as this category is concerned, vegetables and fruits excel—they contain antioxidants that protect your respiratory system from various toxins and infections. Other lung healthy foods include oil-rich fish, chicken, and lentil soup.
Drink Tea
Herbal tea is packed with enormous benefits that are beneficial to both your lungs, overall health, and well-being. Green tea is rich with catechins, which helps in fighting diseases. Pulmonaria, for instance, is an herbal tea that improves respiratory functioning.
Meanwhile, you must take note that drinking tea alone will not yield any significant results. You must improve on other areas of your life, including eating healthy, exercising…As huge as the benefits of herbal tea are it can produce a massive impact when you work on other areas.
Take Vitamins
Your body needs vitamins in its right proportion to function optimally. Investing in vitamins like vitamin C, D, A, etc. will boost your respiratory health significantly.
According to reports from studies conducted, higher Vitamin D levels are synonymous with optimal lung functioning. So, while the summer brings an abundance of Vitamin D from sunlight, and winter is hardly so kind, it is wise to invest in Vitamin D supplements for the cold season. Additionally, you can easily find Vitamin D in foods like egg yolks, oil-rich fish, red meat, etc.
Stay in a Healthy Environment
The quality of the air around you is critical. You must keep away from overcrowded places (especially if they’re not properly ventilated), as they are usually associated with poor air quality and disease-prone.
Depending on where you live or work, air pollution is mostly unavoidable. However, you can improve the quality of the air space within your living environment. There are more than several measures you can take to improve the quality of the air around you. Amongst other things, keeping plants in the house is a great way to freshen up your air space and living environment.
Stay Hydrated
Hydration is just as important for your lungs and respiratory system as it is for your whole body. Drink water and drink some more. Constant and proper hydration will help to keep your lung’s mucosal linings thin. This is important. A thinner lining will improve the overall performance of your lungs and respiratory system.
Also, quit smoking and other harmful practices as they damage your lungs more rapidly and can prevent the effectiveness of every other measure you take to salvage the situation.
Laugh, Laugh, Laugh
Your abdominal muscles benefit tremendously every time you laugh out loud. Engaging in an exercise like this helps to increase your lung capacity a great deal. During the process, stale air is forced out, and fresh air quickly gains access into the more intricate areas of your lungs. This process completely renews and revitalizes your lungs.
Yes, laugh more!
Be Active
Staying active is probably the simplest effort you can make towards developing and maintaining a healthy and rock-solid respiratory system. As much as it is in your power, make effort always to keep active—not by stressing out, but by being actively engaged.
Seek Professional Help
On account of various reasons, different people can have various forms of respiratory challenges. Depending on the nature of the condition, it is advisable to seek professional help overall. You can check-in with an expert regularly to know how well you are faring. Actively engaging in, and practicing as many respiratory-friendly habits/practices as possible is also a great way to keep fit.
Conclusion
Your lungs are your primary line of defense against ailments that could hamper your overall well-being in the future. It is essential to give it adequate care and keep it in optimal condition. This way, you stand a higher chance of living longer and breathing comfortably. The guidelines shared in this post will help to improve your respiratory health and overall well-being tremendously.
Please feel free to add more ideas and also share your experiences in the comment section.
Best regards. Stay healthy!
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