A healthy diet and good nutrition is not only important to maintaining good health, it is essential. For people with a lung disease, such as emphysema and COPD, diet and nutrition should be as important as breathing, for it is a healthy body that is needed to fight infections and prevent illness.
Lung disease sufferers use a lot of energy struggling to breathe. Some may use up to ten times the calories of a healthy individual just trying to breathe. Proper nutrition helps to maintain the functions of the respiratory system and facilitate breathing.
Here are 6 dietary tips to help you maintain good health:
Limit your salt intake. Sodium causes fluid retention, which may interfere with breathing.
Limit your intake of caffeinated drinks. Caffeine can interfere with some medications and cause restlessness or nervousness.
Avoid foods which cause gas and bloating.
Eat several small meals of high nutritional value. Large meals leaving you feeling full will restrict full inflation of the lungs, making it more difficult to breathe.
Be sure to use your oxygen during meals. Your body will need the oxygen during eating and digestion because those activities expend energy.
Eat your main meal early in the day so that you will have more energy throughout the day.
Good Dietary Habits Important to Respiratory Health
Sources: YourLungHealth.org and eHealthMD.com
