Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is terribly common in the Western world. It is characterised by two main diseases: Chronic Bronchitis and Emphysema. These are disorders that cause airway blockage, that gets worse with time. It, unlike asthma, has very little reversibility. It is strongly related to smoking and exposure to factory pollution.
Chronic bronchitis is when a large amount of spit or sputum is brought up with a cough every day for three months of the year for two years. Emphysema is when the air spaces in the lungs get bigger and their walls are destroyed. You will have a cough, difficulty breathing and a wheeze commonly, and it makes you more likely to get infections which would last longer and be harder to get rid of.
Stopping smoking is absolutely vital in any improvement in your COPD. Other drug treatment if available as well, depending on the severity of your COPD.
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