Are Your Lungs Trying To Tell You Something?

Do you often stop and rest because you're short of breath, wheezing, or coughing? Do you have trouble with simple daily tasks like climbing stairs, carrying groceries, or doing laundry? If this sounds like you, your lungs could be trying to tell you something. You could be experiencing symptoms of COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), a serious lung disease that over time makes it hard to breathe.

Signs and symptoms of COPD include frequent shortness of breath, chronic cough, wheezing, chest tightness, and excessive phlegm (mucus) production. These are often ignored and dismissed as normal signs of aging or of being out of shape.

In recognition of National COPD Awareness Month:

• If you have signs and symptoms of COPD, talk to your doctor to see whether you should be tested for this serious lung disease.
• If you're a health professional, consider the diagnosis of COPD in adults who have these signs and symptoms.

Did you know?

• COPD is now the third leading cause of death in the United States. It claims more lives annually than breast cancer and diabetes combined.
• An estimated 24 million people in the United States have COPD, but half remain undiagnosed.
• COPD is not an “old person's disease.” Half of all COPD patients are under age 65.
• Smoking is not the only cause of COPD. Long-term exposure to other lung irritants, such as air pollution, chemical fumes, or dust, also may contribute to COPD. Between 10 and 20 percent of people with COPD have never smoked.
• COPD kills more than 120,000 Americans each year. That's one death every 4 minutes.

With approximately 1 in 5 Americans over the age of 45 suffering from COPD, it's very likely that you know someone who has COPD but who may not know it!

COPD Learn More Breathe Better®

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's (NHLBI's) COPD Learn More Breathe Better campaign seeks to raise awareness of COPD, increase understanding that COPD is treatable, and encourage people at risk to get a simple breathing test and talk to their health care provider about treatment options. Resources include:

• Tips to talk to loved ones about COPD
• Information and materials for health care professionals
• “Sounds of COPD” widget to post on a blog or Web site
• Additional campaign materials, including fact sheets, posters, and PSAs

Get involved!

• This month, COPD Learn More Breathe Better partners are hosting events throughout the country to raise awareness about COPD. Find a COPD event near you.
• Learn more about the Breathe Better Network and become a partner.
• Subscribe to the COPD Learn More Breathe Better e-newsletter to stay up-to-date on COPD.

Upcoming Events

Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS), November 9–12, 2011, St. Louis, MO. Come visit us at the NHLBI booth.

American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions, November 12–16, 2011, Orlando, FL. Come visit us at the NHLBI booth.

November 16, 2011—World COPD Day

November 17, 2011—Great American Smokeout. Visit www.smokefree.gov or call 1–800–QUIT–NOW.

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® COPD Learn More Breathe Better is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)..