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Even with COPD better not to do without sport
In chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD, also known as smoker's cough) sufferers tend to renounce exercise because of their breathing difficulties, but this can adversely affect the course of the disease. Because sport and exercise have a significant influence on the development of COPD, according to the results of a study that was presented at the beginning of March at the Congress of the German Society of Pneumology and Respiratory Medicine (DGP).
Patients with COPD should, according to the experts, despite the shortness of breath, urgently require sufficient physical activity. Because the presented study of Dr. med. Benjamin Waschki of the LungenClinic Grosshansdorf near Hamburg shows that regular exercise and sport can have a favorable influence on the course of the disease, according to the DGP. On the other hand, those who take physical care are in danger of dramatically accelerating the course of the disease. The study results were published in the journal "American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine". At the congress of the DGP Dr. Ing. Benjamin Waschki was awarded the Research Prize for Clinical Research for his work.
Suspected chronic obstructive pulmonary disease requires review of lung function. However, even after a definite diagnosis, those affected should urgently pay attention to sufficient physical exercise, as this has a positive effect on the course of the disease. (Image: Company V / fotolia.com) If there are signs of COPD immediately go to the doctor
According to the DGP, between three and five million people in Germany suffer from COPD. "About 90 percent of them are or were formerly smokers," according to the announcement of the professional society. Often the COPD is played down as a smoker's lung, explains private lecturer Henrik Watz, head of the pulmonary research institute at the LungenClinic Grosshansdorf, in the press release of the DGP. "For symptoms such as persistent coughing with viscous mucus and difficulty breathing, sufferers should seek medical attention immediately," warns the expert. Because these symptoms could be signs of a chronic inflammation of the respiratory tract and an incipient degradation of the alveoli (so-called pulmonary emphysema). As a result of the resulting hyperinflation, the respiratory organ lung increasingly loses its function.
Gentleness accelerates the breakdown of the muscles
Due to the impaired lung function, people with COPD suffer from increasing shortness of breath, which initially appears only under load, but later also occurs at rest. According to Dr. Therefore, "most patients tend to take good care of themselves." This can dramatically accelerate the course of the disease. Because the fewer patients with COPD are physically active in everyday life, the faster the muscles are broken down, which in turn drastically reduces exercise capacity. Through the long-term study of Dr. med. Waschki confirms this effect in 200 COPD patients. For the study, the researchers had provided all subjects with a wristband for one week to record their physical activity in their daily lives. After two to three years, a new measurement took place. It has been shown that with performance of patients with less movement decreased significantly faster, the researchers report.
15 to 30 minutes of exercise per day is sufficient
As early as two years ago, the European Respiratory Society published a statement calling for prevention of COPD patient obstruction. "Patients are often more efficient than they think," says Henrik Watz. In addition, several long-term studies have shown that even low levels of physical activity can lower the mortality of patients with chronic conditions. A moderate exercise program should therefore be considered an immediate treatment in his view. Patients need to start relapsing as early as possible, preferably early in COPD, Watz says. According to him, "15 to 30 minutes per day of faster walking or Nordic walking" is enough to positively affect the course of the disease. (Fp)