Keeping the lungs healthy during COVID-19

With everything going on in the world today with Corona Virus I bet you’ve thought “Am I doing enough to take care of myself.” There are a lot of opinions out there about how to handle yourself during the COVID-19 crisis with masks, gloves, washing hands; but have you thought about the overall health of your lungs. Doctors have identified one of the main effects of COVID-19 is compromised lung function from various effects.

The average person only uses about 70% of their overall lung capacity and this percentage decreases dramatically in those who have lung diseases like COPD and other lung disorders such as COVID-19. This is one of the reasons why it’s so important to keep our lungs healthy and functioning at their best.

The lungs are crucial in the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide within our bodies, and help us regulate our heart rate and blood pressure. We have various ways of utilizing these amazing effects and the ability to use more than 70% of our lung capacity to help keep us healthy. One way of doing this is by practicing deep breathing exercises and controlled breathing.

Deep breathing allows the lungs to expand and take in more oxygen for our body to use and helps lower our heart rate. Many people breathe into their chest, but it is also possible to “breathe into your belly” by activating the diaphragm (a muscle that separates your lungs in the chest from your abdomen/belly region). For information on diaphragmatic breathing you can visit the NHS website.

The diaphragm is responsible for contracting and expanding the lungs. When the diaphragm contracts it allows the lungs to draw in oxygen by creating space in the chest cavity and often times the belly will expand when doing this properly. Here is what Dr. Munshi from Queen’s Hospital in London recommends for people during this crisis:

While sitting upright:

1. Take a deep breath in (about 3 seconds)

2. Hold it in for about 5 seconds and breathe out

3. Repeat 5 times (You may get dizzy at first when doing this so be sure to be in a safe area)

4. Next, take a 6th deep breath in, and at the end cough strongly out

5. Repeat this cycle 1 more time

6. Lastly, lie on your stomach for the next 10 minutes taking slightly deeper breaths than normal

Doing this throughout the day (4-6 times) may help to keep your lungs healthy, allow you to use more of your overall lung capacity, and improve your overall health.

This exercise is recommended by Dr. Munshi of Queen’s Hospital. You can access a video on how to do this exercise here.

For more information on breathing exercises and the lungs you can also visit the American Lung Association website.