What is Bronchitis?

Bronchitis is an inflammation of the lining of your bronchial tubes, which carry air to and from your lungs.  Bronchitis can be broken down into acute or chronic and differ in the following way:  Acute bronchitis is very common and commonly results from a cold, while chronic bronchitis, is defined as a productive cough that lasts at least 3 months for 2 consecutive years, and is often due to smoking.

What are the symptoms of bronchitis?

·       Cough

·       Production of mucus

·       Fatigue

·       Slight fever and chills

·       Chest discomfort

When should you go see a doctor?
You should see your doctor if your cough does any of the following:

·       Lasts more than 3 weeks

·       Prevents you from sleeping

·       Is accompanied by fever over 100.4 F

·       Produces discolored mucus

·       Produces blood

·       Is associated with wheezing or shortness of breath

What causes bronchitis?

Acute bronchitis is usually caused by viruses, usually the same ones that cause common colds and the flu.  On the other hand, chronic bronchitis is most often caused by smoking cigarettes, or air pollution, dust or other toxic gases in the environment.

There are also several risk factors which increase the likelihood of getting bronchitis such as:

·       Cigarette smoke

·       Low immune resistance

·       Exposure to irritants on the job

What treatments are available for bronchitis?

Although doctors may prescribe antibiotics for a bronchitis infection, these are not usually effective as bronchitis is more often caused by a viral infection, not a bacterial one. Treatment of bronchitis therefore usually consists of relieving the symptoms of the infection and making breathing easier.  Some of these treatments include:

·       Getting more rest

·       Taking over-the-counter pain medications or cough medicine

·       Drinking fluids

·       Breathing in warm, moist air

You can also do a number of things in your everyday life to reduce your risk of bronchitis.  These measures include:

·       Avoiding lung irritants: wear a mask when the air is polluted or if you're exposed to irritants, such as paint or household cleaners with strong fumes

·       Using a humidifier: warm, moist air helps relieve coughs and loosens mucus in your airways

·       Wearing a face mask outdoors in cold weather: cold air aggravates a cough and causes shortness of breath

·       Getting vaccinated:  many cases of acute bronchitis result from the flu virus, so get your yearly flu vaccine to help protect against the flu

·       Washing your hands: washing your hands frequently can reduce your risk of viral infection, including bronchitis.

How To Avoid Getting Sick This Season

We all know how annoying getting sick can be, and if you avoided the snot, sniffles and coughs well into the fall season you may think you are in the clear.  But cold and flu season is just around the corner, so here are some tips on how to avoid getting sick this upcoming season:

Increase your zinc intake:The mineral, zinc, works to help to strengthen the immune system.  In fact, immune cells like white blood cells need this mineral to function.  The most well-known place to get zinc is unquestionably oysters, which are rich in the mineral.  However, meats like calf’s liver, beef and lamb, are also abundant in zinc. 

Eat more yogurt:Probiotics found in yogurt, are good bacteria that keep the gut and intestines healthy.  Research has found that yogurt, owing to these probiotic properties, stimulates the production of white blood cells, fending off colds.

Remember to wash your hands and avoid touching your face: We touch everything around us with our hands, and a side effect of this is carrying around germs and bacteria that can get us sick.  According to some studies, people touch their eyes and nose are more likely to get sick than those that don’t.  Take the time – at least 20 seconds of scrubbing – to wash your hands with soap and water.  It takes almost half a minute to scrub away viruses that can cause the flu.

Avoid excessive drinking: Alcohol suppresses your immune system at a rate that is proportional to the amount you consume.  This means the more drinks you have, the bigger blow to your immune system.  Alcohol triggers a flood of cytokine proteins that induce fever and inflammation.  Alcohol also suppresses the ability for white blood cells to multiply and subsequently fend off a cold.

Get more Sleep: Lack of sleep can increase inflammation and inhibit the immune response by altering the way your genes function.  Not getting enough sleep increases your chances of catching colds and the flu.  Sleep also helps the body induce a better fever response to kill infection, when we don’t sleep the body has a hard time fighting infection this way.

Quit smoking: According to scientific studies, smoking cigarettes makes you more than five times more vulnerable to different strains of the flu.  The chemicals, additives and carcinogens that are contained in cigarettes decrease the ability of the immune system to do its job.  Even if you don’t smoke, you should also avoid people who do or areas where you can easily inhale cigarette smoke. The small hairs in the nose, called cilia, which work to block out harmful particles from the lungs are forced to work in overdrive to clear harmful particles.  This increases the chances of respiratory infections.

Add Cinnamon: This spice is a known antiviral, antifungal and antibacterial powerhouse.  This great addition to you coffee, oatmeal and dessert, has the ability to strengthen the immune system and fight off pathogens that cause illness.