As a lung doc, the biggest health threat we talk about is tobacco. Like Paul Simon’s old song, “50 ways to kill your lover,” tobacco wreaks havoc on almost every organ system in one way or another. Nicotine addiction drives the desire to smoke, chew or snuff, and can be a difficult addiction to break. … Continue reading Inhale this: Why vaping is destroying your lungs
From coughing and a sore throat, to fever, to sinus and nasal congestion, and even wheezing, respiratory symptoms can leave you feeling miserable. Potential causes include allergies, sinus infection, throat infection and pneumonia, but one of the most common causes is acute bronchitis. (The word “acute” means the symptoms came on suddenly rather than being … Continue reading 7 things you should know about bronchitis
More than 26 million Americans are all too familiar with the feeling of “breathing through a straw” — or in other words, an asthma attack. A patient of mine named Scott described it this way after being diagnosed with adult-onset asthma: “Breathing is one of many things we take for granted. It’s something we don’t … Continue reading How to take control of your asthma with the “Rules of Two” paradigm
When most of us hear “hypertension,” we immediately think of blood pressure issues all over the body. But people with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) have problems in a very specific area: the blood vessels running from the heart to the lungs. With that important highway clogged, they can’t get enough oxygen. To compensate, their blood … Continue reading New therapies offer hope for patients living with pulmonary arterial hypertension
Allergies affect more than 50 million Americans, and it turns out allergic rhinitis, or hay fever, symptoms are our bodies’ way of being overprotective. The immune system mistakes irritants such as airborne pollen, dust, mold or pet dander as viruses, bacteria or parasites that are trying to enter the body. Mucosal membranes of the nose, … Continue reading The best foods to help you fight allergies
Having asthma is like breathing through a straw. Those words stare at me every day like a billboard. That’s how Mark Millard, MD, pulmonologist on the medical staff at the Baylor Scott & White Martha Foster Lung Care Center, first described asthma to me. Before you get the wrong idea, I’m not a pre-teen. I … Continue reading Breathing through a straw: Life with adult-onset asthma
Take a breath, hold it in your lungs and count to three. Now exhale, but don’t let out all the air. Now take in another breath and hold it, let a little out, and inhale once more. Imagine: Could you go grocery shopping while breathing like this? This is how an estimated 30 million people … Continue reading COPD patients use harmonicas to increase lung capacity
When you think about asthma, what comes to mind? Maybe it’s an image of your child coughing after exposure to pollen, or maybe it’s a kid running around on the soccer field that starts wheezing. We usually do not think of adults as having asthma, and for good reason — adult-onset asthma does not usually … Continue reading Could your chest cold be a sign of asthma?
Colorful flowers popping up from the ground and green buds dotting tree branches signal the start of spring. Along with those pretty harbingers are itchy, watery eyes; a runny nose; and plenty of sneezing for those who are plagued with seasonal allergies. Pollen is most prevalent in Spring, quickly followed by grasses and weeds in … Continue reading These 5 Spring allergy stats may make you sneeze
For Wade Whitney, 10, it was a rite of spring to be hospitalized because of allergy-induced asthma. However, 2016 marked the first time in three years that rite was annulled. What made the difference? Camp Wheeze Away at Peaceable Kingdom Retreat for Children, 20 miles south of Killeen, an annual camp sponsored by Baylor Scott & … Continue reading Camp Wheeze Away eases asthma
