As was foretold, we've added advertisements to the forums! If you have questions, or if you encounter any bugs, please visit this thread: https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/240191/forum-advertisement-faq-and-reports-thread/
Options
Heathly Lungs
budec
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
i smoked for 10 plus years and it left me with lungs like that of a 11 year old asthmatic girl.
I've been running a lot (and doing tons of cardio), taking Vitim D (and getting much sun light as I can) and drinking lots of water - is there anything else I can do to help repair the damage I've done and make my lungs stronger and healthier?
I've been running a lot (and doing tons of cardio), taking Vitim D (and getting much sun light as I can) and drinking lots of water - is there anything else I can do to help repair the damage I've done and make my lungs stronger and healthier?
budec on
0
Posts
It takes your lungs quite some time to recover from that kind of damage.
Basically just maintain a healthy lifestyle and your lungs should take care of themselves. This process will take years, so you have to stick to it.
http://www.mercola.com/1998/archive/low_fat_diets.htm Perhaps research the vitamins/minerals he mentions for studies on that.
As for the rest; you seem to be dong all right so far, just keep it up and you'll be as good as almost new in no time. The tar and other gunk that got into your lungs is there to stay though, barring nanotech surgery....
Nintendo Network ID: AzraelRose
DropBox invite link - get 500MB extra free.
I try to eat lots of fruits, vegetables. I'm eating tomatoes alot (and also the juice/sauce of em) that is supose to help, also doing oranges, blueberries, broccoli, apples, carrots and all that stuff.
I also take a multi-vitamin 2 types of fish/omega-3 oil, flax oil, D+Calcium, C, B12 and B complex. (also take goldseal and another herb for immune system).
I only take the vitamins once a day, so hopefully that won't kill my liver? I never heard that. I take them with a big meal. Is this bad stuff for me?
I'm eating good - I should be getting all I need with fruits/vegetables, but take them to make sure I'm not missing anything.
From here: http://www.mercola.com/1998/archive/low_fat_diets.htm
What is selenium and beta carotene?
Also tar build up is "permanent" in my lungs? Won't I eventually cough all that stuff up if I push enough air though my lungs (via cardio workouts)?
Would taking pure oxygen help clear that junk out?
EDIT: I've smoked for about 16 years, about 4 of those I was smoking "off and on" (quite about 3-6 months at a time).
I'm serious about quiting this time.
EDIT2: I love thee oh wiki! For shame it be to hide my love for thee:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selenium
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carotene
Selenium is a metal and toxic.. is that the right thing? Are you sure I should be nawing on hunk of metal? If I eat organic fruits/vegetables I should be getting a good Selenium intake, right?
EDIT3:
fucking ouch:
that stuff is pretty nasty.
A multi-vitamin is a good way to ensure your getting certain vitamins you may not be getting throughout the day because even with a healthy diet you can not be getting enough of something. Its just insurance.
If you want to boost your immune system try taking 50mg zinc a day.
Cut the flax oil and only take fish oil, buy it in the liquid form and take a table spoonful(15ml) a day which is equal to 15 capsules. You can divide the dosage using teaspoons(5ml) and even take more than that if you wish to(up to 45ml I hear).
Selenium is metal but your body needs it in small doses like magnesium, copper, iron, ect.
Cut the goldenseal unless you have an infection/cold. Taking it for prolonged periods will cut its effectiveness. They sell this stuff in Canada(hopefully elsewhere) by the name of Deep immune combo. My doctor has reccomended it to me a few times in the past when my immune system has been down. She usually reccomends I take it for 2 week periods(3 times a day), you may want to try the same.
http://stfrancisherbfarm.com/product.aspx?ID=2
Get the beta-carotene from veggies like peppers, spinach, lettuce and carrots.
I say keep up with lots of oranges and apples, they've been known to improve lung function thanks to there bioflavoids.
http://app1.chinadaily.com.cn/star/history/00-01-25/l04-1appl.html
Best of luck to you btw!
Deeps on how you quite... for cold turkey the withdrawls with be worst till about 48-72 hours then it lets up... after you hit 3 days the worst is over...after about a week it'll be smooth coasting and 3 weeks almost no withdrawls and cravings.
I've quite many times and the "eye of the storm" runs till about 2-3 days... seriously, just hold on till day 3 and it'll let up - but till then I ain't going to lie, it's sear burning hell till it "breaks" on/around second or third day.
btw, a good way to help recover faster is lots of orange juice and oranges. It's suppose to help "flush" the drug out of your system (plus other toxins), it makes the hellish part worse, a lot worse - BUT makes the recovery of it a lot faster and doesn't last as long. It's better to just "bite the bullet" and get the tough stuff out of the way up front for sake of it ending quicker.
Check this site out... has some good info on the "recovery" rate:
http://www.quit.com/keepingwithit_essentials.aspx?id=56
no idea.
As for the toxicity of Selenium and carotene supplements; sure selenium is toxic in large amounts, just like water. OTOH, it is a vital accessory component to several enzymes without which you couldn't function. You should be getting more than enough in your diet if you are eating fruit and vegetables though, as you hardly need any (there might be as much as a tenth of a gram of the stuff in a healthy adult human).
The carotene supplements are probably toxic because they are made by relatively crude brute-force synthesis, which is non selective, so the supplement will have all sorts of carotenes in it - alpha, beta, gamma etc. All of which are isomers of the same molecule, but only one of which is useful to people. The extras only serve to gum up the works, more or less literally.
Your best bet for getting beta-carotene (the one you want) is carrots, red peppers and so on.
As for the tar, yes it pretty much is permanent barring surgery and no-one sane would even attempt such a procedure. The thing is, it's tar; it's the resinous residue of the tobacco sap, plus a few other things; this isn't a biological problem, it's a sticky-goo-blocking-the-passageways problem. What happens is that the oxidation residue of the plant fibres in the cigarette liquefies and evaporates as the cigarette is burnt, then condenses out in your lungs, which are much cooler than the cigarette. The only other way to get it out would be to re-evaporate it, but I don't think you ever want your lungs to get that hot...
Finally, your body will tell you when you are missing important trace elements; white spots under the nails for zinc deficiency, that sort of thing. taking supplements you don't really need is a horrible waste of money and, worse, can be habit-forming, ironically enough...
Nintendo Network ID: AzraelRose
DropBox invite link - get 500MB extra free.
We can only hope AL_Wat. We can only hope.
Shogun Streams Vidya
No, it isn't. It is gradually eliminated from the body, but it takes a long time (10+ years). Not the same thing as permanent.
PS Though I don't want to provoke a lynching by the anti-smoking mob, 'healthy lungs' do not simply = 'not smoking'. I have very high lung function on tests (from growing up swimming, diving & singing, and being pretty fit) even though I smoked seriously for 4 years and still smoke about 10 a week. Nonetheless, I could beat most non-smokers on every lung function test. I've also met Peruvian porters who weekly run up mountains several thousand meters high carrying 20+ kilograms on their back, but light up like a christmas tree at every opportunity if you have the smokes.
Of course, the chemicals etc will still mess you up, and smoking won't help lung function, but it's surmountable.