
Here's Why You Shouldn't Take Your Lung Health For Granted

How to Make a John’s Apples to Oranges Cocktail

How to Make Sfincione (Sicilian Pizza)

Kristin Chenoweth Talks Mental Health In New Book, "I'm No Philo…

How to Make Chicken and Chorizo | Rachael Ray

Sherri Shepherd on New Talk Show + Rach's Easy Chicken Chow Mein

Cameron Diaz Talks Coming Out of Retirement + Rach's Green Capon…

How to Make Lentil Salad With Carrots, Roast Chicken + Crunchy C…

Carrying On Her Husband's Legacy: 96-Year-Old Elaine LaLanne Sti…

'Modern Family's' Julie Bowen Shares What It's Like Living with …

Julie Bowen Reveals "Modern Family" Cast Didn’t See Each Other F…

How to Make Hard Shell Green Chili Chicken Tacos | Rachael Ray

Actor Sterling K. Brown Says He Keeps In Close Touch With TV Fam…

How to Make Hong Kong Style Tiger Prawns in Sweet & Sour Ginger

How to Make Egg Fried Rice with Romaine Lettuce | Fang Family

Blind YouTuber Shares Her Inspiring Story With 1.9 Million Subsc…

Actor Sterling K. Brown on FINALLY Taking a Kid-Free Vacation Wi…

How to Make Chicken Cacciatore | Rachael Ray

Classic Sicilian Pizza + Broadway Star Kristin Chenoweth

“What’s up? I can’t read”—Unlikely TikTok Hero Opens About Learn…
The average person takes over 20,000 breaths a day. That’s pretty amazing! Given how much we rely upon our lungs, we’re teaming up with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Dr. Ian Smith to talk about something most of us take for granted... our lung health. We’ll cover everything we need to know from better breathing to quitting smoking.
We all know we need our lungs to inhale oxygen, but what do they actually do with that oxygen? Dr. Ian explains, “Every cell in your body needs oxygen in order to live. Once in the lungs, oxygen is moved into the bloodstream and carried through your body.”
Dr. Ian demonstrates what healthy and unhealthy lungs look like. Check out the video below to see how different they look (you will never go near a cigarette again if you react the way we did):
Here’s the Reality of How Smoking Affects Your Lungs… and It’s Not Pretty
Dr. Ian says that when your lungs aren’t healthy, it can lead to problems like respiratory illnesses, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and even heart disease. If you’re wondering how to tell if your own lungs are unhealthy, Dr. Ian says you should look out for these symptoms:
Shortness of breath during simple activities.
Dizziness with a change in activity.
A persistent cough and/or wheezing or coughing while exercising.
Pain in the airway.
A lot of lung problems can be attributed to smoking cigarettes. Dr. Ian explains that there are more than 7,000 chemicals in cigarettes including nicotine, carbon monoxide and tar. This can cause a variety of problems -- from an annoying cough to serious smoking-related illnesses like lung cancer. But the effects of smoking aren’t limited to your lungs -- smoking harms almost every organ in the body, increases your chances of stroke and makes you age prematurely, Dr. Ian says.
And if that doesn’t shock you, this next statistic should -- the CDC reports that a whopping 16 million people are suffering today from a smoking-related illness.
But it’s never too late for you or a loved one to quit. Watch the video below for Beatrice’s story. She’s a participant in the CDC’s Tips From Former Smokers™ campaign. She quit after her son begged her to, and has never looked back:
Hear the Story of a Mom Who Quit Smoking for Her Son
It’s not easy to quit (or convince a loved one to quit!) but the CDC has a ton of resources for you to start a conversation like the one Beatrice and her son had, and to get help quitting. Head over to their website at cdc.gov/tips for more information or call 1-800-QUIT-NOW for free help.