Common Reasons for Breathlessness
November 27, 2009
Breathlessness is not a disease by itself. However, it is a significant symptom of various ailments and may come on suddenly. Sometimes a simple act of physical exertion like climbing a flight of stairs or walking fast may result in acute breathlessness. Difficulty in breathing may also manifest itself as a symptom of stress. This is most obvious in cases of panic attacks or even when you are nervous about something like public speaking. Let us now take a look at the primary reasons for breathlessness.
Obesity- Straining to inhale or difficulty in breathing can occur due to lack of fitness. Obesity is a major cause for breathlessness and you need to bring down your weight to an optimum level by following a healthy diet as well as working out vigorously.
Smoking- Cigarettes as well as other tobacco products contain the harmful chemical nicotine and is responsible for the accumulated carbon monoxide in the lungs. The highly toxic gas combines with hemoglobin of our blood and impairs the normal function of the iron pigment in our blood
Left Heart Failure- Fluid gets accumulated in the lungs when the left side of our heart fails to clear the blood from the lungs. This happens during left sided heart attack with even the mildest exertion causing acute breathlessness. The patient suffering from such a heart attack may also experience breathlessness during periods of rest as well. The symptom of suffering from breathlessness at night may help the doctor to diagnose the disease accurately.
Panic Attacks and Psychological factors- Breathing rapidly and continuously may lead to hyperventilation. The entire amount of Carbon dioxide present in our body is exhaled during such attacks making the blood alkaline in nature. There is a sharp decline in the blood calcium level during stress related breathlessness.
Anemia- Reduced amount of hemoglobin in the blood results in a decreased oxygen carrying capacity. The extra effort needed to carry adequate amount of oxygen causes breathlessness in an anemic patient.
Pregnancy- Different hormones come into play during pregnancy. Some of these hormones cause the minute blood vessels of the respiratory tract to expand and consequently relax the musculature of the lungs. The uterus grows larger as the pregnancy progresses causing it to push against the diaphragm which results in shortness of breath.
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