Smoking leads to lung cancer and heart disease that might be cognizant to many people. But do you know it also causes grievous respiratory circumstance in which the airways get barred? So Smokers mind it.

To a higher degree 13 million Indians are dupes of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), where the patients’ airways are blocked.

While addressing presspersons on World COPD Day, B.V. Muralimohan, consultant pulmonologist of Narayana Hrudayalaya, commanded smoking was one of the main does for acquiring COPD.

Pollution was commanded to be another major cause, he aimed out. A study acquitted by the Chest Research Foundation, affecting more than 12,000 slum-dwellers in Pune, exposed that over 50 per cent non-smokers had COPD.

This underscored the role of indoor and outdoor pollution in causing and aggravating the condition.

The consumption of fuels such as kerosene, wood and biomass in badly ventilated kitchens and homes was identified as a major factor.

Dr . Muralimohan aforementioned “If a person has persistent cough for more than three weeks, or three months in a year, he must go in for a check-up, for that is one of the symptoms of COPD. Tests, such as spirometry, are important to assess the health of lungs and diagnose the disease early”.

He also told that more and more youth were cropping the habit of smoking.

Dr . Muralimohan also commanded, “The Government is spending nearly Rs. 27,000 crore a year for the cure of smoking-related ailments, while the revenue from the sale of tobacco is only Rs. 25,000 crore. It is the responsibility of the Government, the educated society and health organisations to combine their efforts and reduce the incidence of COPD”.