04/11/2024
Meet your lungs 🫁
The lungs are a pair of spongy pinkish-grey organs. They are located in the chest cavity, one on each side, under the rib cage.
Your lungs receive the air you inhale, deliver oxygen to the blood stream, and remove carbon dioxide from your body.
The lungs are part of the respiratory system, which also includes the airways (nose and nasal cavities, mouth, larynx, trachea, broncheal tubes and their branches), muscles associated with breathing, and all of the involved blood vessels. All of these must be in good working order for the respiratory system to function well.
Your lungs are often the first part of your body to come into contact with environmental pollutants, which can enter the lungs and activate enzymes that irritate, inflame, and open up tight junctions between the epithelial cells. This can lead to toxins escaping the lungs and causing inflammation in other parts of the body. (Similar to leaky gut!)
Deficiency of vitamin D is associated with accelerated decline in lung function. Chronic respiratory diseases associated with vitamin D deficiency include cystic fibrosis, interstitial lung disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Make sure to get adequate sunlight, and if there is lack of sunshine, supplement vitamin D (preferably with vitamin K).
You can support your lungs by not smoking, using an air filter in your home, exercising, yoga, and deep breathing.
Herbs that are beneficial to the lungs include: pleurisy root, thyme, ginger, yarrow, mullein, sage, anise, peppermint, lobelia, ma huang, licorice, oregano, schisandra, and oregon grape.
