COPD/COLD

[Picasso10]

Does having COPD make you more liable to have colds?This past while,I seem to just get rid of a cold for a few days then another one starts.I take vitamins daily,eat healthily and do a moderate amount of exercise.When I get the cold,it makes me feel a bit "chesty".I don't seem to get any more breathless than normal,just a funny feeling in my chest which I can't describe.The last time I had it,the practice nurse put me on steroids for 5 days,6 a day.Made me feel better after a few days but I don't want to be taking steroids too often.Any ideas/advice what I can do to help myself?

[Badbessie]

Just a thought I just wonder if there is not something that is triggering your symptoms. Is it a inflammatory process that is causing your cold like symptoms. It seems strange that steroids would not really help that much with a cold but appear to help you. The question I would ask your GP would be is it a cold or some sort of allergic/inflammatory process that is causing you problems?

[Picasso10 in reply to Badbessie]

When I got the steroids from the practice nurse she sounded me and said it wasn't a chest infection but could be that my airways were inflamed and that is why she gave me the steroids.Thanks very much for the reply.

[O2Trees]

Hi Picasso, I don't know if this will be relevant but many with copd are deficient in Vitamin D. I seem to have turned my health around (not the copd itself!) by taking Vitamin D3 (2000iu) and organic turmeric powder, 1 tsp a day and you need black pepper and a bit of fat with it to absorb it properly - turmeric is anti-inflammatory.

Ive not had a chest infection for 27 months now, following a winter when i had 5 chest infections, the last one being double pneumonia. Since that time Ive had 2 fairly mild viruses and 2 colds - nothing has gone down to the lungs though Ive had to take prednisolone twice for increased breathlessness triggered by the viruses, and ABs once but that's over the 27 months which is amazing for me.

Ive no idea if it is this regime which has helped but starting it coincides with the improvement. Whether or not you try this I do hope you find something which will help.

[O2Trees in reply to O2Trees]

Forgot to say that we can cut down the number of infections we get by doing good infection control - frequent washing of hands especially when you come home from outside, not touching our eyes, mouth or nose as those are the usual routes for infection to get us.

[Magpuss in reply to O2Trees]

02Trees, I tried taking a turmeric supplement but it didn't agree with me, it gave me a really bad stomach upset. I've read, and been told that it's very beneficial for a whole variety of ailments so I'd quite like to give it another go only not in supplement form. So , can I be cheeky and ask where you get your organic turmeric from and - could you please tell me how much black pepper, what 'fat' you combine it with and, how you turn it into a palatable concoction? Or - is it just a case of gulping it down without thinking about it too much?

[O2Trees in reply to Magpuss]

I have it in my porridge Magpuss, bright yellow porridge lol. I take 5mg teaspoon with ten turns of my pepper mill, don't know how much that would be in weight. I put in a heaped spoonful of coconut oil, also have cinnamon which is good for the lungs. Ive been told by an Indian friend, who I guess should know, that turmeric needs to be cooked to be effective - in fact there was a small trial on bbc tv, can't remember the name of the prog, which confirmed that. The people who took supplements saw no change at all.

I get it from Food for All, Cazenove Road, london N16 but they don't normally do mail order. But they have a website so you could look them up and phone to ask. They did send me stuff once though they're not really set up for it - one of their staff had to go out specially to the post office. But everything there is organic which is important to me even though its more expensive. A google search might turn up another company. Let us know how you get on.

[Magpuss in reply to O2Trees]

Thank you for that 02Trees, I wouldn't have thought of putting it in my porridge but I'm going to try it. I already add cinnamon and banana, maybe I should give the banana a miss if I'm adding turmeric though😣. It was actually an Indian taxi driver who first told me about it, he recommended taking it in hot milk with a little honey only milk sometimes causes me a few digestive problems so I never got round to trying it. Wouldn't have thought of adding coconut oil to porridge either but no problem with that, I quite often use it instead of butter. Thanks again, Magpuss.

[Picasso10]

Thanks for all the replies.Much appreciated.I am paranoid about good hygiene.I carry a small dispenser of Carex hand gel with me to keep my hands clean and as I said in my post,I take a vitamin tablet daily which contains vitamin D.

[O2Trees in reply to Picasso10]

Check how much Vit D is in your tablet Picasso. I take 2000 iu and I'll bet the amount in your tablet is far less than that. If you're concerned about taking more you could get your doctor to do a blood test, but Ive read that the RDA is probably set far too low. It needs to be Vit D3, that's important. I assume you're also careful about keeping friends/family with infection at bay.

[Nottobad in reply to Picasso10]

I have been put on vit d tablets after being tested for vit d deficiency . Mine was 19. My gp put me on adcal D3 tablets 2 750mg twice a day. I myself wouldn't take any supplements unless proscribed by my gp also been put on azithromycin 250mg one a day due to having repeated infections.

[Cliffordx]

having c.o.p.d.does not make you liable to colds but make sure you have your flu jab that's imperative as for steroids im on 6 aday and have to take 1 alendronic tablet once a week for bone replenishment for advise just carry on taking the medicine its a terminal illness all you can hope for is stableisation chin up Picasso live the best you can theres no cure only a transplant and that's not guaranteed to work as your body has to accept the lungs x

[Magpuss in reply to Cliffordx]

Life is a terminal condition, illnesses only remind us to appreciate it, and not take it for granted.

[O2Trees in reply to Cliffordx]

I don't think terminal illness is a helpful way of thinking about copd Clifford. People often live long lives and die of something completely different. See Magpuss' reply here.

Of course you need to get informed about the best way to proceed and no-one says this is an easy thing to live with. Your description may work for you, but it could be upsetting for people who have just been diagnosed.

[Cliffordx]

I don't have them answers yes everyones differenti just hope you find you balance x

[Picasso10 in reply to Cliffordx]

Thanks very much for your kind reply.