Shortness of breath
"Shortness of breath" is the body's cry for more oxygen! The lungs are not always the cause for shortness of breath. There are a whole series of causes:
- The air contains too little oxygen. Think of being at great altitudes.
- Not enough air reaches the alveoli. Narrow respiratory passages, for example, are responsible for this.
- Exchange of the respective gases in the alveoli is obstructed.
- The lungs have become stiff (very rare)
- Fluid is between pleural and costal pleura the lung have not enough place in the thorax to expand and get air into the lungs.
- The blood contains too few red blood cells (anaemia). The "trucks" for transporting oxygen are missing.
- The heart is weak and the blood cannot be pumped quickly enough.
- The blood vessels are diseased and narrowed. The typical disturbance to blood circulation. In the case of a cardiac infarction or a stroke cells die because they are simply not provided with enough blood and thus oxygen.
- The person is breathing smoke - the poisons in cigarette or cigar smoke reduces the ability of the red blood cells to carry oxygen.
- When for any reason the lungs have become scarred and stiff because disease or even allergy
