Breathing problem is always given the least importance and usually is easily passed as a low stamina issue. One such case was of Naina – A 16 year old young girl, with medium built and lovely long hair. She stayed on the third floor of a building and always felt breathless by the time she climbed up the stairs. Even playing with friends for a few minutes or taking long walks made her breathless. Her parent thought it was an issue with her stamina and rather than taking her to a doctor, they kept insisting that she drinks at least two glasses of milk a day.
A few week later Naina’s grandmother came to visit them. Her granny was a fit lady and very particular about her diet. She followed a strict vegetarian diet and had a soup full of greens, carrots and other vegetables every day as lunch. She also had a habit of eating an apple every afternoon. Naina spent a lot of time with her granny and shared her food. This continued for almost a month.
As the time passed, Naina started to feel that her breathing problem was in control and she no longer felt breathless after climbing stairs. The family realized that her breathing problem had drastically reduced after Naina’s change in food habits.
According to a recent research by Nottingham university of Britain eating more fruits and vegetables helps reduce breathlessness. According to this report, people who eat more apples and tomatoes have a good respiratory system and their lungs-functioning is better. The researchers advised to eat at least 5 apples and 3 tomatoes in a week for a healthy respiratory system. They said that people who do this, will have lungs that function as fast as a lung of a person who is 3 years younger to them.
In an another research that was conducted by scientists in South Hampton University, it has been found that people who smoke but include a lot of fruits and vegetables in their diet have less possibilities of having asthma and other respiratory problems, whereas people who do not eat enough fruits and vegetables have more chances of having respiratory diseases. This study was conducted on a population of 116 people who were either smokers or had respiratory problems or had chances of having them.
The scientist also found that fruits and vegetables are the best source of antioxidants which help to negate the effect of oxidants that enter our body through respiration. So, if you have breathing problem just like Naina, please seek some medical advice and start including more fruits and vegetables in your daily diet.
