Are Your Lungs Getting Weaker Without You Knowing? Here’s How to Tell

In today’s fast-paced urban lifestyle, many people live under high stress, with poor diets and long-term exposure to air pollution. Without noticing, their lung function may already be in decline.

Common Causes of Lung Function Decline:

• Aging (especially over 50)
• Long-term smoking or secondhand smoke exposure
• Living or working in heavily polluted areas
• Recurrent respiratory infections (e.g. bronchitis, pneumonia)
• Occupational dust exposure (e.g. mining, construction, chemicals)
• Sedentary lifestyle and irregular sleep

Once the lungs suffer structural damage (e.g. emphysema, pulmonary fibrosis), it is often irreversible, and treatment can only slow further progression.

The Key to Prevention: Nourishing the Lungs

To prevent deterioration, it is vital to reduce ongoing damage and support your lungs through healthy habits.

Tips to Protect Lung Function:

• Quit smoking and avoid secondhand smoke
• Avoid exposure to fumes (e.g. kitchen oil, renovation chemicals, PM2.5)
• Use air purifiers or wear a mask in polluted environments
• Maintain regular sleep to support lung self-repair
• Exercise regularly — brisk walking, tai chi, and swimming improve breathing capacity

👀 Who Should Pay Extra Attention?

• Current/former smokers or those with family lung disease history
• Workers in dusty environments (e.g. miners, builders)
• People with chronic cough, phlegm, or shortness of breath
• Those who have had pneumonia, tuberculosis, or other lung infections
• Individuals diagnosed with lung nodules, emphysema, or pneumothorax

5 Simple At-Home Lung Function Checks

While formal tests require medical equipment, these home tips can help you observe early warning signs:

• 1️⃣ Stair Climb Test
  If you can’t climb three flights of stairs in one go without breathlessness or dizziness, your lung function may be reduced.
• 2️⃣ Candle-Blow Test
  A healthy adult should be able to blow out a candle 20 cm away in one breath. If you struggle at ≤15 cm, your lung capacity may be low.
• 3️⃣ Breath-Holding Test
  Hold your breath after a deep inhale. 30 seconds is normal; under 10 seconds may suggest compromised lung function.
• 4️⃣ Lip Color Observation
  Purple or bluish lips may indicate oxygen deficiency, a sign of poor lung ventilation.
• 5️⃣ 6-Minute Walk Test
  Healthy men should walk 470–540 meters in 6 minutes; women 430–500 meters. Distances far below these may mean reduced lung performance.

In TCM: Supporting the Lungs Starts with Nourishing the Kidneys

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) teaches:

“The Lung governs Qi, the Kidney is its root.”
If Kidney Qi is deficient, Lung Qi lacks support. Many cases of lung weakness trace back to Kidney deficiency, especially in middle-aged individuals with fatigue, insomnia, or yang deficiency.

Common signs of Kidney Qi deficiency include:

• Fatigue, shortness of breath, reluctance to speak
• Weak lower back and knees, cold limbs
• Dizziness, tinnitus, frequent night urination
• Low libido, premature ejaculation
• Weak immunity, frequent colds, low voice

Recommended Tonic: Guilu Zishen Wan (龜鹿滋腎丸)

By Bao Shu Tang

📌 Functions:

• Tonifies Kidney Yang and essence
• Replenishes Qi and nourishes Yin
• Strengthens muscles and bones

📌 Indications:

• Kidney and Heart Qi deficiency
• Weakness in the lower back and limbs
• Fatigue, breathlessness, urinary frequency
• Lung Qi deficiency, low energy
• Suitable for daily wellness in middle-aged and elderly individuals

📌 Main Herbal Ingredients:

Colla Carapax et Plastrum Testudinis (processed); Colla Cornus Cervi (processed); Radix et Rhizoma Ginseng; Cornu Cervi Pantotrichum; Radix Rehmanniae Praeparata; Lignum Aquilariae Resinatum; Radix Asparagi; Radix Angelicae Sinensis; Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis; Pericarpium Citri Reticulatae; Cortex Cinnamomi; Poria; Radix Ophiopogonis; Fructus Lycii; Rhizoma Dioscoreae, and more.

📌 How to Use:

Take orally, 10–20 pills each time, 3 times daily. One bottle lasts approx. 3–5 days. For best results, use continuously for 2–4 weeks as a conditioning course.