AYURVEDA PERSPECTIVE ON SHORTNESS OF BREATH

Sudden onset of shortness of breath is a medical emergency and could indicate:

• A clot in the lungs (pulmonary embolism)
• Aspiration of a foreign body
• Heart attack

Shortness of breath, even when mild, feels alarming to the patient.

Shortness of breath (dyspnea) occurs when oxygen levels drop, or carbon dioxide levels increase, in the blood. This may be due to a variety of factors:

1. Poor oxygen absorption in the lungs due to
   • Pneumonia - The client will have fever, coughing, and malaise.
2. Constriction of airways (as in asthma) - Client will feel heaviness / tightness in the chest and use chest and accessory to get a full breath.
3. Poor oxygen delivery to the tissue due to circulatory issues (COPD, heart failure) - The shortness of breath occurs with the slightest exertion.
4. Blood's inability to hold oxygen due to
   • Metabolic acidosis - Client's breath will be shallow and rapid - as if out of breath.
   • Anemia - Client will feel fatigue, dizziness and weakness. Lips, conjunctiva, and skin may appear pale and cold.

Other causes include

• Panic attacks - Client will have fear, anxiety, and heart palpitations.
• Hyperventilation - Client will have tingling as well as muscle spasms in the fingers.

is usually due to high kapha, but sometimes is considered a vata condition. When you feel short of breath due to high kapha (lymphatic stagnation, carrying excess weight, diabetes) circulation is poor. Your heart and lungs work extra hard to deliver oxygen to all of your cells. Thick, sweet Kapha blood is hard to circulate and congests the vascular system. Clogged arteries, especially arteries to the heart can lead to shortness of breath.

Deficient vata may also be the root cause of shortness of breath. If you experience dizziness, fatigue, muscle weakness, or exhaustion with shortness of breath, this may be due to vata type deficiency.

Shortness of breath may be a a sign of an advanced condition, such as:

• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD)
• Poor circulation
• Degeneration of lung tissue from smoking, or other inhalation of other toxins.
• Blood deficiency, anemia

Disclaimer: Conditions such as 'Shortness of Breath' that cause tissue changes could be serious and should be checked by a medical doctor.

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COMPUTE MY DIET FOR SHORTNESS OF BREATH
OR, GET A GENERAL DIET FOR BALANCING SHORTNESS OF BREATH

Augment your diet with these specially chosen ingredients below which may be useful for 'Shortness of Breath'. Individual results vary depending the cause of your imbalance and by constitution. Please research the ingredients below to find which are most helpful for you, and check with your doctor before making any changes to your health and wellness routine. Please check with your medical doctor before making any changes to your health & wellness routine, and for the proper use of these products.

These supplements are contraindicated / may aggravate 'Shortness of Breath'.

RESPIRATORY HEALTH TIPS

DISCLAIMER: The pathogenesis of each person's condition is unique, and so the diet must be fit to the individual and the unique root causes of the condition in your body. The information on this page is for educational purposes only and should not be used to treat a medical condition. It is not a substitute for medical care. Please check with your doctor before making any changes to your health and wellness routine.

Everything you eat has an effect on your body, which Ayurveda categorizes in a simple and easy way, using biocharacteristics (gunas). Biocharacteristics are qualities (like cold and hot) that describe the effect a food or herb has on your body. Cooling foods like cucumber, decrease metabolism. Heating foods like chili pepper, stimulate your body and increase metabolism. For 'Shortness of Breath', you should select foods with the following biocharacteristics. Individual results will vary, based on your body type and the root cause of your imbalance.

Mind, Stress & Sleep:

Anxiolytic

ANXIOLYTIC

Herbs that help people suffering from anxiety or panic. They promote a state of calm and often improve sleep. Most anxiolytic herbs are also nervines.

SEE ALL 'ANXIOLYTIC' FOODS / HERBS

Energy Vitality:

Builds Stamina

BUILDS-STAMINA

Promotes strength, endurance and resistance in the body. Rebuilds weak tissues after a time of depletion.

SEE ALL 'BUILDS-STAMINA' FOODS / HERBS

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Prana

PRANA

Prana is the Sanskrit word for vital life energy (Qi in Chinese Medicine, pneuma in Greek). Many herbs stimulate your energy, or improve the flow of prana through your body. Generally, prana needs to be increased in spring after a sleepy winter.

SEE ALL 'PRANA' FOODS / HERBS

Respiratory-Health:

Bronchodilator

BRONCHODILATOR

An herb that encourages the widening or opening of the lung airways. They are helpful in wheezing and asthma.

SEE ALL 'BRONCHODILATOR' FOODS / HERBS

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Lung Tonic

LUNG-TONIC

Strengthens the lungs. Lung tonics include antifibrotic, vessel tonic, or nourishing herbs with an affinity for the lungs. They aid recovery in acute or chronic lung conditions.

SEE ALL 'LUNG-TONIC' FOODS / HERBS

Heart & Circulation:

Cardiac Stimulant

CARDIAC-STIMULANT

Herbs that increase the heart rate. Useful in cardiovascular health, blood stagnation, and subjective feeling of heaviness in the chest area.

SEE ALL 'CARDIAC-STIMULANT' FOODS / HERBS

,

Blood Thinner

BLOOD-THINNER

Herbs that thin the blood. Helpful for people with heart disease or clogged circulation.

SEE ALL 'BLOOD-THINNER' FOODS / HERBS

,

Blood Tonic

BLOOD-TONIC

An herb that produces more blood cells in the body, or otherwise improves blood cell quality or hemoglobin content. Helpful for anemia and other types of deficiency.

SEE ALL 'BLOOD-TONIC' FOODS / HERBS

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Vasodilator

VASODILATOR

A vasodilator is an herb that widens the blood vessels by the relaxation of smooth muscle cells within the vessel walls, thereby increasing circulation systemically or to a local area.

SEE ALL 'VASODILATOR' FOODS / HERBS

Other:

Anti Aging

ANTI-AGING

Geriatric conditions typically involve low agni / metabolism, poor circulation, weakness & debility, muscle weakening, poor digestion, a drop in sex hormones, and connective tissue degradation in bones & skin.

SEE ALL 'ANTI-AGING' FOODS / HERBS

Joyful Belly is a recognized college of biocharacteristics medicine.

HOW TO ADDRESS ISSUES IN STAGE OF DISEASE #3

SHORTNESS OF BREATH IS IN STAGE OF DISEASE #3 - ATTACKING TISSUE

If you have symptoms in this category it means that your imbalances are becoming stronger and weakening your body's resistance. Most people have a weakness in one or more organs. These areas of weakness are the 'weak link in the chain.' They are first to succumb when an imbalance reaches a tipping point. Repairing imbalances in this category often represent your last opportunity to prevent disease. At any moment, these imbalances could overwhelm weakened tissue and develop into a disease. You may feel pain or discomfort in the weakened area. At this stage you will need to support the weakened tissue with specialized foods and herbs for the weakened tissue. (See all disease stages on JB)

GET MY FREE AYURVEDA BODY MAP According to Ayurveda, one or more of the following doshas and biocharacteristics may aggravate 'Shortness of Breath'. If you have an excess of one of these doshas or biocharacteristics below, Ayurveda recommends reducing foods and lifestyle habits that aggravate them. Click on the biocharacteristic to learn what foods and lifestyle habits should be reduced.

Are you prone to a problem with 'Shortness of Breath'? Find your imbalances and create a diet for your Respiratory System by taking the free respiratory health quiz:

TAKE THE RESPIRATORY HEALTH QUIZ

The following symptoms & habits may be related to 'Shortness of Breath'. See your quiz results for a computerized assessment of your body type. Please click on the symptoms below to learn more about them. On average the biocharacteristics of people reporting Shortness of Breath were more aggravated than 89% of other symptoms. From the 6,434 people who reported Shortness of Breath average deviation in biocharacteristic levels were the following:

Risk Factors of Shortness of Breath

Complications of Those Reporting Shortness of Breath

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