World Lung Day is celebrated every year on 25 September to raise awareness of respiratory health and encourage individual and community responsibility. The theme for this year is “Healthy Lungs, Healthy Life.” Awareness plays a key role in ensuring collective efforts to promote lung care.
What are some common respiratory ailments, how do we recognise the symptoms and address some common misconceptions. Here is a primer.
Chronic respiratory conditions
Asthma: It is characterised by intermittent breathlessness and wheeze, with or without cough, and is often triggered by nasal allergies, infections, climate change, air pollution, dust, pollen, acid reflux, obesity, or certain foods.
Parents are often fearful when children are diagnosed with asthma. The condition usually results from an interplay of genetic and environmental factors. Treatment involves inhalers containing small doses of corticosteroids. Concerns that inhalers are addictive or harmful are unfounded; when prescribed correctly, they are safe and effective. By contrast, oral medications for asthma are less effective, carry greater side effects and are usually avoided unless necessary.
Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) : This is more common in mid-adulthood, is characterised by loud snoring and episodes of stopped breathing during sleep. People living with OSA may also experience daytime sleepiness, irritability, and poor concentration.
Risk factors include obesity, upper airway abnormalities, and hypothyroidism. Diagnosis requires a sleep study, and treatment usually resolves symptoms. Untreated OSA is linked to accidents, heart disease, poorly controlled diabetes and high blood pressure.
Tuberculosis: India carries nearly one-quarter of the global burden of tuberculosis (TB). It usually affects the lungs, causing fever, persistent cough, sputum and weight loss. Transmission occurs through droplets from coughing. Anyone with a cough lasting more than two weeks should seek medical advice.
TB is treatable, but untreated cases are responsible for spreading the infection, damaging lungs, even proving fatal. India’s national TB programme has expanded to include drug-resistance testing at local centres, steady medication supply, cash support for patients, nutrition schemes and doorstep follow-up. Family members of patients are screened, and public-private partnerships improve detection. The WHO has praised India’s efforts, and the government aims to end TB as a public health challenge.
Tobacco-associated risks
Prolonged tobacco use, through cigarettes or beedis, can impair lung function and cause Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). Symptoms include cough, sputum production, breathlessness, and wheeze. COPD progressively worsens, with sudden flare-ups often requiring hospital care. Excluding COVID-19, COPD is the second leading cause of death in India.
Not all smokers develop COPD, but even light smoking can trigger disease in those predisposed. Risk factors also include passive smoke exposure, indoor biomass fuel (firewood cooking), and air pollution. Misconceptions that cigarettes are safer than beedis are false; both are equally harmful.
Treatment focuses on quitting tobacco and inhaled medicines for symptom control. Advanced COPD may require long-term oxygen therapy, ventilatory support, or even lung transplantation.
Lung cancer : Tobacco smoke inhalation is also one major risk factor for lung cancer, the leading cause of cancer death in India. Symptoms include cough (sometimes with blood), breathlessness, and weight loss. Treatment depends on cancer type and stage, and may include surgery, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, or radiation.
The government has restricted tobacco sales near schools and set up cessation clinics in medical colleges to support those addicted. Smokers are urged to use these services. Contrary to popular belief, vaping is not safer. It can cause severe respiratory disease, with breathlessness, cough, and dangerously low oxygen levels often requiring intensive care.
Infections and vaccination
Respiratory infections occur throughout life. Viral infections are most common and often self-limiting. Bacterial infections typically require short antibiotic courses, while fungal infections may arise in patients with poor immunity or uncontrolled diabetes. Severe infections sometimes require hospitalisation.
Vaccines exist against two common respiratory infections: Streptococcus pneumoniae and Influenza virus. Both are recommended for adults over 50 and those with chronic respiratory disease. Individuals should consult their doctors to check eligibility.
For children, India’s universal immunisation programme offers free vaccines including those against pertussis (whooping cough), pneumococcal disease, and polio. Parents must ensure children receive these vaccines.
Environmental and lifestyle risks
Air pollution contributes to respiratory symptoms in healthy individuals and worsens conditions in those with existing lung disease. Fine particles smaller than 2.5 micrometres (PM2.5) are especially harmful as they penetrate deep into the lungs.
Major sources include vehicle emissions, industrial fumes, stubble burning, wildfires, and indoor biomass fuels. Tackling this requires coordinated action from policymakers, administrators, industry, and the wider community.
Patients with lung disease are advised to avoid heavily polluted areas and seek medical care if symptoms worsen after exposure.
Prevention and awareness
Awareness of respiratory diseases is the first step towards prevention. Individuals must recognise symptoms, seek timely medical care, and take responsibility for lifestyle changes such as quitting tobacco, staying up to date on vaccinations, and reducing exposure to pollution.
By combining individual responsibility with strong public health measures, we can move closer to the vision of “Healthy Lungs, Healthy Life.”
( Dr. Irfan Ismail Ayub is professor and head, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute, SRIHER, Chennai, Tamilnadu. Email: irfan.ia@sriramachandra.edu.in )
Published – September 25, 2025 07:13 pm IST