There are a few steps to helping your lungs be as healthy as possible:

EAT A HEALTHY BALANCED DIET

A healthy balanced diet helps you maintain a healthy weight. An ideal diet also ensures that not just your lungs, but your whole body gets the right amount of energy, so it works efficiently. A healthy balanced diet can also make sure you are able to fight chest infections.

DO REGULAR EXERCISE

Exercise helps our lungs by increasing fitness and improving resistance to illness. Regular exercise also helps us to maintain our lung function and our ability to exercise.

NO SMOKING

Smoking damages our lungs and increases the risk of developing many respiratory illnesses. If you smoke, the sooner you give up smoking the better it is for your lungs. Staying away from second hand smoke also helps lung health.

MAINTAIN YOUR IDEAL BODY WEIGHT

Being too heavy or too light can have negative affects on our general health as well as our lung health. Too much weight means that our lungs have to work harder. Being overweight means the lungs are constricted or squeezed, and lung function is thus reduced. Being under-weight can make you more likely to develop lung infections and can make recovery from infections slower. Being under-nourished or over-weight often reduces energy and ability to exercise.

HAVE REGULAR CHECK-UPS BY A DOCTOR

Regular check ups help ensure that you remain healthy and that any symptoms and illnesses are picked up early.

DON'T IGNORE CHEST INFECTIONS

Although some chest infections settle without an antibiotic, coughing up yellow or green sputum should not be ignored. Delayed treatment of chest infections may result in pneumonia, permanent lung damage or both. If a chest infection starts, do not delay more than a few days - see your doctor, start an antibiotic course, and then take the whole course.

FLU VACCINATIONS

Annual vaccinations against influenza particularly help the elderly and people with asthma, emphysema and other chronic lung conditions. Influenza isn't just unpleasant - it can make chest problems much worse. Prevention with an annual flu' vaccination is very worth while.

Life is good if you can breathe easily, free of cough and other chest symptoms. Many people can never enjoy this type of freedom. The steps listed above are important ways of keeping chest problems away. Value your lung health, and that of your family.