As a typical Canadian winter commenced with vengeance this weekend, bringing blistery cold winds, snow and ice, I find myself both fearful and anxious about how my lungs will fare throughout these upcoming months. While I have never been someone who has loved winter, I do appreciate the…
Chilled to the Max: Canadian Winters and IPF
Vitamin D is often called the “sunshine vitamin,” mostly because we get it naturally when the sun’s UV rays interact with our skin, which triggers the vitamin’s synthesis. The vitamin helps our body’s absorption of calcium to keep our bones strong and encourage healthy cells to grow. Last year, researchers demonstrated the protective effects of vitamin…
A higher fat-free mass index — a measure that takes a person’s muscle mass into account — predicts better survival in patients with pulmonary fibrosis, while body mass index (BMI) does not, according to a new study. Although researchers could not explain how body composition impacts disease progression, the findings may provide another…
Mindfulness seems to be the latest buzzword, with claims that adopting a more mindful approach to life can help with a myriad of ailments. But can it help patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis? Find out about the five main factors for living well with pulmonary fibrosis. A new…
Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) should be part of the treatment plan for any chronic lung disease, including pulmonary fibrosis. It’s a combination of exercise, breathing techniques, diet and education that aims to help give patients a better quality of life and be able to have more control of their symptoms. We’ve…
Hello Pulmonary Fibrosis Community! Technology is amazing! For a little over a year Facebook has been allowing its members to do live videos from their pages. I tried this out on my own Facebook page about three months ago, and am really enjoying being able to reach out and…
This video, shared by the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, is of a webinar filmed at the PFF Summit: From Bench to Bedside held in Washington D.C. in November 2015. Find out more from the Bench to Bedside Summit about managing pulmonary fibrosis symptoms. Dr. Charlene D. Fell presents…
Researchers may have discovered a key mechanism underlying pulmonary fibrosis (PF) — the failure of a particular group of lung stem cells to regenerate, hindering the repair of lung tissue in PF. The study, “Hyaluronan and TLR4 promote surfactant-protein-C-positive alveolar progenitor cell renewal and prevent severe pulmonary fibrosis in mice,” was…
This is a plea for your help and guidance. I would love to understand the experiences of others as I try to navigate your thoughts and emotions when someone asks “What is “wrong with you.” It would be particularly helpful to hear from a young adult (up to…
The holidays are coming! They are a challenge to negotiate as a pulmonary fibrosis patient. Here’s some tips I’d like to share to make the most of the holidays while taking good care of yourself. It is normal to have a mixture of feelings…
