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COPD: Keeping Your Diet Healthy
If you have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), you may have little appetite or feel too tired to prepare and eat meals. But eating regularly and eating healthy foods is important because food:
- Provides your body with the energy it needs to function, such as for breathing and digestion.
- Provides you with the energy you need for daily activities.
- Helps strengthen your body's natural defense system (immune system), making it easier to avoid infections.
You can take simple steps to be sure you eat healthy foods on a regular basis. But because people with COPD often have other health problems that may restrict the foods they can eat, always talk with your doctor or a registered dietitian before making changes in your diet.
Tips for eating with COPD
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Tips for eating with COPD
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People with COPD often have trouble preparing foods and eating. The following tips can make eating easier and help you get necessary nutrition. But if you have other health problems that may restrict the foods you can eat, talk with your doctor or a registered dietitian before making changes in your diet.
Make eating easier
- Choose foods that are easy toprepare.
- Eat in a relaxed atmosphere.
- Eat with friendsand family.
- If you eat a main meal, try to eat it early. This way,you will have energy throughout more of the day.
- Try to include afavorite food in your meals.
Avoid shortness of breath while eating
- Stop smoking. It is never too late to quitsmoking. No matter how long you have had COPD or how serious it is, quittingsmoking will help slow the disease and improve your quality oflife.
- Use medicines that make breathing easier and/or clear yourairways about 1 hour before eating.
- Rest before eating if eatingmakes you short of breath or tired.
- Eat while sitting up. Thishelps remove pressure on your lungs.
- If you use oxygen, use itwhile eating. Eating and digestion require energy, which causes your body touse more oxygen.
- Eat six small meals each day instead of threelarge ones so that your stomach is never extremely full. A full stomach caninterfere with breathing by pushing on the diaphragm.
- Drink yourbeverage at the end of the meal. Drinking before or during the meal can fillyou up more quickly.
- Avoid or eat only small amounts of gas-formingfoods (they bloat the abdomen and make breathing difficult). These includeonions, cauliflower, broccoli, melons, peas, corn, cucumbers, cabbage, brusselssprouts, turnips, raw apples, and beans (except green beans). Fried and greasyfoods can also cause gas or bloating.
- Eat and chew slowly so youare less likely to become short of breath. Try putting your spoon or fork downbetween bites to slow your eating speed.
- If you have a hard timebreathing in the morning, do not skip breakfast. Have a liquid nutritional drink (such as Ensure) instead.
Eat healthy foods
- Eat a varied diet. Eat fruits and vegetables,dairy products, cereal and grains, and meats.
- Avoid foods that aredifficult to chew.
- Use less salt. Too much salt can cause you toretain fluids, which may interfere with your breathing.
- Use herbs or no-salt spices to flavor your foods.
- Don't add salt to foods while cooking.
- Buy packaged foods low in salt.
- Don't waste energy consuming foods with littlenutritional value, such as potato chips, candy bars, and soft drinks.
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ByHealthwise Staff
Primary Medical ReviewerE. Gregory Thompson, MD - Internal Medicine
Specialist Medical ReviewerKen Y. Yoneda, MD - Pulmonology