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This is an archive article published on March 2, 2023
Lung health: Why diabetics are more prone to asthma, pneumonia, cystic fibrosis
Dr Navneet Agrawal, Chief Clinical Officer of BeatO, a comprehensive diabetes care platform said, "The pathophysiology of pulmonary symptoms in diabetes is complex and multifactorial, and not completely understood."
The higher rate of lung infections in diabetic patients is mainly due to hyperglycemia which adversely affects immune system function, increasing diabetic patients’ morbimortality. (Source: Freepik)
A study published in Diabetes Care revealed that adults with type 1 or type 2 diabetes were 8 per cent more likely to have asthma, 22 per cent more likely to have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), nearly twice as likely to have been hospitalised for pneumonia, and 54 per cent more likely to have pulmonary fibrosis, a disease in which scarring in the lungs interferes with one’s ability to breathe.
Explaining the same, Dr Navneet Agrawal, Chief Clinical Officer of BeatO, a comprehensive diabetes care platform said, “The pathophysiology of pulmonary symptoms in diabetes is complex and multifactorial, and not completely understood.”
Adding to this, he said that the currently known underlying mechanisms for lung dysfunction in patients with diabetes include:
*Hyperglycemia (high blood sugar level)
*Hyperinsulinemia (excessive levels of insulin)
*Autonomic neuropathy (nerves are damaged)
*Oxidative stress (imbalance between free radical and antioxidant activity)
*Micro/macroangiopathy of alveolar capillaries and pulmonary arterioles (a disease of small and large blood vessels)
*Glycosylation of tissue proteins (an enzymatic modification of protein molecules by the addition of a sugar molecule)
*Collagen and elastin changes
*Alteration of connective tissue
*Surfactant dysfunction and malfunction of respiratory muscles (inadequate respiration)
As per the expert, diabetes can lead to the following lung diseases:
Lung infections (Pneumonia)
The higher rate of lung infections in diabetic patients is mainly due to hyperglycemia which adversely affects immune system function, increasing diabetic patients’ morbimortality.
Pulmonary tuberculosis
Several studies have shown that 10 per cent to 30 per cent of patients with tuberculosis may also suffer from diabetes. (Source: Freepik)
It has been shown that a reduction in the immune response associated with diabetes may increase the risk of developing active tuberculosis by approximately three-fold. Several studies have shown that 10 per cent to 30 per cent of patients with tuberculosis may also suffer from diabetes. Diabetic patients are also prone to develop drug-resistant tuberculosis resulting in antituberculosis treatment failure, disease relapse after the completion of treatment and increased mortality.
Cystic fibrosis
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Diabetes is the most common and life-threatening complication of cystic fibrosis due to pancreatic insufficiency and abnormal timing, delayed and blunted secretion of insulin.
Others are asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), acute lung injury (ALI) / acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary fibrosis and lung cancer.
Ways to manage diabetes and lung health, according to Dr Agrawal:
*Eat healthy
*Physical activity
*Check your blood sugars regularly
*Stop smoking and alcohol consumption
*Get a pneumococcal vaccine
*Get a flu shot every year
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