9/5/08 10:02 PM
JimBaber wrote in topic Article: Exercise Your Lungs:
This is a very well written article, the author has done quite well. I think that the only major point that he missed was that the experts feel that only 50% of all COPD patients have been even identified. This is bad news, because instead of being the 4th leading cause of death, it probably be ranked as the 3rd leading cause of death. Unfortunately the number of people dying from a disease does directly affect the amount of money spent and the research on that disease. Since the majority of COPD patients have smoked and are older there is also a tendency to say "It's their own fault and they have lived their lives already." That's not a fair analysis and does not consider the impact on families and the high cost of their medical care to society.
