Monitor Your Lung Health with 3 Simple Home Tests

With pollution levels rising day by day, our lungs are bearing the brunt of the toxic air the most. While the environment plays a huge role in lung health, our lungs also get affected by poor lifestyle, and smoking.However, home lung health assessment through simple methods enables you to monitor your breathing capacity, and identify potential lung issues at an early stage. Three research-backed home methods enable you to perform easy lung function assessments from the comfort of your own home. Take a look..1. Home SpirometryThe gold standard for lung function assessment through spirometry measures your forced expiratory volume (FEV1), and forced vital capacity (FVC) after taking a deep breath.The combination of affordable portable spirometers with smartphone connectivity, enables you to perform spirometry tests from your home.Researchindicates that home spirometry produces results that match clinical tests for both healthy adults, and those with asthma or COPD. Using a home device twice per week enables you to monitor lung function patterns, which help you identify potential declines, that need medical evaluation.The app requires you to follow its instructions for achieving proper testing technique. Home spirometry serves as an excellent tool for people who have persistent lung problems, and smokers who want to track their lung health.8 yoga poses to improve lung capacity and strengthen respiratory muscles2. Breath-holding and balloon-blowing testsThe breath-holding test provides a fast method to evaluate your lung capacity together, with breathing control abilities. Take a deep breath before you attempt to hold your breath, for as long as you can.People with healthy lungs usually manage to hold their breath between 30 to 50 seconds. Your doctor needs to evaluate your lung capacity when you cannot hold your breath for more than 20 seconds. The balloon-blowing test serves as a simple assessment, which requires you to inflate a balloon through one continuous breath.A person with good lung volume can blow up a balloon to more than 8 inches (20 cm), but those with respiratory weakness will only reach 6 inches or less. Thetestsrequire no special equipment, and can be performed at any time since they are non-invasive.The practice of controlled breathing and balloon blowing according to pulmonary rehab research, helps strengthen your lung muscles.3. The six-minute walk testThe six-minute walk test (6MWT) evaluates your walking distance during six minutes, to assess your lung function, heart performance and muscle strength. You need a flat surface with distance markings and a timer to perform this test. People with normal lung function usually walk between 400 to 700 meters during the test, but shorter distances might point to lung or heart problems.Researchshows that the six-minute walk test works as a valid method for home-based lung health assessment in patients with chronic lung disease, because it shows changes in exercise performance and blood oxygen levels. The test becomes safer and provides more valuable information when you use a pulse oximeter, to monitor blood oxygen levels during the walk. The test helps you understand your lung oxygen supply performance when you are physically active.These three home tests enable you to monitor your lung health continuously from home without requiring hospital visits. The tests help you identify potential lung issues early, while encouraging lung exercise training and medical consultation when necessary. You should contact a doctor for evaluation when your test results show concerning values or when you experience worsening symptoms, including breathlessness, persistent cough and chest tightness.Disclaimer: This article is informational only and not a substitute for medical adviceGet an chance to win ₹5000 Amazon Voucher by taking part in India's Biggest Habit Index! Take the survey here