DEAR DR. DONOHUE: My husband was diagnosed with COPD. He has never smoked, but he did work around asbestos. He is 79, and his doctor said his age and the asbestos may be what caused it. We have tried to find information on COPD but haven’t been very lucky. Would you explain what this is and if there is a cure? — B.K.

ANSWER: COPD — chronic obstructive pulmonary disease — is the sixth most common medical illness. Actually, it’s two illnesses, most often seen together: One is emphysema, a destruction of the lung’s air sacs, the delicate structures through which oxygen enters the blood and carbon dioxide leaves it. The primary sign of emphysema is shortness of breath when an affected person is active. The second COPD illness is chronic bronchitis, an inflammation of the airways — the bronchi — with narrowing and clogging of the airways due to an overproduction of thick mucus. Coughing with the expulsion of gooey mucus is its trademark sign.

Cigarette smoking causes most COPD, but not all. Sometimes aging brings about changes in the lungs that qualify as COPD. Air pollution, lung infections, exposure to dusts and other contaminants, and genetic illnesses are other causes. Treatment centers on avoiding the causes that brought the illness on and using medicines that can get more oxygen into the blood through calming airway inflammation and compensating for air sac damage. Asbestos is not linked to COPD, but it is linked to lung scarring, a process called interstitial fibrosis with symptoms similar to COPD. It also is linked to lung cancer.

If your husband hasn’t had breathing tests, he should. Initiation of treatment and the kind of treatment are determined by those tests. Medicines called bronchodilators open up narrowed breathing tubes. Temporary use of cortisone medicines calms lung inflammation. Oxygen is given if lung tests indicate that it’s needed. The tests also serve as a guide to exercise, a most important part of therapy for COPD.

The booklet on COPD gives a comprehensive view of it and its treatments. Readers can order a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue – No. 601, Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Enclose a check or money order (no cash) for $4.75 U.S./$6 Can. with the recipient’s printed name and address. Please allow four weeks for delivery.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I am a 76-year-old man. I am in pretty good health. I drink a gallon of skim milk every three to four days. I love milk. Am I harming my body by drinking so much milk? I have done this for at least 25 years. — J.T.

ANSWER: So you’re drinking about a quart of milk a day. That amounts to 400 calories, 32 grams of protein, 400 IU of vitamin D and 1,200 mg of calcium. You don’t need any more calcium. You’re getting the daily requirement from milk. All this sounds OK to me. You’re not harming yourself.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I would like your opinion on copper and magnetic bracelets. They say copper is good for arthritis and magnets are good for blood pressure and diabetes. Do they work? — F.S.

ANSWER: “They” say lots of things. I happen not to believe in the benefits of either copper or magnetic bracelets. I have never seen any proof that they work. I have never heard of any reasonable explanation why they should.

DEAR DR. DONOHUE: I had bypass surgery a year ago. When I got back to my room, my heart sped up, and they gave me a shock. Does this have any bearing on how my bypass will hold up? — T.W.

ANSWER: After heart surgery, many people have a temporary derangement in their heartbeat. I’m guessing, but I believe you had an episode of atrial fibrillation. A shock can get the heart beating regularly. This ought not to have any bearing on your bypass.

Dr. Donohue regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but he will incorporate them in his column whenever possible. Readers may write him or request an order form of available health newsletters at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Readers may also order health newsletters from www.rbmamall.com.

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