The 4th of July

The 4th of July was recently commemorated here in the United States. It celebrates the founding of this country in 1776 and the folks who helped it become what it is.

But the weather was extremely hot and extremely humid. 90-100 degrees here in the Northeast.

Not as bad as Paris (115!) or some other European countries. There were pictures of Parisians camping at the foot of the Eiffel Towers and along the grassy knolls of the Champs-Élysées.

I pray for our COPD brothers and sisters in Europe and Asia - that they have enough medicine to combat this deadly disease and enough electricity to run their oxygen generators.

Access to computers and smart phones for information

The fact that I’m writing this for the internet (and you’re reading it) indicates that you and I, as Americans, come from a certain economic background.

We can afford computers or smart phones to access the web and its oftentimes invaluable information.

I can’t imagine what it is like to be economically disadvantaged (poor!) or uninsured when dealing with something like COPD, as I do and maybe you do as well.

From my own reading, I know there are 3rd World Countries where COPD is prevalent and yet goes untreated because of socioeconomics.

COPD and socioeconomic status (SES)

For instance; a 2016 National Institute of Health study found:

“...a disproportionate burden of COPD occurs in people of low socioeconomic status (SES) due to differences in health behaviors, sociopolitical factors, and social and structural environmental exposures.

Tobacco use, occupations with exposure to inhalant toxins, and indoor biomass fuel (BF) exposure are more common in low socioeconomic populations.”¹

Even in 1st World Countries there are disparities between cities and “the country.”

“Hospital admission rates for COPD were higher in rural than in metropolitan areas of Victoria (Australia).

Multiple logistic regression analysis showed significant associations between COPD admission rates and socio‐economic status, smoking rates and remoteness of the area.”²

Education of the public and those involved in providing health care about COPD is sorely needed in many countries throughout the world.

Efforts to prevent COPD through smoking cessation and decreased occupational exposure is also critical.²

Education and awareness of COPD

Apparently, COPD in Japan is largely under-diagnosed. Which is very surprising to me considering the sophistication of the Japanese people.

But it is hoped that education will continue to raise awareness of COPD among doctors and the general public there.³

COPD is a major public health problem in mainland China and Hong Kong as well. In 2002, the World Health Organization estimated that the Western Pacific region has the highest mortality (79.8 per 100,000 population) and prevalence (1,675 per 100,000 population) of COPD than other regions in the world.

With its huge population of 1.2 billion and a smoking prevalence of 30%, China will certainly bear the brunt of this disease.

Apparently, COPD is currently the fourth leading cause of death in China's cities and the first leading cause in the rural areas.³

I hope there will soon be worldwide efforts to educate, not just the economically advantaged, but more critically, the disadvantaged as well. Improving access to affordable health care for the disadvantaged is important.

And I hope that we, in the United States, take the opportunity of the 4th of July to acknowledge that, despite what we go through, we are fortunate to receive the kind of care we do for our COPD.