Supplements for Healthy Lungs

Andrew Weil M.D. A.B., best-selling author and founder of the Foundation for Integrative Medicine in Tucson, suggests that you take supplements for healthy lungs, even if you're not a smoker. He focuses on preventive health tactics and believes the ability to breathe properly is fundamental to good health.

Aspirin

• Take one, adult-strength aspirin each day to reduce the risk of lung cancer. The risk of getting nonsmall-cell lung cancer (the most common type) was cut by almost 80 percent for regular aspirin users, according to A. Akhmedkhanov, MD of the New York University School of Medicine. This on-going research has focused mainly on women so far, who seem to benefit the most from taking aspirin. Aspirin works because of its anti-inflammatory properties.

Selenium and Zhu Ling

• Ingest 200 mcg of selenium daily to lower the risk of developing lung cancer. Selenium is a trace mineral that appears in all foods and is important for good health. The National Institute of Health says those with high selenium levels in their blood had notably lower incidences of lung cancer.

  Protect your lungs from cancer also by taking the mushroom Zhu Ling. Dr. Weil says Zhu Ling "may help stimulate the body's immune response against lung tumors."

  Zhu Ling is popular medicinal mushroom in China. It's used as a diuretic, antibiotic, and a urinary tract infection remedy.

Vitamins B6, C and D

• Take 4 mg vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) daily. Dr. Weil states B6 "may help protect against lung cancer by supporting immune function."

  Take high levels of vitamin C to protect your lungs. At the Division of Respiratory Medicine, University of Nottingham, British researcher showed high vitamin C levels along with magnesium may lower the risk of pulmonary disease and benefit lung health.

  As of 2000, the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies set a new upper intake level for vitamin C for supplements and food--2,000 mg per day for adults.

  Ingest 800 IU vitamin D daily for lung health. The Archives of Internal Medicine's February 2009 article revealed a relationship between vitamin D and upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs). Increased levels of vitamin D results in lower URTIs. Research is being done now about preventing URTIs.

Coenzyme Q-10 (CoQ-10)

• Take 300 mg coenzyme Q10 daily, to "improve the use of oxygen at the cellular level," states Dr. Weil. Coenzyme Q-10, CoQ-10, is a powerful antioxidant found in all cells of your body and in food.

  A 1994 study at the University of Occupational and Environmental Health in Kitakyushu, Japan, demonstrated that the "appropriate pretreatment of CoQ10 may have a beneficial effect on lung preservation."

Tips and Warnings

• Avoid taking more than the recommended dosage of vitamin A--this supplement is toxic in high doses.

  Be cautious about taking over the recommended vitamin C level of 2,000 mg daily. It isn't harmful, but it may cause diarrhea.

  Do not take more than one aspirin per day. Taking more aspirin can result in internal bleeding.

  The authors of "YOU: Staying Young," Dr. Mehmet C. Oz and Dr. Michael F. Roizen, suggest how to take vitamin supplements: "Take half in the morning and half at night to keep a constant vitamin level in your blood during the day."