Those that are suffering from chronic bronchitis have a very serious illness to consider.  As you’ll see in later chapters, it is this condition that often needs the most attention by you and your doctors.

 

Are You At Risk, Then?

 

Since anyone can get acute bronchitis from a cold that they have, it is not difficult to imagine that virtually everyone is at risk for developing this condition.  Yet, there are some additional reasons why this condition can effect you more often or even just more severely than it will effect other people.

 

For example, those that are living in a home where they or someone else smokes are at an increased risk for bronchitis.  In addition, children in these types of living arrangements are even more susceptible to bronchitis.

 

Those that are living in conditions where bronchitis is likely, such as a smoking home, will also have increased risks of developing pneumonia, colds, respiratory infections, asthma and ear infections.

 

Even still, there are additional conditions in which you can find yourself suffering from bronchitis.  Those include the following risk factors:

 

·      For some people, the risk may come from a low resistance level that is due to another health condition that they are facing.  For example, those that are suffering from a cold have a weakened immune system, making them more likely to suffer from it.  In addition, those that are elderly and children are more likely to face bronchitis than those that are middle age because they have a weaker immune system.

 

·      GERD is another reason that you may experience bronchitis.  You are more at risk if you suffer from gastroesophageal reflux disease.  The cough that this back up of acids causes in your gastroesophageal track can be a cause of your cough and your bronchitis.  Therefore, those that suffer from this condition are more likely to have these symptoms.

 

·              The other large risk factor to getting bronchitis has to do with that of chronic bronchitis.  Those that are exposed to irritants while working or doing other things on a regular basis are more likely to experience bronchitis than those that are not.  Occupational bronchitis is a large part of this.  Lung irritants include a wide range of things including cotton dust, hemp, flax, chemicals like ammonia, hydrogen sulfide,