Alcohol Consumption and Risk of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: A Prospective Cohort Study of Men
Restoring the redox balance in the lung could reverse many of these alcohol-induced defects and improve alveolar macrophage immune function (Brown et al. 2007; Yeligar et al. 2014). Alveolar macrophages are the first line of defense in lung cellular immunity. These phagocytic cells ingest and clear inhaled microbes and foreign particles from the lungs.
Other countries also report similar TB treatment defaults in individuals with AUD, resulting in poorer treatment outcomes and increased mortality rates (Bumburidi et al. 2006; Jakubowiak et al. 2007). Along with noncompliance, people with AUD have compromised lymphocytes, which are among the main immune components combating TB infections. The three main types of lymphocytes are natural killer (NK) cells, T cells, and B cells. Chronic alcohol intake modulates the functions of all three of these lymphocyte populations (Cook 1998; Lundy et al. 1975; Meadows et al. 1992; Spinozzi et al. 1992; Szabo 1999).
Can I Drink Alcohol If I Have COPD?
When you drink heavily, the system doesn’t work as effectively as it should. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) refers to a group of lung diseases that affect your breathing. It’s not like someone is telling people to drink or not drink, says MeiLan K. Han, MD, professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan Health System.
Alcohol consumption in mice reduces the in vitro killing capacity of NK cells compared with control animals not exposed to alcohol (Meadows et al. 1992). There are, of course, many proven health risks that come from drinking too much alcohol, especially if you’ve been doing it for a long time. However, one 2015 study found that light to moderate drinking (between 1 and 60 drinks a month) did not seem to make COPD worse or cause more health problems related to COPD. But the researchers weren’t able to say what the effect of heavy drinking (more than 60 drinks per month) was on COPD, since there weren’t enough heavy drinkers in the study. But all of these studies are what scientists call “associational,” which means there was an overlap between people who did a certain thing (in this case, drinking alcohol) and then whether they developed a certain disease (in this case, COPD).
Alcohol-Related Mechanisms of Lung Injury
An early experimental study in sheep investigating the effects of alcohol on ciliary beat frequency (CBF) demonstrated a dose-dependent effect, such that low alcohol concentrations actually stimulated CBF, whereas high concentrations impaired it (Maurer and Liebman 1988). Later mechanistic studies found that whereas short-term alcohol exposure causes a transient increase in CBF, chronic exposure desensitizes the cilia so that they cannot respond to stimulation (Wyatt et al. 2004). Alcohol-induced failure of the mucociliary system could interfere with the clearance of pathogens from the airways and thereby may contribute to the increased risk of pulmonary infections in people with chronic heavy alcohol use (Sisson 2007). The depletion of glutathione within the alveolar space of people with AUD explains many of the alcohol-related defects in the function of the alveolar epithelium as well as in the function of immune cells called macrophages (which will be discussed in the next section). Glutathione levels are affected by oxidative stress and inflammation; however, lungs of alcohol-exposed animals show no gross evidence of inflammation or injury at baseline, and otherwise healthy alcoholics likewise have no indication of lung inflammation or oxidative stress. Without evidence of an oxidant assault on the otherwise healthy alcoholic lung, the question remains why there is such overwhelming glutathione depletion.
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If you drink regularly and experience breathing problems, go see your doctor. RSV is a common respiratory infection that typically causes mild, cold-like symptoms. Pneumonia is the medical term for infection and inflammation of the tiny air sacs or “alveoli” within the lungs.
- Alcohol-related reductions in antioxidant levels also may contribute to lung disease in people with underlying AUD.
- Collectively, these derangements encompass what has been termed the “alcoholic lung” phenotype.
- These phagocytic cells ingest and clear inhaled microbes and foreign particles from the lungs.
- The depletion of glutathione within the alveolar space of people with AUD explains many of the alcohol-related defects in the function of the alveolar epithelium as well as in the function of immune cells called macrophages (which will be discussed in the next section).
- Understanding the complex interplay between all of these systems in the alcoholic lung will become exceedingly important in the search for new and effective treatments.
Just one glass of wine with dinner can cause sleep problems for some patients with COPD. According to the American Lung Association, 85–90% of COPD cases result from smoking, either directly or from secondhand smoke. The other main subgroup of T cells, the cytotoxic T cells, has CD8 molecules on their surfaces.
Chronic alcohol ingestion downregulates the expression of GM-CSF receptors on the cell does alcohol affect copd surface of the alveolar macrophages, thereby impairing their immune function (Joshi et al. 2005). Experimental models demonstrate that restoration of GM-CSF signaling reverses this alcohol-induced dysfunction (Joshi et al. 2005), suggesting that this might be a potential therapeutic approach. Also, as mentioned earlier, recent evidence suggests that interactions exist between Nrf2 and the GM-CSF pathway, with Nrf2 regulating the expression and activity of the transcription factor PU.1, which controls GM-CSF expression (Staitieh et al. 2015).
Overall, these alterations in host defense and immune dysfunction explain how chronic excessive alcohol ingestion predisposes to pulmonary infection. It is important to realize, however, that the effects of alcohol on alveolar macrophage innate immune function are just one facet of the complex pathophysiology of alcohol and the lung’s immune system. Alcohol also impairs neutrophil migration to the infected lung, and abnormalities in this and other components of the adaptive immune response clearly are involved but are beyond the scope of this brief review. Alcohol-related lung disease (ARLD) is the medical term for lung damage that develops in response to excessive alcohol consumption.
