American women are 37 percent more likely to have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, than men, and millions of women have symptoms that have gone undiagnosed, according to a report from the American Lung Association. Dr. Steven Brown, a pulmonary specialist who has practiced for 25 years, said smoking is a huge issue. He said the first wave of women with COPD came during World War II, when women began smoking at work, and the habit persisted in the postwar years.
The report says that since 2000 COPD has claimed the lives of more women than men, and Dr. Brown said women now account for 60 percent of the patients he sees. The number of deaths from COPD among women has more than quadrupled since 1980. COPD is now the nation’s third-leading cause of death, according to the American Lung Association. Dr. Brown said women are more susceptible than men to the problems associated with tobacco smoke because their lungs are smaller.
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Dr. Brown said the best way to combat this problem is with education. He said states also need to continue to legislate against the effects of second-hand smoke. It was in 2010 that South Dakota’s law went into effect, banning smoking in all enclosed, indoor workplaces, as well as the indoor portions of bars and restaurants.