The link between COPD and good nutrition during COVID-19

This article looks at the current nutritional guidelines around Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) risk of malnutrition and use of oral nutritional supplements (ONS). It considers the increased nutritional risk of COPD patients during the pandemic from a social economic perspective.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a name that encompasses a number of chronic lung conditions such as emphysema and bronchitis1. The British Lung Foundation (BLF) estimates that 1.2 million people in the UK, about 2% of the population, have a diagnosis of COPD, making it the second most common lung disease after asthma. Most people diagnosed with COPD are over 40 years old, the incidence increases with age with the less well-off more likely to suffer COPD.¹