Keeping Your Respiratory System Healthy

1Good habits for healthy lungs

• Exercise often. Football, running, skipping, dancing and swimming make your breathing muscles stronger and help your lungs work well.
• Eat a balanced diet. Fruits and vegetables such as oranges, mangoes, carrots, dodo (amaranth) and beans give you vitamins and minerals that help your body fight lung infections.
• Rest and sleep enough. A tired body is weaker against germs.
• Breathe through your nose. It filters, warms and wets the air.
• Let fresh air in. Open windows and doors so that fresh air comes in and stale air, smoke and germs go out. This is called ventilation. Avoid sleeping in crowded rooms with closed windows.
• Stay away from smoke and dust. Cook on an improved cookstove, or in a kitchen with a window or a chimney. Never burn plastic. Wear a mask when sweeping a very dusty room.
• Never smoke, and keep away from places where people smoke.
• Say no to alcohol and drugs. They harm the whole body and weaken it against diseases such as pneumonia.
• Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or the inside of your elbow, and wash your hands with soap and water. This stops germs from spreading to others.
• Get vaccinated and have health check-ups. If a cough lasts more than two weeks, go to the health centre.

2Back to Mugisha's kitchen

Mugisha's family could open a window or make one, add a chimney, use an improved cookstove that burns less wood with less smoke, use dry wood (wet wood makes more smoke), or cook outside when the weather is good. Each change means cleaner air for everyone's lungs.

Try it yourself

Try each one on your own first, then tap Show answer to check.