Air Hunger?

[susieg-1]

I keep hearing members mention having air hunger and I am not sure what they mean. Can someone describe what this feels like? I recently had a pulmonary function test and was told my small airways are not working efficiently, but not why. Got an inhaler to help with shortness of breath, is this the same as air hunger? I am soooo confused!!!

[CarlaB]

I have air hunger associated with Lyme Disease.

It's like I cannot get a full breath of air. No matter what, I feel like I'm not bringing in enough air. It has made me hyperventilate until I learned to not panic and breath out more completely.

I was tested for asthma and it came back negative.

Mine went away with Lyme (and babesia) treatment.

[MELINE]

well I googled it and Wikipedia is describing it like this:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Air hunger is the sensation of the urge to breathe. It is usually caused by the detection of high levels of carbon dioxide in the blood by sensors in the carotid sinus and is one of the body's homeostatic mechanisms to ensure proper oxygenation. Natural chemicals in the blood such as epinephrine (adrenaline) can also induce an urge to breathe by a separate pathway. Insufficient pulmonary minute ventilation, a sustained breath-hold, constriction of the alveoli of the lungs as in asthma or high ambient levels of carbon dioxide in the air breathed can cause air hunger resulting in a respiratory distress condition characterized by dyspnea, labored breathing or gasping. Air hunger can be very distressing and triggers strong reactions to restore breathing.

In mammals (with the notable exception of seals and some burrowing mammals), the breathing reflex is triggered by excess of carbon dioxide rather than lack of oxygen, so asphyxiation progresses in oxygen-deprived environments, such as storage vessels purged with nitrogen or helium balloons, without the victim experiencing air hunger.

I don't know if that is any help for you.....

Meline

[susieg-1]

well I googled it and Wikipedia is describing it like this:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Air hunger is the sensation of the urge to breathe. It is usually caused by the detection of high levels of carbon dioxide in the blood by sensors in the carotid sinus and is one of the body's homeostatic mechanisms to ensure proper oxygenation. Natural chemicals in the blood such as epinephrine (adrenaline) can also induce an urge to breathe by a separate pathway. Insufficient pulmonary minute ventilation, a sustained breath-hold, constriction of the alveoli of the lungs as in asthma or high ambient levels of carbon dioxide in the air breathed can cause air hunger resulting in a respiratory distress condition characterized by dyspnea, labored breathing or gasping. Air hunger can be very distressing and triggers strong reactions to restore breathing.

In mammals (with the notable exception of seals and some burrowing mammals), the breathing reflex is triggered by excess of carbon dioxide rather than lack of oxygen, so asphyxiation progresses in oxygen-deprived environments, such as storage vessels purged with nitrogen or helium balloons, without the victim experiencing air hunger.

I don't know if that is any help for you.....

Meline

Thank you both this does help me to understand the term

[RiceGuy]

This discussion reminded me of a radio commercial I sometimes hear, about something called lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM). So I looked it up, and though I don't know if it applies at all, I figured I should at least post a link: Open Original Shared Link

The site seems to suggest only women experience this, but I haven't dug into it. I'm guessing it's unrelated, but maybe it'll help someone reading this thread anyway.