Fears over growing risk of chronic lung disease

AS many as one in nine young adults in industrialised countries are at risk of developing chronic lung disease, new research has claimed.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), where airflow to the lungs gradually deteriorates, is mainly caused by smoking but is also linked to exposure to fumes and dust and respiratory infections in childhood.

Researchers from the University of Verona in Italy assessed the health of 18,000 adults aged 20 to 44 from 16 countries to see how many were at risk of developing COPD.