Dr.s, Nurses, Health Buffs?

[preciousjeni]

I have questions about two things.

First, I remember in a health class I took in college, we were told that lungs have a great capacity (no pun) to heal. And, after three years without smoking, they completely regenerate. But that even with the regeneration, any scarring caused by the smoking will still exist.

1) Is this an accurate portrayal?
2) Does the scarring cause any noticeable problems?
3) I smoked from about ages 15-25 (varying numbers of packs per week but never more than 3/wk. I think that's considered a light-medium smoker.) I don't smoke anymore nor am I around smoke. Based on this information, am I in a good position to regain good lung health?


Second, my current doctor and I were talking about weight loss. I already knew that muscle mass increases with weight gain to enable the body to move. She told me that bone mass also increases - which makes sense.

1) Does the increase in bone mass, even after weight loss, have any effect on osteoporosis?
2) How do the muscles and bones lose mass when weight loss occurs? (That might be a dumb question...is it that your body just absorbs what it doesn't need?)


Thanks for the help!