Western Diet Accelerates Alveolar Destruction in COPD

In western societies today, we see an increase of chronic degenerative diseases, causing a severe socioeconomic burden for the aging population. This is largely due to change in lifestyle and the consumption of a so-called Western Diet (WD), characterized by the intake of processed foods, convenience products and sugary beverages. As suggested in literature, long term consumption of a Western Diet could trigger oxidative stress related inflammatory responses, leading to chronic low-grade inflammation. This, in turn could further increase the susceptibility to other diseases, like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In fact, higher levels of oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory cytokines stemming from an unhealthy diet have been linked to poor lung function in COPD patients. In our chronic high fat diet mouse model, we could show damage to the lungs, encompassing destruction of the alveoli and enhanced immunological responses, resembling changes seen in pre-COPD conditions. Furthermore, WD feeding resulted in DNA damage to the alveolar epithelial cells. Chronic cigarette smoke exposure combined with WD feeding in the mice revealed a crucial role of WD in COPD pathogenesis, as demonstrated in significantly enhanced emphysema compared to that of cigarette smoke alone. Unraveling the underlying mechanisms behind these findings will aid the understanding of WD-induced susceptibility to COPD development. Publication History Article published online: 04 March 2026 © 2026. Thieme. All rights reserved. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Oswald-Hesse-Straße 50, 70469 Stuttgart, Germany