Lung age estimation compares a smoker's actual FEV₁ to what's expected for their age, expressing the result as an equivalent "lung age" — often noticeably older than their real age — as a motivational tool for smoking-cessation counseling.
Reduced FEV₁ translates into a lung age that can far exceed actual age.
No — it's a counseling and motivation tool built on real spirometry data, not a diagnostic category on its own. It's used to make reduced lung function tangible during smoking-cessation conversations.
Hearing that your lungs function like those of a much older person can be a powerful, concrete motivator — studies have shown telling smokers their lung age improves quit rates.
From a regression equation (Morris–Temple) using measured FEV₁ against age-based norms for a person's height and sex.
That simply means lung function is better than average for that age — reassuring, and the tool is mainly aimed at highlighting the opposite in smokers.