What Asthma Is

We must be educated of asthma triggers in order to help prevent them. If you or anyone you know or love, struggles with asthma, you know how critical it is to avoid any kind of trigger that would spur on an attack. You can take your preventative medicine, of course, but as soon as you enter a dusty room or even go outside, allergens are inhaled and your airways may constrict, causing another attack. Many people with asthma keep an inhaler with them to prepare for going outside or into the workplace. But we cannot control these environments, unfortunately. On a better note, you can prevent asthma triggers in your own home! The main triggers in your average household are dust mites, molds, and pollens. Dust mites may be the most common asthma trigger at home. How can you protect yourself? Wash your bedding in hot water every week and make sure your pillows and bedding don’t contain feathering. Non carpeted floors are great because they are easily cleaned. If you don’t have

Today asthma has become a major health concern due to the high pollution levels and intense industrialization. Hectic lifestyles and busy schedules make people ignore their personal health. Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease that is related to the lungs causing breathlessness. The swelling of the lungs that causes the airways to constrict leading to a lot of difficulty for the air to move in and out is the main cause of asthma. How Does Asthma Affect Your Lungs? When we breathe, air passes through our nostrils, windpipe and bronchi tube to finally reach our lungs. During an attack of asthma, this function of breathing in and out is affected. The individual cannot breathe freely as his airway becomes constricted. Restricted air flow causes breathlessness and wheezing. Asthma symptoms can be either mild or severe. Mild symptoms include coughing normally during the night, headache, nasal and chest congestion, loss of appetite, runny nose and sleeplessness. In severe c

An asthma attack is always taken as a physical experience. Sufferers often experience chest tightness, coughing, and an more effort to breathe. Yet asthma also has an emotional component. There is the frustration of experiencing an attack and the fear of what might happen if the attack worsens. Asthma can be a life-threatening condition. This can increase levels of anxiety, leading to panic, which in turn can trigger or worsen an asthma attack. Anxiety, resentment and despair are common emotions felt by the asthmatic. For centuries, many people believed asthma was caused by stress or emotional disorders. This led to a stigma being attached to the condition and there grew a stereotype of the asthmatic being a weak, anxious person, forever wheezing and coughing. Breathing is obviously tied in with emotion. We gasp with fear when we watch a scary movie, and take short breaths if we get involved in an action flick. We catch our breath if something startles us. Laughing and cryi

Asthma,controlling and managing it is an essential part of your life. Controlling your asthma means staying away from things that bother your airways and taking medicines as directed by your doctor. If you have asthma, it is important to learn how to take care of yourself. MAKE AN ACTION PLAN FOR ASTHMA WITH YOUR DOCTOR It is important that you work with your doctor to make an action plan that you are both happy with. As part of this, you will need to: * Tell your doctor about all other medications and drugs you are taking, in case one of them affects your asthma. * Follow your asthma action plan and have regular checkups. * Learn to use your medication correctly. Ask your doctor to teach you how to use your inhaler. This is very important. If inhalers are not used correctly, less medication gets into the airways. * If you are having problems taking your asthma medicine, seek your doctor’s advice immediately. IDENTIFY YOUR ASTHMA TRIGGERS You also need to l

Asthma inhalers are a lifesaver to many or if not all asthma sufferers. Asthma inhalers provides a safety net for people with asthma and is used whenever an asthma attack is about to happen.The most common asthma inhaler is a canister that deliver asthma medication. A metered-dose inhaler (MDI) is a device that delivers a specific amount of medication to the lungs, in the form of a short burst of aerosolized medicine that is inhaled by the patient. It is the most commonly used delivery system for treating asthma,chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other respiratory diseases. The medication in a metered dose inhaler is most commonly a bronchodilator, corticosteroid or a combination of both for the treatment of asthma and COPD. A metered-dose inhaler (MDI) Asthma inhaler has been used for nearly a hundred years and has improved a lot in recent years to deliver greater absorption and potency. The basic principle is still the same although the medication has chang

Acid reflux or GERD is very common in adults over age 40 but actually anyone can get it even infants. Studies have shown that approximately 75% of asthma patients also suffer from GERD. GERD can result in permanent injury to the esophagus or can cause pre-cancerous changes in the esophagus (Barrett’s esophagus). It also seems to be one of the major risk factors for cancer of the esophagus (adenocarcinoma), a cancer that is becoming more and more commonplace among Americans. What are the symptoms of GERD. GERD (acid reflux) can cause a real nasty coughing spell and it in turn can produce asthma symptoms. This condition is more than just heartburn, although that is the most common symptom. GERD is the chronic backward flow of stomach acids into the esophagus. It may worsen your asthma symptoms. Unfortunately however some asthma medications may worsen GERD symptoms. Few factors connecting GERD and asthma are the absence of an allergic component, adult onset asthma, nocturna

Asthma attacks any races and any ages, and it is the commonest chronic childhood illness. Asthma in child is most likely to occur before age five. Young children are especially open to attack because their lungs are still developing. It can develop as early as infancy, although most childhood asthma appears between ages 2 and 5, which is when antibodies to inhalant allergens increase in a child’s body. Among adults, asthma usually appears for the first time between the ages of 30 and 39. About 10 percent of new cases occur in people ages 65 and older. Childhood asthma affects boys more than girls around the age of 12; however, girls with asthma begin to outnumber boys after they experience their first menstrual periods. Many think that hormones may be another asthma trigger. The signs and symptoms of child asthma are mostly the same as for adults: wheezing, coughing shortness of breath, chest tightness, rapid breathing and exercise intolerance. In addition, asthma kids may

Asthma – most possibly somebody that you know that suffers from it if you do not suffer from it yourself. Even if you don’t have a through understanding of what asthma is you do however know what the symptoms are. Asthma is a respiratory condition where the small airways in the lungs tighten up, and it causes a person having an attack having a very tough time to breathe. The length of the attack usually depends on how serious the condition is and how tight the airways are. The appearance of asthma does not follow awfully predictable patterns. Folk of any age and sex can have asthma but it is not atypical to first appear during infancy. Some folks are lucky and outgrow asthma.  There are the unfortunate people that may live with asthma for the rest of their lives. There are many people who suffer with asthma that have no other relations in their families who have it. Normal signs and symptoms of asthma often are cough, wheezing, tightness in the chest, breath shortness,

All kind of people have different asthma symptoms. This catchy is true for mothers-to-be, too. Your asthma may be mild, moderate, or severe. Mild asthma causes only an occasional attack, with few symptoms in between. If you have moderate asthma, you often get attacks more than twice a week, and you have harder time breathing. Severe asthma causes an asthma attack almost every day and a chronic cough or difficulty breathing. The severity of your asthma determines how much medication, monitoring, and trigger avoidance you need to do. Asthma is hard to predict. If you’ve had asthma during an earlier pregnancy, you might have a similar experience (in symptoms, medication, etc.) this time around. On the other hand, some women who’ve never had asthma develop it for the first time while pregnant. Meanwhile, about a third of women with asthma get worse during pregnancy. Why? Researchers aren’t sure. They do know, however, that several common conditions during pregnancy can aggravat

Many people attempt to be absolutely free of asthma signs or symptoms most of the time, but mostly they can achieve this, provided they follow the correct medical advice. Asthma is one of the worst conditions anyone could ever have, it affects your number one tool that enable you to survive and that is your breathing. Asthma attacks can happen at anytime due to a number of reasons, such as environmental conditions, stress and general asthma triggers. You could be out with your friends when one of their children have an attack. Are you aware of how to deal with these situations? If you are able to provide the right asthma treatment, it might possibly save someone’s life. Here are key points you should know. The worst thing you could do is pat someone on their back during an asthma attack. You should always make the person feel as comfortable as possible when they are having an asthma attack. Attempt to calm the person's breathing down while they are having an asthma at

Estimated 90 percent of people with chronic asthma have EID exercise-induced asthma. Chronic asthma and bronchiectasis* are also at times given this diagnostic result because of the severity of the attacks. People that have chronic asthma or suppressed immune system suffer from serious health issues when exposed to mold spores and allergies. Bronchiectasis* is a disease state defined by localized, irreversible dilation of part of the bronchial tree. It is classified as an obstructive lung disease, along with emphysema, bronchitis and cystic fibrosis. Asthma Asthma as we know it, is a chronic and potentially debilitating disease that affects thousands of people. More and more people in the are becoming aware of asthma as a chronic disease. Although it is chronic, asthma attacks are triggered by specific predictable things in the environment.  Most people are familiar with some of the key asthma triggers (cat and dog dander, mold, pollen and dust mites), but fewer than 50% id

Nobody likes the thought of their children having a situation that negatively affects his/her life. Yet more and more children are being diagnosed with asthma. More and more often, asthma and childhood seem to be going hand in hand. If your child is suffering from asthma there are some very basic things that you should be doing to help your child. The number one thing you want to do is make sure you have a clean house and that there is no mold growing anywhere in your home including the basement.  If you have a pet, you should groom the pet regularly and make sure you vacuum everyday to get rid of the animal hair and dander. Pet dander, mold, and dust are three things that do not mix with children suffering from asthma. Another thing you want to do is monitor your child’s diet. Make sure he/she eats plenty of fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables – along with other foods that are high in antioxidants – have been shown to help with asthma.  Your child should eat fr

Patients who are under asthma influence for the most part of their lives, they cannot depend only on medications to alleviate their condition. Most people surrender to the idea of dealing with sneezing, shortness of breath, and other common symptoms caused by asthmatic conditions. But establishing an asthma treatment plan is one of the best ways to get started with eliminating such health problems and lead an asthma-free life. Establishing Your Treatment Goals Health experts advocate the combination of medication and a healthy lifestyle as a realistic asthma treatment goal. Hence, people suffering from asthma must aim for both. After all, clearly establishing your goals will enable you to outline the necessary steps that you can take towards long lasting healing. One must attempt to prevent long term effects of asthma. So, those who are just starting to develop symptoms of this condition are advised to take immediate steps towards an effective asthma treatment.  Otherwise

It is customary for the doctor and patient who has been diagnosed with asthma to put an action plan to eliminate triggers, prescribe treatment and ultimately control asthma symptoms. Being able to control asthma will prevent chronic symptoms of asthma such as coughing and wheezing, reduce the occurrence and frequency of attacks and maintain normal activity levels in daily life. Since there is no cure for asthma and in some instances there is no identified cause, medication is necessary to treat, prevent and control the symptoms of the disease. The type of medication is determined upon the patient’s age, symptoms, triggers and to what makes the asthma better. Not all medications work on every individual especially since more than a quarter of people who suffer with asthma are children. Therefore determining the right type of prescription will be a task that both the doctor and patient will have to discuss and develop together. There are two types of medications that doc

In short, it is due to the constriction in the air passageways that usually attacks a person with asthma. The main factors that cause the airways to become narrowed and blocked, is a constriction of the muscles surrounding the air tubes, an inflammation and swelling of the lining of the air tubes, and an increase in mucus production, which clogs the air tubes. This disallows a person to breathe normally and even wheezing sound in severe cases. Twitchy Airways The air tube is made up of several layers. On the outside of the air tube there is muscle which by tightening and relaxing, controls the size of the opening of the air tube (the space through which air must pass). The muscle works by reflex, and is guided by the same portions of the nervous system that control reflexes, like involuntary blinking. We have little conscious control over the tightening and relaxing of these muscles. Everyone’s airways have the potential for constricting in response to irritant such as cigare

Many of us at some time have experienced the allergies of the allergens. Sometimes all of a sudden your eyes begin to water and you have a runny or stuffy nose. This action is quite common in the springtime(those who live in seasonal countries) as the flowers and trees begin to bloom. For many an asthma attack is quite common during this time. When the weather clears up and the sun begins to warm things up, many people like to go outside and work. They may begin mowing their lawns or in the case of farmers, begin cutting hay.  This is a prime time for allergies and allergies are the number one cause for an asthma attack. This article will talk about an asthma attack. What brings them on and what happens during an attack. An asthma attack happens when the airways become inflamed and a restriction of airflow occurs. The lungs are the organ in our body that filters the oxygen we breathe in. As we breathe in air, oxygen is filtered through the lungs and when we exhale, we relea

Asthma, a long term lung inflammation that weakens and contracts the air passageways, attacks people at all age and statistics shows that asthma usually starts at childhood. The victims of asthma normally experience chest pains, breathing problems and regular coughing that occurs usually late at night or early in the morning and also causes the patients to produce a whistling sound whenever they breathe. When an asthma attack occurs, one may wonder what really is the cause and what actually happens internally. Here’s an overview on what asthma is all about. When a person is being attacked by asthma, the air passages which are the tubes that handle the air movement in and out of one’s lungs gets inflamed resulting to narrowing of the airways. Those air passages gets extremely sensitive to the air that the person breathes plus the microscopic elements that may be included to that air. When these tubes get extremely sensitive and react, the muscles surrounding , get too tight caus

Chronic disease like asthma is a illness of the respiratory tract and is mainly caused by constriction of the air passages due to many reasons. There are quite a few conditions that manifest with symptoms similar to that of asthma. This makes these diseases as well as asthma both very difficult to diagnose. Some conditions that impersonate the symptoms of asthma relatively closely are described here to facilitate ease of detection and treatment. Chronic Bronchitis and Emphysema: Chronic bronchitis,COPD and emphysema are diseases that are very closely related to asthma. It is generally seen that the patients of slightly older ages start with asthma and later on if untreated develop symptoms of chronic bronchitis, which may eventually lead to symptoms of emphysema. The asthma may be due to allergens of any kind, which are difficult to detect as it is, and the system thus provoked may lead to more severe disorders. Sometimes the whole cycle may go in a different direction alto

Asthma in children is a disease that is throughout the globe. People from every age groups get affected by it. Researched studies indicate that asthma is hereditary in nature so there are greater chances of offsprings catching the disease if their parents have it. Also there are indications that anyone at any age and stage may catch asthma even if they may not be having any prior family history of the disease. Asthma may be caused as a reaction to certain allergens present in one’s atmosphere also. And it is also a well known fact that a person may develop allergy for a certain allergen quite all of a sudden. So asthma can also be termed as a disease that is mainly an outcome of exposure to different kind of irritants and allergens, which one encounters as a result of modern day changing lifestyles. Asthma is a very frequent occurrence among children. One in ten infants suffers with the disease. Usually the children outgrow the disease as they grow up but for that to happen sma

Measures You Can Take to Prevent or Minimize Asthma Attacks Caused by Pets. Sad to say that pets we love like cats and dogs are often the major asthma triggers. A cute little kitten or lovable dog that your child or partner cannot live without it, is one of the triggers and if you develop asthma, you need immediate treatment and medication. Contrary to what many people believe, it is the dander (dry flakes of skin), not the hair of the animal that actually is the cause of the problem. Your pet’s dander is shed continuously, but it is so small that it is invisible. As the dander is easily airborne and sticks readily to fibers it goes everywhere and gets on just about everything. Dry flakes of skin For instance if you have furniture, beds and rugs and you allow your pet to come inside the house and lay on them, they are certainly full of it. Even if you cuddle or play with your pet, it’s all over your clothing too. However, this doesn’t mean that you have to get rid of Fido o