Are you a person who, among millions of others, suffers from asthma? This article contains several easy tips that can help you control your asthma symptoms.
If you suffer from asthma, stay away from the fumes of household cleaning products. The chemicals in these products make you more prone to an asthma attack. If you enjoy cleaning, or are the sole cleaner in the household, you are sure to be able to find one of the many natural cleaners that will be safe for your use.
People afflicted by asthma should make it a priority to always avoid exposure to smoke, vapors and fumes. You should not smoke and consider which jobs are appropriate for you, especially if you are thinking about working in a factory.
Avoid those things that you know can trigger your asthma. This can vary from person to person, as small particles like dust can cause asthma attacks. Some people get attacks after being physically active. Determine what your trigger is so you can easily avoid an attack.
An important part of symptom management is knowing what type of asthma you have. Gaining as much knowledge as you can about the type of asthma you have can make your day-to-day activities a little easier. For example, if you have exercise-induced asthma, you will want to always make sure you have an inhaler in your gym bag. Knowing the patterns of your symptoms will help you avoid crises.
Asthma is an ongoing disease and requires ongoing health management. Make sure to take the right medication for controlling everyday asthma symptoms, but also have quick relief medication with you in case of an attack. Speak to your allergist and doctor to see what they recommend for you.
During a mild to moderate attack, force all of the air out of your lungs. Exhale as fast and hard as you can. Try hard to push the air out from your lungs! Take three short breaths, then one last deep breath to ensure your lungs have enough air, then forcefully breath out. This technique develops a breathing rhythm, allowing you to notice the breaths that you take in. It will also empty your lungs of air, so that they’re ready to take in new, fresh air. You might cough or produce sputum, but that is fine; you are trying to get breathing under control again.
If you are suffering from a moderate or mild attack, do your best to force as much air out of the lungs as possible. Exhale as quickly as possible, expelling air forcefully out of your lungs. Get the air all out of the lungs. Inhale a series of three quick breaths, followed by a deeper one, before exhaling with force again. This will create a rhythm and will help you be aware of the way you are breathing. It also helps to push air out from your lungs so new air can come back in. You may generate sputum, but the primary goal is to start breathing regularly again.
Cigarette smoke and asthma do not mix. Asthmatics should also never smoke. Avoid vapors and chemical fumes from cigarettes. This could trigger a serious asthma attack, and you may have trouble preventing it from happening. If you are around others who are smoking, remove yourself.
If you suffer from asthma and allergies that result in attacks, you can get injections of long-lasting medication for relief. One antibody medication available is called Omalizumab and can be prescribed by your doctor or allergist.
Social Worker
Make sure if you have an inhaler that you are using it the right way. An inhaler is most effective if used in a relaxed location and according to the maker’s instructions. The inhaler is only beneficial if the medicine gets to your lungs. While taking a deep breath, spray in the recommended dosage. After inhaling, it’s important that you hold the medication in by holding your breath for 10 seconds at the least.
If your health insurance situation cannot help you with your asthma, talk to a social worker. Asthma medications are a necessity, and a social worker can help you find an affordable way to keep your prescriptions current.
Talk to a social worker if you’re not eligible for any health insurance and you’re an asthma sufferer. Social workers are trained to help people find resources for affording health care, particularly on debilitating conditions such as asthma.
When suffering from asthma, there are vitamins that can help, including E and C. These vitamins have been known to improve the function of the lungs and reduce some asthma symptoms. You can take a supplement or consume these vitamins in food. These vitamins can boost immune systems, which helps you to avoid illnesses that can be a trigger for your asthma.
Both Vitamin C and Vitamin E are important if you suffer from asthma. You can buy these vitamins to help you get better function from your lungs and control your asthma symptoms. You can choose to ingest this vitamins by eating foods that are rich in the vitamins or through a supplement. Vitamins C and E are necessary for a healthy immune system. If your immune system isn’t healthy, it won’t be able to fight off illnesses that cause asthma attacks.
A dehumidifier can significantly reduce the asthma attacks experienced by you or other afflicted members of your household. Decreasing the humidity in the house decreases dust mites, which decreases asthma flare ups. Dehumidifiers eliminate your home’s humidity, leaving dry air.
If you use more than four cleaning products, you are increasing the risks of an asthma attack. A great way to prevent this is to purchase some organic, non-chemical cleaning products. These all-natural products are safe when inhaled.
Using more than four different types of cleaning products in your home has been shown to increase the risk of an asthma attack. Try organic cleaners that are free of irritating chemicals.
If you are an asthma patient, be sure to stay away from people who smoke, even if you are not a smoker yourself. When tobacco smoke is inhaled, especially in closed-in areas, your lung function can be drastically decreased, which can increase your chances of suffering from an attack.
Keep your home clean. By keeping a clean environment, especially in a bedroom, you can lower your risk of asthma attacks. Refrain from smoking inside the home, and keep edibles inside your kitchen. If you clean with any harsh chemicals or bleach, make sure to ventilate thoroughly afterwards.
Your home can be full of the major triggers leading to an asthma attack. Dander, dust and mold are all commonly found in many homes. Have an inspector who focuses on allergens and irritants come into your home once a year to help you detect what you have and learn how to remove it. In addition, regularly cleaning the home can stop these things from building up.
Receiving a regular flu shot is a great tip to implement if you or someone you love suffers from asthma. Avoid a lot of these infections by getting vaccinated each year.
In the winter, cover your mouth and nose with a scarf or shawl to prevent asthma attacks. Bundling up puts heat between the air and your lungs, which can help lessen your risk of an asthma attack. Young children are especially at risk for an asthma attack if the air they breathe is too cold, but this problem can affect anybody with asthma.
Make it a habit to always have some rescue medication available when you travel. Traveling causes extra strain on your already stressed body, which makes your body more susceptible to bothersome asthma triggers. You also have little control over your environment when traveling, which can make you more susceptible to an attack and symptoms of greater severity.
If you are flying with your asthma medications, especially a large piece of equipment such as a nebulizer, be sure to bring along a written prescription from your doctor. When you have written proof that these items are necessary it can help speed along the security procedures.
Even if your asthma seems like it is under control, always keep your asthma appointments with the doctor. It is important to make sure your condition isn’t worsening, and your doctor may want to prescribe a different medication.
During the week, you should take note each time your rescue inhaler is used. If you use it three or more times each week, your treatment plan may not be working effectively or else an atypical situation may be triggering an increased number of attacks. You are able to judge how the environment around you effects your body by how many times you need to use your inhaler.
Asthma generally takes a long time to develop, and the symptoms may be vague at first, making it difficult to diagnose the problem. There are some cases reported that were so severe that a person died from one asthma attack when they didn’t even know they were considered at risk. Because of this, if you notice that you have trouble breathing or are constantly coughing, you may want to visit your doctor. They can tell you if you have asthma and if there is a medication that you should be taking. Your doctor can also tell you if there is something you can do to prevent asthma from developing.
Asthma sufferers need to know which types of animals and breeds won’t trigger their asthma attacks. Asthmatics can be affected by the dander or pollen that comes from the animals, even if they have no allergies to them. This can be a very risky situation to put yourself in and should be avoided.
Anytime you clean your house or apartment, wet mopping is superior to sweeping. If you choose to sweep, you’re swirling up a tornado of dust and allergens, both of which are common triggers for asthma symptoms. Use a dampened rag when dusting, instead of a feather duster, so as to prevent stirring up loose dust particles and other asthma triggers.
See more than one doctor. It’s true your primary doctor should be your main source for all your asthma help, but it may be wise to see one or two asthma specialists. Pulmonologists, allergists, asthma centers and also nutritionists can assist you in exploring every avenue of treatment for your asthma.
Bed Linens
Make certain you have checkups scheduled with your physician every few months so you keep on top of your asthma. Your physician needs to evaluate how you are right now, and decide if any changes need to be made. It is your responsibility to make sure you make these appointments with your doctor so that he can follow up with you and keep you healthy.
Bed linens often collect asthma aggravators, such as pollen, dust and allergens. These threats can be reduced or even eliminated by keeping your bed linens laundered every week using hot water. You will breathe easier at night when you have freshly washed and clean bed linens.
Eat more foods that are rich in B6 vitamins. Vitamin B6, aka pyridoxine, is found to reduce asthma attack frequency in a lot of studies. It seems to work by producing molecular elements that aid it relaxing the tissues of your bronchial system. You can find good reserves of vitamin B6 in bananas.
This article contains a number of tips to help you better control your asthma symptoms. However, none of these tips will be effective if you do not apply them properly. Even if you have applied some of these tips, your symptoms can still return unless you’re vigilant in working to subdue them. Be persistent in the way you follow these asthma tips and you’ll be able to improve your both your health and your quality of life.
The best way to avoid having an asthma attack is to know what your trigger are. A daily journal can be a powerful tool to help you pinpoint frequent triggers and it can also help your doctor to prescribe the treatment that is right for you. After you figure out what your triggers are, do everything in your power to avoid exposure to them.