If you’ve just been given an asthma diagnosis, you may not know what to do. Asthma has no cure, which makes it a chronic condition. That doesn’t mean you need to curl up into a ball doing nothing, for fear that doing anything else would bring on an asthma attack. Here you will see some simple methods to manage your asthma to keep you safe and healthy.
If you are having an asthma attack (mild or moderate), you need to try to force air out of the lungs. Exhale hard and fast. Really force that air out of your lungs! Do your inhalations in triple bursts of short breaths, and then follow with final deep inhalation so that you fill your lungs comfortably, before exhaling with vehemence once more. The breathing rhythm that you create by doing this will cause you to be aware of every breath you take. In addition, it repeatedly empties your lungs of air, so that you can draw in more oxygen-rich air. You might start coughing, and some sputum may come up, but this is no problem and your focus is to get back into a relaxed, rythmic breathing pattern again.
If you suffer from asthma, you should not smoke or expose yourself to any type of vapors or fumes. You should not smoke and consider which jobs are appropriate for you, especially if you are thinking about working in a factory.
If you are suffering from asthma, stay away from any type of cigarette smoke. You should not smoke yourself! Avoid fumes and vapors of any kind. This can cause your asthma to flare up, causing an attack that may be uncontrollable. You should give up on the smokes if you have asthma and also make sure to avoid other people who are smoking.
An important part of symptom management is knowing what type of asthma you have. If you know as much as you can about the kind of asthma that you have, you can find out how to battle it day-by-day. For example, if you have exercise-induced asthma, you will want to always make sure you have an inhaler in your gym bag. If you are familiar with your symptoms and their patterns, you will be better able to avoid emergencies.
Keep rooms free of dust, and do not turn on a fan if you do have dusty rooms. Dust blown around by fans can cause your asthma to rear up. The better way would be to open a window to increase the airflow in the room.
An important tip to help protect your asthma-afflicted children is to always refrain from smoking around them. Secondhand smoke is almost as dangerous to asthmatics as actually smoking a cigarette. Make sure you keep your child away from other people who are smoking, too.
Consider consulting a social worker if your asthma medication is not covered by an insurance policy. Asthma patients need their medications, and a social worker might be able to hook you up with programs to help you such as clinics and programs through pharmaceutical companies.
Learn what triggers your asthma so that you can avoid it. For some people, this can be pollen or other allergy triggers. For others, attacks can be caused by physical activities. Determine what your trigger is so you can easily avoid an attack.
If you are using a lot of different cleaners around your house you can trigger a asthma attack. Try using organic cleaning products which don’t contain irritating chemicals.
Consider getting injections of medications to treat your asthma if you are prone to attacks induced by allergy symptoms. Omalizumab is one such medication, and can control the allergic symptoms you may be experienced. An allergist will be able to tell you if this is a good option.
Be sure not to smoke as well as stay away from any smokers in general, this can be very harmful for you if you have asthma. 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.
Vitamins E and C are beneficial to anyone with asthma. They are believed to aid respiratory function and to be instrumental in keeping your asthma in check. You can choose to ingest this vitamins by eating foods that are rich in the vitamins or through a supplement. Your immune system gets a boost with these vitamins, and this helps protect your body against illnesses and asthma.
Unscented products are best for asthma sufferers. Products with fragrance, such as perfumes, colognes, and air fresheners, introduce irritants into the air around you and can cause asthma attacks. Freshly painted walls and brand-new carpet can also give off odors that cause irritation to airways. As much as possible, try to keep your home filled with fresh, pure air.
Studies show that using a variety of cleaning products in the home can actually increase the odds of triggering an asthma attack. Choose organic products, and stick to as few products as possible.
When dealing with hay fever or a cold, you will notice an increase in your asthma symptoms. The effects of some illnesses can exacerbate the effects of your asthma, causing the need for more treatments. Your doctor may choose to also add an additional treatment until the illness gets better.
Keep your home dust-free and get rid of any carpet in your house to help prevent asthma attacks, especially in a bedroom. Avoid smoking inside, and only let people eat in the kitchen. After you clean, let the house air out completely, and stay away from using any harsh chemicals (especially bleach) inside.
An annual flu shot is crucial if you have asthma or have an asthmatic child. Avoid a lot of these infections by getting vaccinated each year.
Have your rescue inhaler with you at all times, especially when on vacation. Traveling is hard on your body, and you might have an asthma attack easier because your body is more likely to respond to triggers. It is also hard to predict what will come up or to control your environment when you travel, which increases the chances of experiencing more severe symptoms or an attack.
Sleep with a feather-less pillow if you have asthma. Feathers can have a negative effect on the lungs and can worsen asthma symptoms. The same it true for bedding, try purchasing sheets and comforters that are created from hypoallergenic materials.
Don’t skip appointments for your checkups, even if you haven’t had any recent asthma attacks. A flare up can come at any time and your doctor can always look into safer medications for your particular symptoms.
Even if you have not had any recent breathing problems, you should nonetheless schedule regular checkups. Medical science is constantly evolving, so the doctor might know about a new treatment for you. Besides, you can never be sure when another attack might come on, so it’s better to be checked out.
Humidity in your home causes an environment where mildew and mold are more likely to grow. Mold and mildew can easily cause severe asthma attacks. So try your best to make your home as dry as possible. In the winter, use a dehumidifier along with your heater, and in the summer months, you can use your air conditioner to help control the amount of water in the air within your home.
Your home can be the cause of your asthma and its triggers. These causes are sources, such as, but not limited to dust, mold and spores. To keep these triggers out of your home, have a professional inspector come to your home each year to remove these nasties from your home. Furthermore, thorough and frequent cleaning will ensure that allergens and other possible triggers do not accumulate in your home.
Asthma Attacks
It’s a very good habit to use your asthma inhaler as a daily preventative, although the drug residue can cause issues for your gums and teeth. Always brush and gargle as soon as you’ve finished using your inhaler to prevent mouth infections.
During cold months, you could avoid asthma attacks by constantly wearing a shawl, muffler or a scarf that covers both your mouth and nose. You can inhale warmer air into your body with these. Breathing in the cold air has been shown to trigger asthma attacks, especially in younger children with moderate to severe asthma.
Avoid smoke to prevent asthma and asthma attacks. Cigarette smoke will often trigger an asthma attack. Stay away from all types of fumes as well as cigarette smoke. They can easily increase your asthma symptoms. If someone is smoking around you, you have every right to nicely ask them to not to.
When you are making an effort to control asthma, do not smoke. Cigarette smoke will often trigger an asthma attack. Stay away from all types of fumes as well as cigarette smoke. These things will aggravate your asthma and worsen the symptoms. If a person is smoking around you, politely ask him to smoke at times when you are somewhere else.
For people with serious asthma, exposure to household pets should be limited. Even people that do not have allergies are prone to suffer an asthma attack from the pollen and dust on animals.
It is more critical than ever to always be prepared when you suffer from asthma. With the knowledge of your asthma type and asthma management techniques, you can avoid crises in your day to day life. This article is the first step to understanding how to battle this disease effectively!
Stay away from smoking. Most people know that smoking is dangerous, but if you have asthma there are more serious consequences. Smoke can severely irritate an asthma sufferer’s lungs; so, if you do suffer from asthma, stay away from both smoking and being around smoke in general.