You are starting to panic because you have been told you have asthma. Asthma, being a chronic condition, has no cure. However, you shouldn’t consider your life to be over just because you have received this diagnosis. This article will outline some simple ways you can begin to manage asthma safely and effectively.
Are you informed about what type of asthma you suffer from? Knowing as much as possible about your specific type of asthma will go an incredibly long way in helping you combat the day-to-day effects it has on you. Asthma caused by exercise can be treated easily if you carry an inhaler when you go to the gym. Knowing the patterns of your symptoms will help you avoid crises.
If you are an asthma sufferer, you need to avoid smoking and exposure to fumes or vapors of any kind. This means avoiding tobacco products, and making sure that you do not choose any kind of job that could expose you to harmful vapors or smoke, such as factory work.
If you suffer with asthma, avoid cleaning products. Cleaning products may contain chemicals which can trigger an asthmatic episode, such as ammonia. If you do the cleaning in your house, use natural solutions that are safer for you to breath in.
Actually Trigger
Be aware of certain medications that can lead to asthma problems. Some of these include aspirin and NSAIDs. The medication you take for high blood pressure can also cause asthma symptoms. It is important to let your doctor know if you suffer from asthma together with any of these conditions.
There are some medications out there that you could be taking which will actually trigger your asthma symptoms. Believe it or not, something as seemingly innocuous as aspirin can actually trigger symptoms. You can also use medications that can control high blood pressure and heart disease, things like beta blockers. If you have any of these conditions along with your asthma, make sure you tell your doctor.
A leukotriene inhibitor may be an excellent way for you to deal with asthma. A leukotriene inhibitor works by preventing leukotrienes. A leukotrienes is a type of chemical that causes inflammation, which leads to asthma attacks. By blocking the effects of leukotrienes, a leukotriene inhibitor can reduce the frequency and severity of your asthma attacks.
If you’re in a room that has a lot of dust in it, don’t turn on a fan. Otherwise, the dust will fly into the air and could give you an attack. Open a window to bring clean, cool air inside instead.
When suffering from asthma, there are vitamins that can help, including E and C. There is some evidence that these two vitamins can improve breathing and lower the frequency of asthma attacks. You can take these vitamins in pill form, or you can eat fresh fruits and vegetables and get the vitamins that way. Your immune system gets a boost with these vitamins, and this helps protect your body against illnesses and asthma.
If you suffer from asthma, and have many attacks that are related to your allergy symptoms, there is a medication that is injected and provides long term effects. Your allergist may recommend a variety of medications to control your reactions and the onset of asthma.
A dehumidifier can significantly reduce the asthma attacks experienced by you or other afflicted members of your household. A reduction in humidity will also lessen the amount of dust mites in your home. This lessens the chance of an asthma flare up. Dehumidifiers cause the air in your home to become dry, which means less humidity.
Try a leukotriene inhibitor if you have asthma. There are modern medicines that are highly effective at blocking leukotrienes. A leukotriene will cause inflammation in the respiratory system, causing an asthma attack. When used properly, an inhibitor can help reduce symptoms and prevent attacks.
While everyone appreciates the look and feel of a clean house, asthma sufferers in particular benefit from a healthy environment as it can decrease the risk of asthma attacks, especially in a sleeping area. Keep food in a kitchen or on the dining room table, and avoid cigarette smoking inside. After cleaning around the house, open windows and allow fresh air into the house. This can reduce the smell and pervasiveness of household cleaners like bleach.
Make proper use of your inhaler. Find a comfy spot, and follow the manufacturer’s instructions. Your inhaler will only help if you breathe very deeply. While inhaling air, spray required dosage in your mouth. Then hold it and try not to breathe for a minimum of 10 seconds. This will give enough time for the medication to properly fill out your lungs.
Stand ready for a boost to your asthma treatment should you suffer from illnesses like colds or hay fever. A lot of illnesses can cause your asthma to flare up very badly, resulting in the necessity to increase asthma treatment. Your doctor could add another treatment into your regimen until the illness is better.
Social Worker
Make it a habit to always have some rescue medication available when you travel. When you travel, you sometimes strain your body a little more than you think, which can make you a bit more susceptible to having asthma attacks. The change in environment can also have a negative impact, since it is impossible to control. This can lead to more frequent attacks or attacks with symptoms that are worse than normal.
Talk to a social worker if you do not have health insurance and need medication for your asthma. It is essential that you can buy your asthma medicine, and a social worker might help you find a hospital or clinic that can provide your medicine at reduced cost, or free.
Your home can be full of the major triggers leading to an asthma attack. Three triggers comprise the asthma triad of doom: spores, dust and mold. In order to remain healthy and lessen any chances of having an asthma attack, it is recommended you have your home inspected yearly to have these harmful triggers removed. If you clean your house regularly, you can minimize the risk of these substances accumulating in your dwelling.
If you are someone who suffers from asthma, you should consider buying a dehumidifier for your home. When your home has less humidity, there are less dust mites, and that minimizes the chances of an asthma flare-up. Dehumidifiers work by taking the humidity out of the air.
Bundle up during winter weather if you have asthma. Covering your nose and mouth with a scarf or muffler helps prevent asthma attacks. You can inhale warmer air into your body with these. Inhalation of cold air is proven to initiate asthma attacks, and younger kids afflicted with asthma of moderate or severe proportions are especially at risk.
Studies show that using a variety of cleaning products in the home can actually increase the odds of triggering an asthma attack. Try organic cleaners that are free of irritating chemicals.
Make note of how often, on a weekly basis, you use your inhaler. Using it two times or may may mean that your asthma is not as controlled as you may think it is. It could also mean that something else is bringing on these frequent attacks. The frequency of use of your inhaler can give you an idea about your surroundings and the need to watch them.
Unscented products are best for asthma sufferers. Scented products such as air fresheners, incense and perfume heighten the degree of indoor air impurities and may possibly contribute to an attack. Certain things around the home, such as newly installed carpet or fresh paint, can also release chemical irritants. Because the dangers these things represent, it is important to always keep indoor air fresh to the best of your ability.
You have to know the proper way to use an inhaler if you suffer from asthma. In order for the inhaler to work, you must carefully follow the directions. Every time you take a puff, hold in your breath for at least three seconds and then exhale. An inhaler is not of much use if you aren’t taking it correctly.
If you suffer from asthma, consider using a feather-free pillow to sleep. The feathers can make asthma worse and take away from your ability to breathe. The same reasoning applies to all bedding – only purchase bed sheets and comforters that are manufactured from hypoallergenic materials.
If you frequently use your inhaler (more than two to three times per week), you should talk to your doctor about alternative methods of treatment or a different prescription. This means your inhaler isn’t working right. Also, if you refill the inhaler more than 2 times each year, there is the same result, which means making an appointment with your doctor.
Attend your regular asthma checkups, even if things seem to be going well. Your doctor may be able to prescribe more effective treatments and you may be suffering symptoms you’re not aware are related to your asthma.
Learn all you can learn about your condition. You can take faster, more effective action to treat your asthma condition the better you understand it. Make sure you are learning the newest information about treatments and get the best doctor to help you with it. To know these things, you must keep learning about your disease and the options available for treatment.
Asthma Attacks
Knowing your catalysts for asthma attacks is the first step to preventing them. A journal is a good way to identify what has triggered an attack and provides you with a simple way to keep your doctor informed. When you know what they are, do everything possible to keep away from these triggers, and get rid of them from your surroundings whenever you can.
When it’s colder, wear a shawl, scarf or muffler that will cover your mouth and nose to avoid asthma attacks. This will warm the air that you breathe before it enters your lungs. Breathing in the cold air has been shown to trigger asthma attacks, especially in younger children with moderate to severe asthma.
Keep track of how often allergies trigger asthma attacks. If you experience two or more asthma attacks a week after taking allergy medicine, switch to a different allergy medication. Medical professionals generally consider two or more allergy attacks weekly to be dangerous, but completely preventable.
If you are traveling by plane and must bring inhalers or nebulizers on board, you should bring a written prescription for the equipment. Having proof in writing from a doctor that states the item is a medical necessity can eliminate security hassles.
Over time you should work to strengthen your body and increase the capacity of your lungs. A more strenuous exercise program may irritate your airways and bring on an asthma attack so you will want to proceed with caution.
It is important to track how often you use your fast-acting inhaler each week. If your records start to show you need the inhaler more than two times weekly, your environment might be causing you problems or your asthma is not being controlled as well as it could be. How frequently you need to use the inhaler can help you recognize any environmental changes you need to make.
It is important to know the warning signs of an impending asthma attack so you can get medical help for your child if one strikes. These symptoms include a bluish tint to the lips or fingernails and unresponsiveness to medication. Also, the person suffering the attack may be having issues talking.
As is evident by what you have read, preparedness is the key to managing asthma. Understanding the kind of asthma you have, and what you can do to care for it every day, is the perfect way to avert disaster. Reading this article has been the first important step in getting control of this disease.
If you are an asthma sufferer, you need to warm-up before you begin any strenuous exercise and to properly cool-down when you are finished. The warm up and cool down can be an effective way to exercise safely and reduce the chance of an asthma attack.