Do you suffer from asthma and wish that you knew much more about the disease? You are in good company. There are a lot of people who want to expand their knowledge when it comes to asthma, yet they aren’t sure where they can obtain this kind of information. You may find some of the facts delineated below surprising, but they can be extremely helpful in allowing you to control this condition.
Cleaning products should be avoided when you have asthma. Asthma sufferers are often sensitive to chemical cleaners; using these products can sometimes trigger asthma attacks. If you are the person in your house who does the cleaning, there natural product solutions which are safe for you to use.
Smoking is a horrible habit, even deadly, for an asthma sufferer. When smoke enters your lungs it cuts off your oxygen supply, and if you suffer from asthma it can make breathing extremely difficult, and result in an increased number of attacks.
If you have been diagnosed with asthma, you must avoid cigarette smoke at all costs. Do not smoke! Avoid exposure to chemical fumes or vapors. This can cause your asthma to flare up, causing an attack that may be uncontrollable. If you are around others who are smoking, remove yourself.
Consider getting allergy shots if you have asthma that is caused by allergies that aren’t under control. Your allergist may recommend a variety of medications to control your reactions and the onset of asthma.
When you are dealing with asthma, try getting a lekotriene inhibitor. This type of inhibitor is designed to prevent leukotrienes. Leukotriene is a substance that may cause inflammation. This can make a person have an asthma attack. If you use an inhibitor, you may find that the your asthma attacks significantly decrease.
Leukotriene inhibitors may be helpful to you if you suffer from asthma. It works to prevent leukotrienes. Leukotriene, a chemical substance, can provoke an inflammation that causes an asthma attack. Leukotriene is an oral therapy for the treatment of asthma, but it is not as effective as inhaled corticosteroids.
If you have asthma and cannot get health insurance, see a social worker. If you cannot afford medicine for asthma, your social worker can help you locate someone that can help.
Utilize the inhaler correctly. An inhaler is most effective if used in a relaxed location and according to the maker’s instructions. Your inhaler will only help if you breathe very deeply. Inhale deeply as you dispense the correct amount into your mouth. Be sure to hold the mist in your lungs for about ten seconds.
You may want to consider purchasing a dehumidifier for your home if you suffer from asthma. 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.
Social Worker
Asthmatic patients should avoid using feather pillows. The feathers contained in these pillows can aggravate asthma symptoms and reduce lung function. Be sure to keep the same advice in mind for your bedclothes. They should be made from materials that do not increase allergy symptoms.
If you suffer from asthma and you are not eligible for health insurance, speak with a social worker. Having the financial ability to purchase your asthma medications is essential, and a social worker can help you locate a hospital or clinic that can provide you with these medications for free or at a significantly reduced rate.
Go to your regular medical check-ups, even if your condition seems under control. 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.
Make certain that all members of your family get their annual flu shot. When you are afflicted with asthma, steer as clear as you can of all types of respiratory infections. Common method of avoiding illnesses can be very effective. Keep your vaccinations up to date and wash your hands frequently.
Mold and mildew thrive in homes with high humidity levels. These substances can easily trigger asthma attacks. So try your best to make your home as dry as possible. During winter, use a device to dehumidify in the winter, and air condition in the summer.
Those with asthma should always opt for unscented items because they are safest. Scented products, like air fresheners, incense and perfume, raise indoor pollution levels and can trigger asthma attacks. In addition, paint that is fresh or carpet that is new release odors that can cause breathing irritations that lead to an asthma attack. Try to see that the air inside your home remains as fresh as possible.
Wear a covering over your mouth and nose when you go outdoors in the colder weather. A shawl, scarf or muffler would work well. This way, the air will be warm before entering your lungs. Breathing in air that’s cold can trigger an attack, particularly in younger children that have moderate or severe asthma.
If you are an asthma patient, you may want to sleep with a pillow that does not contain feathers. Feathers in a pillow can bring on the symptoms of asthma and decrease lung function. This applies to bedding, as well, so it’s best to make sure that everything on your bed is hypoallergenic.
Use your inhaler when you need to, but be aware that this product can cause infections near your gums and teeth. You may be able to avoid this problem by brushing your teeth or rinsing your mouth thoroughly after each use of the inhaler.
In the winter, prevent attacks by wearing shawls, mufflers and scarves that cover the nose and mouth. Filtering and warming air before you inhale it can help prevent asthma attacks. Inhaling cold air can elicit an asthma attack or create other serious respiratory problems.
If pollen is present in the air, anyone with asthma should stay inside. A lot of the same things that can bother people with allergies will bother people with asthma as well. The air quality information should be used to find out when it is better to stay indoors to avoid irritants present in the air.
Maintenance Medication
Keep yourself as calm as possible when having an asthma attack. Take your first dose of your inhaler and then wait thirty seconds. You can use your inhaler again after that. If you feel your ashtma attack worsening, get immediate help. Go to the emergency room, or call an ambulance if it’s extreme. While heading to the hospital, breathe into a paper bag; it will slow your breathing rate and help reduce the attack.
Make sure you understand the correct way to use your asthma medication, especially any rescue medication. When you have asthma, you should be on a maintenance medication and have an emergency medicine for asthma attacks. Usually this is in the form of an inhaler. Because you will have asthma for the rest of your life, it is important that you take your maintenance medication properly, and that you use your emergency medication correctly.
Talk with your physician if you find that you need your inhaler more often than a couple of times weekly. Frequent use of the rescue inhaler means that your management medicine is not working as it should. This also applies to anyone who needs to refill their inhaler more than two times in a single year.
Asthma develops over an extended time period, and its symptoms aren’t always obvious. In fact, some people who didn’t even realize they had asthma died as a result of their initial attack. 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.
Schedule regular visits with your doctor to check up on your asthma. Ideally these should occur every few months. Only your doctor can fully evaluate your condition and recommend appropriate changes in treatment. You should always keep your appointments so that your doctor can follow up on your treatment plans, and work with you to maintain your health.
When you need to take your asthma supplies on an airplane, it is a good idea to bring your doctor’s prescription with you. If you have written proof about the item you have,and that it is medically necessary, there will be less hassles going through security.
If repainting a room is in your future, purchase a quality mask first to protect your lungs from paint fumes. The fumes from paint are very irritating to the lungs of asthma sufferers, but a mask goes a long way towards filtering out these irritants. In general practice, in fact, it is best to avoid fumes that will likely trigger an attack.
Using your preventative inhaler should be done daily. It’s important to know, though, that it can cause sores and infections near your gums and teeth. Always brush and gargle as soon as you’ve finished using your inhaler to prevent mouth infections.
The mere act of discussing your asthma condition with other people can have a soothing and positive effect. They are there to help you win this battle with asthma through great tips and well planned ideas. As with anything else, having the right support system can make a difference in how asthma affects your life.
When you clean your floors, do so with a wet mop instead of a broom. Sweeping can trigger an asthma attack due to the copious clouds of minute asthma-triggering particles it kicks up. When you dust, try dampening a rag, instead of a feather duster, to avoid spreading things that can trigger your asthma.
If you do not have your inhaler with you and you are experiencing an asthma attack, take a quick caffeine shot! Strong black tea, coffee or chocolate can aid in mitigating asthma attack symptoms. This opens up your airways.
Stop smoking. There is a general awareness that smoking is not good for your health. But for the asthmatic, smoking can quickly have serious consequences. A person with asthma has sensitive lungs that can react adversely to smoke, causing an asthmatic attack. So an asthmatic should not even be in a room where other people are smoking.
It is important to eliminate cigarette smoking anywhere an asthma sufferer is likely to be. Anyone that needs to smoke can go outside and do so at a distance from the house. Heavy smokers can cause a person with asthma to have a full blown asthma attack, because they still carry the smell of smoke in their clothes.
If conclusion, it’s normal for people experiencing asthma to be curious about their condition because it affects their everyday life. This article was aimed at giving you the best asthma information available, so your stress about the condition can be eased. Make use of this information in your everyday life, and you will soon realize that asthma is not such a difficult thing to deal with after all.
A yearly vaccination for the flu virus is a wise idea. You should get the vaccine regardless of whether you are or are not affected by the flu on a yearly basis. If you’re prone to getting asthma attacks, it’s more likely that you’ll seriously suffer from respiratory or sinus infections caused the a virus or the flu.