Asthma Triggers, Condition and Remedies that will Help Better this Condition
What is Asthma?
A disease produced by inflammation of the bronchi, or small air tubes of the lungs. It can be a chronic life condition, commonly known for its characteristic shortness of breath and chest tightening symptoms. It is different for every person and can gradually improve or worsen, but in general, asthma is a sickness we have been dealing with for too long. Affected by many diverse factors, this illness is really something anyone could live with if proper care is practiced. It is still very uncomfortable though, and can really limit a person's ability to enjoy and participate in many exercises and activities.
What triggers Asthma?
An asthma attack usually occurs when someone touches or comes into close contact with something that irritates their lungs, causing the bronchi to inflame and become very slim. Phlegm is also created bountifully when this happens. There are a lot of factors to think about when it comes to asthma and its provocations. The person could have pushed themselves physically too much, have inhaled fumes, dust, fur, toxic gas, smoke, or just have an attack because of an allergic reaction.
What symptoms do we look for? Is it curable?
To really be able to look out for symptoms and exact treatment, you have to narrow down what could be causing the asthma. As said before, the factors are quite numerous and asthma could be brought up by those or by heritage in the family. Despite this, many people can usually figure out if after coming into contact with certain animals or places with gases they start suffering from an asthma attack, but will still make sure they are right by checking with an experienced immunologist. Now, asthma really does not have a cure, all we can really do for now is prevent and maintain control over the symptoms. A rather easy approach to prevention is staying away from anything that could be triggering the inflammation and the coughing. An inhaler is essential when being one of the many people afflicted with this ailment. Talking to your doctor about what steps to take in order to keep peace of mind and be able to control the asthma attacks is always a good idea too.
So, now what do we do?
We keep on living as always. Asthma may not be the best of conditions to live with and can be very uncomfortable and unfair at times but worrying and complaining really doesn't help. Best advice is to smile and enjoy life to the fullest. You may have asthma but you do not have all the problems in the world at the very least. Always look for the silver lining right?
Types of Asthma
When getting checked up with your doctor and trying to determine what medicine and treatment would be better for you, it is always good to have a history of when you’ve experienced the asthma symptoms or had an asthma attack. This will immensely help your doctor decide what course to take since asthma can be induced by different factors, and differently induced asthma requires different treatment.
Asthma has been divided in these following categories, helping patients understand where their situation falls and maybe even start aiding them in the process to create an asthma action plan. The types of asthma are as follows:
- Extrinsic or allergic asthma: the most common of them all, it is simply asthma produced by having an allergic reaction to something, may it be fur, pollen, or any hereditary allergic reaction really. This one mostly appears in young children and disappears once you become an adult but there are chances it could come back.
- Intrinsic or non-allergic asthma: a stronger asthma, and mostly rare, it occurs once someone is well into adulthood, usually in women too. It is a more complicated form of asthma as there are no real allergic factors to take care of and it usually comes back and forth.
- Asthma produced by overexertion in exercise: this one is pretty basic, stating that as soon as you push yourself too hard, the bronchi inflame and your chest starts tightening, causing the shortness of breath and so on so forth. It can sometimes be very light and be solved by a couple inhales from your asthma pump, while other times could leave you breathless for a long time, maybe even bringing upon a visit to the hospital. You do not necessarily have to have asthma to suffer from this type since it is caused by a general exhaustion. After talking to your doctor, they will advise you as to what to do if it happens again and if it is required of you to start taking medicine.
- Occupational asthma: this type only occurs when you have come into contact with something toxic, like a terrible gas or polluted air, possibly at work or some other places. You can tell if you suffer from this type usually because you begin to feel better as soon as you are far from the places filled with the gases and what not.
- Cough-variant asthma: this type is widely recognized because of the constant wheezing and coughing that comes with it, which is mostly caused by an infection or sinusitis.
- Nocturnal asthma: one of the most dangerous ones, it takes places when you are asleep due to the different positions and varied conditions of the place you are sleeping in, like allergens or air currents. As soon as you notice any kind of worsening in the night or wake up without being able to breath, contact your doctor and see what they suggest.
Natural Remedies for Asthma
Asthma cannot be fully cured but can be treated in many different, healthy and all natural ways. Experts and doctors have made list upon list about what to do when having an asthma attack, always improving with new additions for anyone to try. Here are some of these things you could do at home without pesky medications and long winded treatments
Body: Being the long term disease that it is, causing its shortness of breath and constant chest tightness, you can't blame anyone for trying to get rid of asthma for good. As any sufferer of asthma, the most one can usually do is keep an inhaler close and stay as far away as possible from anything that could trigger an attack.
The real goal you get to keep if you follow those steps is that you will never have to deal with troublesome symptoms all the time and prevent any emergency visits to the hospital. There is more to be done though. Asthma should not stand in the way of enjoying your life to the fullest when it comes to exercise and what not.
Talk to your Doctor
Your doctor is your best guide and friend when it comes to battling any illness, especially asthma. Any given doctor can help you create an asthma action plan. It's basically a course of action to follow to improve on your general condition and see the symptoms of asthma less and less every time. A doctor will usually let you know just how much exercise you can partake at any given time, what to stay away from and what medicine you can take to maintain a balanced life and body.
What Can You Do?
One of the most suggested activities that asthma patients should try is meditation and regular breathing exercises. It is highly recommended to practice some sort of relaxation exercise, may it be in a natural oasis or at home, and at least every day as it remedies most of the contracting pain in the muscles, alleviates the tension and stress and the body and just relaxes you in general.
A healthy diet is also very necessary when suffering from asthma since food containing omega-3 fatty acids are very helpful when it comes to the inflammation of the bronchi. These foods generally consist of salmon and cod. A goo intake of vitamin C and B6 is really good for you too, both of them providing relief and reducing the symptoms. You can also try getting a change of scenery every now and then, looking around the house to see if there are any unknown or hidden factors that could be worsening your asthma and all.
Learn to Take a Break
People with asthma constantly worry if they will ever get rid of the disease at some point in their lives, and quite frankly, you can't blame them. But nevertheless, worrying doesn't help. What does help is a small escape from it all. It can be virtually anything, all the way from a thought-provoking movie to a small walk around the neighborhood. Anything and anyone that takes your mind of it is good for you. Let these distracters into your life and change things up with the suggestions above and you are bound to see many improvements in your day to day life.