Health Tips – Asthma
Health Tips – Asthma
Asthma affects millions of Americans. It often develops during childhood and accounts for nearly 25% of all absenteeism in schools.
People with asthma have difficulty breathing. While this statement sums up the disease quite simply, asthma is anything but a simple health concern. The causes of asthma are still unknown. Symptoms vary from person to person and can come and go, making it a very difficult disease to diagnose accurately. Current estimates suggest that at least six out of 10 people with asthma do not have their condition under good control. Despite that fact that asthma can be managed and controlled very effectively with medication and lifestyle changes, people still die every year from severe asthma attacks.
What causes asthma?
While researchers haven’t found the exact cause of asthma, they have determined that it can be triggered by both inherited and environmental factors. If you have a parent with asthma, there is a good chance that you will also inherit a tendency to develop asthma. Even if you don’t have a family history of asthma, the disease might develop if you are exposed to certain environmental “triggers,” such as pollen, smog or viruses.
The most common symptoms of asthma are:
- Chronic cough
- Shortness of breath
- Wheezing
- Tightness in the chest
These symptoms develop when your airways overreact or become extra sensitive to irritating airborne substances. As you breathe the irritants in, your airways react by becoming inflamed and swollen. This narrows the airway passages, blocking the flow of air in and out of your lungs. Some irritants affect the muscle fibres surrounding the airway, causing them to tighten and compress the airway passages. This may happen in response to cold air, vigourous exercise, exposure to smoke or other conditions. Viral infections that attack your respiratory system are another common cause of asthma problems.
Symptoms of asthma may come and go, so it’s not always easy to know whether or not you have the disease. A persistent cough is a very common sign of asthma, especially in children. If your child coughs to the point of vomiting, discuss the possibility of asthma with your family doctor.
People often mistakenly associate asthma symptoms with allergies. Although allergies and asthma are related, they are not the same thing and don’t automatically go hand-in-hand. People with allergies don’t necessarily develop asthma and people with asthma may not have allergies. However, if you are diagnosed with both allergies and asthma, you must take extra precautions against exposing yourself to things that trigger your allergic reactions. Exposure to allergens can make asthma symptoms worse by increasing the inflammation in your airways and making them more sensitive.