Asthma 101

By: Rodger Bailey, MS

What is Asthma?

Asthma is a disease of the respiratory system. It is very frequent with both children and adults. Its symptoms involve shortness of breath, coughing, chest tightness, and wheezing. Asthma manifests itself in recurring episodes, commonly brought on by a variety of factors. Asthmatics are often sensitive to things like cold air and stress. They commonly have a variety of disorders very much like to the common cold. Many professional associations have concentrated their attention on asthma, because more than twenty five percent of urban children have a variety of forms of this sickness.

A Short History Of Asthma

From an historical perspective, asthma was mentioned for the first time in Homer’s Iliad in 450 BC. In the 2nd century AD, Galen wrote some studies about it but he didn’t provide solutions. His writings on this topic were based mostly on personal observations. In 1190 a discourse about asthma was authored by a Jewish doctor, he explained some methods of prevention and a range of treatments. Later in the 18th century an Italian, Bernardino Ramazzini, wrote about the relationship between dust and asthma. The first effective treatment was introduced in 1901 when bronchodilators were used for the first time. And, even though they showed up in the beginning of the century, anti–inflammatory medication was finally included in the asthmatics course of therapy in 1960.

Asthma Symptoms

Asthma has many symptoms. The most general involves unceasing respiratory nuisances. These predicaments are usually triggered by the factors previously mentioned. Other triggers can cause inconveniences depending on each individuals susceptibilities, for instance, general irritants like airborne allergens and air pollutants can bring on an assault. Acute asthma attacks can make someone turn blue in the face and even cause loss of consciousness, because for some, the pain can be cruel.

How to Obtain A Diagnosis?

Any doctor can give a diagnosis if he/she knows the patients medical history and the family background. Asthma is often genetic. It is difficult to diagnose a young child with asthma, because they don’t have a very long health record and studies may be needed to confirm the suspicion of asthma or not. Depending on the intensity of the inconvenience, asthma can be classified as mild intermittent, mild persistent, or the more serious forms as moderate persistent and severe persistent.

Approaches To The Treatment Of Asthma

Do I have to take my asthma pills every day? If you have asthma nuisances maybe you’ve asked yourself if it’s necessary to take your meds every day. This is particularly true if symptoms are not interfering with your normal daily activities. Maybe you have insignificant symptoms once or twice a week, and you are wondering, “Should I change my daily asthma treatment?” Doctors have wondered about the same thing and after many research projects they have reached an encouraging conclusion. The research shows them that for some people who suffer from the less intense forms of asthma don’t have to rely on daily treatment, particularly if their symptoms don’t affect their normal daily activities. Only your doctor can decide if this is appropriate for you.

Asthma medical therapy products

Sometimes, asthma treatments are designed to provide solutions for bronchoconstriction, airway inflammation, or breathing tubes tightening. Other asthma approaches involve some medication for each of the stimuli that could trigger symptoms, and additional symptom-reducing medication could be taken as needed.

Bronchodilatators are normally suggested for quickly opening the airways which effectively stops any momentary crisis. Anti-inflammatory medication is taken because it helps prevent the inflammation of the airways.

Beta-agonists and inhaled corticosteroids are the solution for most of the asthmatics. These drugs don’t deal with the cause of the problem, they simply eliminate the symptoms. These asthma approaches are life saving for anyone who undergoes severe crises. They act directly on the affected area: relaxing the lung muscles and helping to eliminate the fear of asthma attacks.

Reducing daily medications?

Reducing medication is only a good idea for a person who endures mild asthma. A specialist needs to determine if you are a good candidate for getting rid of your daily asthma medications. Don’t even think about giving up your asthma approach in case of a severe health condition.

About 35 percent of people that are prescribed asthma medication rarely renew their treatments. This means that they use the medicine only when they feel trouble is around the corner. You may have the option to modify your daily asthma daily treatment, just be careful to discuss your treatment options with your doctor. Failure to do so, could lead to severe problems. If you are thinking about changing your medication regimen, you need to discuss it with your medical professional.

Controlling an asthma crisis

Reducing the frequency of asthma crises is the aim of any asthma approach. But, before beginning a serious medication regimen, you might try a more personal solution and see if it helps you. You must keep a diary or journal with everything you ate, the places you have been, and any other factor relevant to your health. After a crisis, you can search your diary entries and see where you have been, what you have eaten or drunk, and what else occurred.

Many of us have reactions to certain foods or chemicals. Many of us are affected by airborne particles or smells (airborne chemicals). Your diary can help you determine if there are patterns to your asthma crises. You might be able to use your diary entries to determine what specific factors are the ones to which you are reacting. You might be able to change your way of living and manage your symptoms.

There Is No Cure

Asthma is a never-ending sickness for which the medical profession has no known cure. It seems that if you contract asthma, you have it for a lifetime. Because the medical profession has not developed a cure, doctors concentrate on providing ways to prevent attacks and reduce the severity and duration of these crises. Many of us, particularly in urban areas, are affected by this disorder every day and science still struggles to come up with a solution.

Editor’s note: In my opinion, when a medical professional tells us there is no cure, this means that there is no known cure. If you want to search for a cure for yourself, you probably need to search outside the modern medical belief system. It looks like Asthma may be one of these situations. Explore the alternative practitioners in our product & services page. You may find relief, which modern medicine cannot provide.

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The Asthma 101 blog has many articles about various aspects of living with asthma. On its products-services page, there are links to a variety of alternative providers who can help.

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