At its worst, asthma is life threatening, but mainly it will limit your lifestyle and harm your ability to take on the simplest things; such as going for a walk outside. You need to take the appropriate measures to manage the disease. Use the tips you are about to read to get your symptoms under control and live a normal life.
If you suffer from asthma, it is critical that you not smoke. While smoking is bad for everyone, it's particularly hard on an asthma sufferer as it restricts oxygen getting to the lungs.
During a mild to moderate attack, force all of the air out of your lungs. Exhale quickly and hard. Force all the air out of the lungs! Take in three breaths, and then a deeper breath until your lungs are full of air. Then exhale with force again. This establishes a regular pattern to your breathing routine, which means you have to pay attention to how you are breathing. It will also help to get the air to come out of the lungs so more can come in. This may cause you to cough or it may cause phlegm, but your breathing will be back to normal again.
If you're a sufferer of asthma, stay away from cigarette smoke. If you smoke, try quitting. Avoid breathing in vapors from smoke or other chemical-type fumes. Doing so can cause an asthma attack you might not have the ability to stop. You should give up on the smokes if you have asthma and also make sure to avoid other people who are smoking.
Make sure that everyone in your family gets their flu shot. People who have been diagnosed with asthma should exercise extreme diligence in avoiding other respiratory conditions. Making sure to consistently wash your hands, and getting the proper vaccinations are two standard precautions.
If you have asthma, avoid people who smoke. Tobacco smoke causes your lung function to decrease, increasing the risk of a very severe attack, especially in enclosed rooms without much air flow or ventilation.
You will need to keep your residence really clean, especially the bedroom where the asthma sufferer sleeps in order to help lessen the chances of an attack. Avoid smoking inside, and only let people eat in the kitchen. After using chemical to clean, air out the house.
Your asthma medication may need to be adjusted if you become ill. Many illnesses have side effects that could cause your asthma to flare up so badly that you need to have an increase in treatment. Your family doctor may recommend adding another treatment or medication to your current regimen until you recover from your illness.
You should always have your rescue medication with you when you are traveling. Traveling can put additional strain on your body, making you more susceptible to asthma triggers. You also have little control over your environment when traveling, which can make you more susceptible to an attack and symptoms of greater severity.
Some of the most notorious causes of asthma attacks exist in normal households. Some of these irritants include dust, mold and spores. Have an inspector come visit your house to remove any harmful agents that you have so that you can stay healthy and lower your risk for an asthma attack. You can help keep your house safe from these harmful substances by regularly cleaning and dusting your home.
Avoid cold-induced asthma attacks by protecting your mouth and nose with a scarf. You can help warm the air with these things before they bring any harm to your lungs. Breathing in air that's cold can trigger an attack, particularly in younger children that have moderate or severe asthma.
Many people underestimate asthma, or at least think that they can't do anything about it since it is an incurable disease. However, you'll be amazed at how much difference you can make simply by following these simple steps to try and relieve symptoms and reduce the sources of asthma attacks.