What is Asthma

Asthma is a chronic disease characterized by the inflammation of the air passages that carry air in and out of the lungs, affecting the sensitivity of the nerve endings in the airways.

As a result, the tubes are easily irritated and react often to allergens. They become narrow and swollen and start producing extra mucus. This can make breathing difficult and trigger coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath.

For some people, asthma can be a minor nuisance, but for others, it can be a major problem that interferes with daily activities.

Asthma should be carefully monitored because it can cause a life-threatening asthma attack if the airways become too inflamed or swollen. In some cases, it can even lead to fatal asphyxiation.

Western medicine has not come up with a solution to cure asthma yet.  Doctors can only control its symptoms. However, even asthma’s symptoms might even change over time, so asthma patients should keep track of their symptoms. If they notice any change in their condition, they should consult a doctor who can adjust the treatment as needed.

Asthma remains the most common chronic respiratory disease in Canada, affecting approximately 10% of the population.

Asthma History

The word Asthma originates from a Greek word meaning “shortness of breath” though it can be tracked back in medical writings to the ancient times of the Egyptians, Hebrews, and Indians.

At first, asthma was an umbrella term that included various respiratory deficiencies. This perception of asthma changed in the latter part of the 19th century, when Dr. Henry Hyde Salter’s publication, “On Asthma and its Treatment,” gained recognition.

In his work, Dr. Salter defined asthma as “Paroxysmal dyspnea of a peculiar character with intervals of healthy respiration between attacks.” Salter himself suffered from asthma, and his research categorized asthma as a separate condition  having different causes, clinical consequences, and requirements for treatment than other respiratory diseases.

Throughout the 20th century, various medications for asthma, such as bronchodilators, surfaced. They focused primarily on reducing asthma symptoms by reducing bronchoconstriction. Bronchodilators were overused because people did not clearly understand the origin of asthmatic symptoms.

In the late 20th century, doctors developed a better understanding of the response to allergens associated with asthma, and new medications such as corticosteroids became prevalent. These drugs acted upon the immune system and gained better results in asthma treatment than ever seen before.

By the 21st century, the medicine available for asthma treatment is continuously evolving. Although there’s no cure for asthma yet, doctors and scientists are focusing on a new direction. They want to shift the focus from asthma treatment to prevention.

By reducing the number of triggers in the patient’s environment and guaranteeing the correct use of the medication, it is now possible to control asthma cautiously.

Asthma Causes

Asthma is a single disease with many root causes. Some of the leading causes of asthma include:

- Bronchospasm: Bronchospasm occurs when the smooth muscles wrapped around the airways spasm, causing them to become constricted and narrow. This can obstruct a person’s airway and lead to asthma symptoms.

- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD): occurs when the stomach acids that go back up into the esophagus damage the lining of the throat and the airways to the lungs.

- Nerves: when a person feels overwhelmed, stressed, or depressed, the brain sends impulses to the airways leading to spasms and shortness of breath, which may lead to asthma.

- Congestion: dilated pulmonary blood vessels cause congestion of blood in the lungs. causing asthma.

- Inflammation: underlying airway inflammation makes airways hypersensitive to asthma triggers.

Asthma Risk Factors

There are many factors that can increase the risk and worsen the effects of an asthma attack.

Below is a list of the ones most often at play.

- Common cold or flu: When people with asthma have a cold or flu, their airways become more inflamed and produce more mucus, leaving little room for the air to reach the lungs. This may cause their asthma symptoms to worsen and puts them at risk of having a potentially life-threatening asthma attack.

- Physical activity: during exercise and physical activity, a person breathes more quickly through the mouth, causing cold and dry air to travel to the lungs, irritating the airways. The cold and dry air can cause the muscles around the airway to tighten, increasing a person’s chances of experiencing an asthma flare-up.

- Air pollutants and irritants: air pollution and irritants such as dust and cigarette smoke can trigger an asthma attack. When they are inhaled, the airways become more inflamed and the muscles around the airways tighten, increasing a person’s risk of developing asthma.

- Certain medications: Particular medications such as beta-blockers, aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB) and naproxen (Aleve) can worsen the effects of an asthma attack.

- Sulfites and preservatives: these substances can be added to some types of foods and beverages, including shrimp, dried fruit, processed potatoes, beer, and wine. They might trigger asthma symptoms, so excluding them from the daily diet is crucial.

- Genes: every asthma patient has a unique combination of asthma genes, and each of these genes plays a unique role in the development of asthma. These genes will determine when the person will develop asthma, how severe it might be, and what medicines might treat it.

Asthma Symptoms

Asthma symptoms might vary from one person to another. Some might have infrequent asthma attacks that can happen only at certain times, like during exercise, for example. Others might have symptoms all the time.

The most common classic asthma symptoms include:

- A whistling or wheezing sound:  this can occur when someone exhales, which is a typical sign of asthma in children

- Shortness of breath: this might come sometimes as a severe attack, causing an increasing difficulty in breathing

- Chest tightness or pain: this happens when the immune system causes the airways to become inflamed or swollen, leading to chest tightness or pain frequently before or during an asthma attack.

- Cough (with or without sputum): if someone has a respiratory virus, such as a cold or flu, the cough might worsen.

However, in the case of an asthma attack, symptoms would be different and more acute. Sometimes a severe asthma attack can be fatal, as it can prevent enough oxygen from reaching the lungs and can even stop a person from breathing.

Symptoms of an asthma attack might include:

• Severe wheezing when breathing
• Continuous coughing that won't stop
• Very rapid breathing
• Chest tightness or pressure
• Tightened neck and chest muscles, called retractions
• Difficulty talking
• Feelings of anxiety or panic
• Pale, sweaty face
• Blue lips or fingernails

Symptoms might even get worse, even if patients use medications

There are some warning signs that an asthma attack might occur, such as:

• Frequent coughing, especially at night
• Shortness of breath
• Feeling very tired or weak when exercising
• Wheezing or coughing after exercise
• Feeling tired, easily upset, grouchy, or moody
• Decreased lung function as measured on a peak flow meter
• Signs of a cold, or allergies(sneezing, runny nose, cough, nasal congestion, sore throat, and headache)
• Trouble sleeping

Asthma Diagnosis

To diagnose asthma, the doctor needs to first take the patient’s medical history. By asking the patient questions, the doctor can check if the patient has asthma symptoms such as wheezing, breathlessness, or chest tightness.

After obtaining the medical history, the doctor will proceed with a physical examination that might include:

- FeNO (fractional exhaled nitric oxide) test: this test measures the amount of nitric oxide in the patient’s breath. The amount of nitric oxide in the breath indicates if the patient has inflamed airways. This test helps doctors tell if and how severely inflamed a patient’s airways are.

- Spirometry: this is the test that doctors use to confirm whether a patient has asthma. During this test, the patient breathes into a mouthpiece connected to a device called a spirometer. It can be also connected to a laptop known as a PC-based spirometer. This allows doctors to measure the amount of air the patient can breathe in and out, and the rate of airflow.

Using the spirometry test, a doctor can evaluate the condition of the patient’s lungs, and using that information, diagnose whether the patient has asthma. Doctors can also conduct other tests to determine if a person has asthma. However, in most cases, that is not necessary. The spirometry test alone is good enough for a positive diagnosis.  Plus, the other tests may be expensive, and the spirometry test is affordable.   

Natural Treatments for Asthma

The best way to deal with asthma is to prevent it by avoiding all the triggers. However, when asthma occurs, it is always accompanied by inflammation. That’s why many natural solutions for asthma work on controlling or fighting inflammation.

Some other solutions work on strengthening the immune system to fight and control asthma symptoms. Click on natural treatments for asthma to find a detailed list of all the natural solutions to treat it, including various natural therapies, diet programs, alternative medicine, vitamins, supplements, herbal medicine, and home remedies. You can also visit the Asthma Prevention Center to check all the information on how to prevent diabetes including the recommendations to follow and what you should avoid.

For better treatment of asthma, you can either use one solution or a combination of natural solutions because these can work on treating several aspects and causes of asthma. as such, you can prevent inflammation and at the same time strengthen the immune system to prevent any exaggerated immune response to allergens or irritants.

Below is a list of the various natural solutions that can treat or prevent asthma:

- Herbal medicine: the use of some special herbs and plants that have anti-inflammatory effects can help fight inflammation, which helps treat asthma symptoms.

- Diets: there are different diets that prevent inflammation and they can help cure many chronic diseases. Some of them focus on including special types of food that have anti-inflammatory effects and excluding pro-inflammatory foods from the diet.

Other diets work on regulating the blood pH and help reset it to its normal level, which is slightly alkaline between 7.35 and 7.45. Having an alkaline blood pH can have tremendous health benefits, including strengthening the immune system and reducing inflammation.

- Nutritional supplements: the use of nutritional supplements that have anti-inflammatory effects can help overcome inflammation. It can ease the symptoms of asthma and help treat the condition.

Medical Treatment for Asthma

Effective asthma treatment requires frequently tracking symptoms and measuring how well the lungs work.

According to conventional medicine, there are two main types of medications used to treat asthma:

- Long-term control medications: these preventive medications treat the inflammation in the airways that leads to asthma symptoms. The most common medications used to keep asthma under control are inhaled corticosteroids.

- Quick-relief inhalers: these inhalers contain a fast-acting medication such as albuterol. They are used as needed to open airways quickly and make breathing easier. Inhalers can prevent asthma attacks when used correctly. However, using quick-relief inhalers frequently to treat asthma symptoms will not keep asthma under control, long-term medications will.