Asthma is a chronic lung disease in which the airways (the channels that allow air to pass in and out of the lungs) become inflamed and narrowed. If you have asthma, it is important to know how to treat it. Sometimes it is easy by simply eliminating exposure to allergens. Read on to learn more. If you are looking for information on how to recognize the symptoms, read this article.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Lifestyle Changes
Step 1. Avoid triggers
Asthma is often triggered by allergens, smoking, and air pollution. It is important to recognize which substances cause your asthma attacks. This is the most effective way to deal with it. The main allergens include:
Cigarette smoke, pollen, dust mites, animal hair, molds, perfumes, insects, starch, dusty substances, stress and more
Step 2. Improve cleaning
Cleaning is another way to get rid of the most common allergens. Change the sheets often, or at least once every two weeks. Dust mites, dander, mold and other allergens may be in your bed without your knowledge.
Obviously, the very action of cleaning can cause you an asthma attack, since you expose yourself to allergens. So protect yourself by using a mask. Avoid heavy cleaning and use a damp cloth and vacuum cleaner
Step 3. Stop smoking or avoid people who smoke
There are thousands of reasons to quit smoking and asthma is just one of them. Smoking can paralyze the vibrating (hair-like) cilia on the surface of the respiratory tract. These cilia help filter out particles that enter the lungs but, when you smoke, they stop working, allowing the particles to irritate the lungs, triggering an asthma attack.
Step 4. Strengthen your overall health
To do this, eat fruit and do low-intensity training. Reach an ideal weight because, if it is excessive, it can easily tire you and make treatment for asthma more difficult. Protect yourself from sick people. Drink plenty of water to dissolve secretions in the respiratory tract.
Method 2 of 3: Home Remedies
Step 1. Drink coffee three times a day
Caffeine is known to be a bronchodilator, which means it can dilate or increase the diameter of the airways. When you drink coffee, you find that it becomes easier to breathe.
Step 2. Eat more onions
If raw onions seem intolerable to you, you can eat them cooked, they are just as effective. Onion has an anti-inflammatory effect on the body, which will help your respiratory tract relax and make it less inflamed.
Step 3. Eat the chili
Like onions, chili peppers also have an anti-inflammatory effect because it contains capsaicin, the chemical that makes it spicy. When you eat spicy food, your airways open.
Step 4. Increase your vitamin C intake
Vitamin C found in orange juice can make the lining of the airways healthier. You can incorporate other vitamin C-rich foods into your diet, such as strawberries, blueberries, papaya, pepper, broccoli, and more.
Step 5. Use peppermint oil
According to research published in the "Journal of Ethnopharmacology", peppermint oil has been shown to be effective against congestion, relaxes the smooth muscle of the airways and may also have expectorant properties. Make a steam inhalation by placing two drops of peppermint oil and 6-8 cups of boiling water in a bowl. Put your face over the bowl and cover your head and bowl with a towel. Close your eyes and breathe in the vapors.
Step 6. Take omega-3 fatty acid supplements
They are essential fatty acids that the body is unable to produce. It is believed that they act against asthma by blocking the action of compounds that cause inflammation of the airways.
- You can get omega-3s from fish, nut oil, walnuts, soy, tofu, Brussels sprouts, squash, and shrimp.
- The recommended dose is two 500 mg capsules three times a day with meals.
Step 7. Take the gingko extract
Gingko extract is believed to interfere with a protein in the blood that causes airway spasms.
The recommended dose is 60-250 mg of gingko extract once a day
Step 8. Take turmeric
Studies have shown it can reduce inflammation. Mix a teaspoon of turmeric powder in a cup of warm milk and drink this mixture up to three times a day.
Method 3 of 3: With Drugs
If lifestyle changes and home remedies don't work to reduce asthma symptoms, get your doctor to prescribe medication.
Step 1. Take inhaled corticosteroids
These are long-term control drugs when taken on a day-to-day basis. They work by reducing inflammation in the airways. Examples of inhaled corticosteroids are:
- Beclomethasone. The recommended adult dose is 40 mcg, 2 inhalations, twice a day. For children over 12, the recommended dose is 40 mcg, 1-2 inhalations twice a day. The dosage should not exceed 640 mcg per day. For severe asthma, a dose of 500-700 mcg per inhalation is the beginning, with 12-16 inhalations per day, and this dosage is adjusted according to the reaction to the drug.
- Budesonide. The recommended dose for adults is 200-400 mcg, 1-2 inhalations twice a day. For adults previously treated with oral corticosteroids, the recommended dosage is 400-800 mcg, 1-4 inhalations twice daily. For children 6 years of age or older and those previously treated with bronchodilators alone or with inhaled corticosteroids, the recommended dose is 200 mcg, 1 inhalation, twice daily.
- Fluticasone. For adults and children who use inhalation aerosol, the starting dose is 88 mcg, twice a day.
Step 2. Try long-acting inhaled bronchodilators
These are long-term control medications taken on a day-to-day basis. They reduce swelling of the airways and increase blood flow to the lungs. Among these are:
- Salmeterol. The recommended dosage is 500 mcg, 1 inhalation, administered every 12 hours.
- Formoterol. The recommended dosage is 12 mcg powder, 1 inhalation, administered every 12 hours. The total daily dose should not exceed 24 mcg.
- Fluticasone propionate and salmeterol (a combined inhalation). For adults and children using the inhalation powder, the recommended dosage is 50-100 mcg, 1 inhalation, administered twice daily.
Step 3. Get some leukotriene drugs
They are long-term control drugs taken on a day-to-day basis. They work by blocking the action of leukotrienes, the inflammatory chemicals in the body that tighten the muscles in the airways. Examples of leukotriene modifiers are:
- Montelukast. The recommended dose for adults and children aged 15 years or older is 10 mg orally given once a day. For children 6 to 14 years of age, the recommended dosage is 5 mg as chewable tablets, taken orally, given once daily.
- Zafirlukast. This drug is taken one hour before meals or 2 hours after meals. For adults and children aged 12 years or older, the dosage is usually 20 mg, taken orally, given twice a day. For children aged 5 to 11, the dosage is 10 mg, orally, administered twice a day.
- Zileuton. For adults and children 12 years of age or older, the immediate release (fast release) dosage is 600 mg, as a tablet orally, 4 times a day, given with meals and at bedtime. For prolonged-release tablets the dose is 1200 mg, orally, twice daily within 1 hour after morning / evening meals.
Step 4. Take short-acting inhaled bronchodilators
These drugs provide quick symptom relief during an asthma attack. They work by opening the airways and relaxing the muscles. They also prevent asthma attacks before training. Among these are:
Albuterol and levalbuterol, both of which are prescribed to treat acute asthma
Advice
- It is very important to remain calm and in control during an asthma attack. Breathing into a paper bag will help you hold more oxygen with each breath.
- No cure for asthma has yet been found. Treatment of the disease focuses only on the signs and symptoms. Learn as much as possible about your condition.
