Asthma Healing

If you wheeze or have trouble breathing only when you are at work, you may have occupational asthma. Since World War II, as industries have increased use of simple chemicals and organic compounds, breathing hazards have increased. Some 200 substances—gases, vapors, and organic and inorganic dusts—found in manufacturing workplaces and among certain occupations have been identified as causes of asthma. It's estimated that some 11 million workers are exposed to one of these substances.

Nearly 24 million Americans have asthma or chronic bronchitis. Metered-dose inhalers (MDIs) are a primary means of delivering asthma medication to these patients.

Allergy and asthma control begins at home. Many people with allergies stay indoors when outdoor air is full of pollen and spores. But dust mites, animal dander and even cockroaches can cause problems indoors.

You may already know that allergens found around the house can trigger "allergic asthma" attacks for many people, such as dust mites in furniture and bedding, pet dander, mold and other "allergen" triggers. But researchers are also discovering that even common house dust can cause trouble. 

Most Americans have insurance for asthma treatment and medical supplies. But many insurance plans have payment limits and other rules. Even if your insurance covers a treatment, getting the insurer to pay can sometimes be difficult. This article will help you get the most from your plan and pay the least from your own pocket.

Everyone needs to exercise, even people with asthma! A strong healthy body is one of your best defenses against disease. But some people with asthma have "exercise-induced asthma" (EIA). But with proper medical prevention and management you should be able to walk, climb stairs, run, and participate in activities, sports and exercise without experiencing symptoms. You don't have to let EIA keep you from leading an active life or from achieving your athletic dreams.

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory condition that causes the airways (bronchi) to produce excess mucus and close, making breathing difficult. Treatment has two main objectives: first, to control and reduce inflammation and, second, to reopen the airways. Drugs that achieve the first goal are called anti-inflammatory agents, and those that bring about the second are called bronchodilators. Many asthma sufferers inhale these medications.

In 1935, the Mayo Clinic reported a research breakthrough that would affect millions of lives. Doctors had isolated the hormone cortisone from the adrenal glands, the walnut sized glands sitting on top of the kidneys. Cortisone produced by the adrenal glands reduces inflammation in the body.

Pediatricians, general practitioners, internists, allergists and pulmonologists can all treat asthma and allergies.

What You Should Know About Childhood Asthma

Asthma is the most common chronic disease of childhood, and yet many parents know little about it. In the United States, it is estimated that nearly 5 million youngsters under age 18 have this disease. In 1993 alone, asthma was the reason for almost 200,000 hospital stays and about 340 deaths among persons under age 25.

Chemical and Other Environmental Sensitivities

A variety of vague and hard-to-pinpoint symptoms are experienced by an undetermined, but possibly sizeable number of adults and children. Occasionally, they may suggest allergy or asthma, but most often the symptoms are much wider in scope.

Can Medicine Cure My Asthma?

No, there is no cure for asthma. Although asthma cannot be cured it can be controlled. There are many medicines that help people with asthma. Some are preventive medicines and others are known as quick relievers. The preventive medicines are used for long-term control of the disease and work to make asthma attacks less frequent and less severe. Quick reliever medicines offer short-term relief of symptoms when asthma episodes occur.

What is asthma?

Asthma is a disease in which the airways become blocked or narrowed. These effects are usually temporary, but they cause shortness of breath, breathing trouble and other symptoms. If an asthma attack is severe, a person may need emergency treatment to restore normal breathing.

AAFA has been a partner in the Consortium on Children's Asthma Camps which helps children with asthma by bringing together people from all walks of life to share ideas on how to best manage this chronic disease.

Since asthma has a genetic origin and is a disease you are born with, passed down from generation to generation, the question isn’t really “what causes asthma,” but rather “what causes asthma symptoms to appear?”  People with asthma have inflamed airways which are super-sensitive to things which do not bother other people. These things are called "triggers."