J. Douglas Bremner
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 There is considerable evidence that a lack of outdoor exercise contributes to asthma and that an exercise program helps asthmatics. Our sedentary lifestyle has also led to a surge in obesity (see Chapter 6); there is evidence of an association between obesity and asthma based on the fact that obese people have less room for the lungs to expand, higher levels of the hormone leptin (which is released from fat and is also higher in asthmatics), and higher levels of inflammatory markers (which may contribute to airway reactivity). |
Marshall Editions
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 This causes wheezing and breathing problems. asthmatics tend to be sensitive to various types of irritants in the atmosphere that can trigger a contraction in the airways. Common irritants and triggers include pet fur, feathers, hair, dander, saliva, house dust mites, perfumes and other fragranced products, environmental pollutants such as car fumes, cigarette smoke, and cold and foggy atmospheres, plus exercise, stress, and anxiety. |
Dr Ron Roberts
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 Equally, in cold climates asthmatics may find their condition improves during winter as the dust mite population is killed by icy temperatures.
POLLEN
Pollen is a major allergen. Recent Australian research has shown, in fact, that it is not the pollen grains themselves that are causing asthma, but the combination of pollen grains and water. When wet, the pollen grain breaks open and releases even tinier particles that reach the air passages, and it is these that aggravate asthma. |
| Populations of millions can live in a mattress and many asthmatics find their asthma is worst at night. The mite eats the wastes from our bodies: the tiny particles of skin, for example, that we constantly shed.
To combat dust mites you should try to minimise the places where they can live. Protective covers can be bought that completely enclose mattresses and non-allergenic pillows are available that are not good homes for mites. Down doonas and quilts are also dust mite paradises. |
| Many professional sportsmen and women are asthmatics. The physical education teacher should be aware that the child has asthma, and be able to recognise warning signs that might mean he or she is in difficulties and therefore needs assistance,- however, with supervision asthmatic children should be able to take their place in all the usual school sporting activities.
HOLIDAYS
Taking a holiday with an asthmatic child does require a little more planning than usual. |
| It is also true that asthmatics often rely heavily on their spray or puffer, using it as a psychological crutch rather than as a non-preferred treatment. It is not the use of medication which causes concern, but over-reliance on this form of treatment.
There is now a growing body of evidence which suggests that constant dosing with bronchodilators may not be altogether harmless. A study in Dunedin, New Zealand, examined whether using a bronchodilator four times a day improved asthma, made no difference or made it worse. The researchers concluded that it made the underlying condition worse. |
| The chapters which follow, in Part Two of this book, offer an eclectic collection of alternative therapies to help asthmatics ease their distress. The most important of these, we believe, is Controlled Pattern Breathing, which is described in Chapter 6. Many other factors have a vital bearing on your asthmatic condition, however, and should not be neglected: regular exercise to ensure physical fitness, and a healthy diet to improve and protect your immune system, are extremely important. |
J. Douglas Bremner
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| Our sedentary lifestyle has also led to a surge in obesity (see Chapter 6); there is evidence of an association between obesity and asthma based on the fact that obese people have less room for the lungs to expand, higher levels of the hormone leptin (which is released from fat and is also higher in asthmatics), and higher levels of inflammatory markers (which may contribute to airway reactivity). In fact, as many as 75% of emergency-room asthma admissions are for obese people. |
Ray D. Strand
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 Whether the immune system is fighting a chronic infection or pollutants in the air, chronic inflammation takes its toll on asthmatics, especially children. Kids seem to continually fight one infection after another, and their energy level is nowhere near that of children with healthy airways.
When I first began my private practice in the early 1970s, physicians believed the underlying problem with asthma was bronchospasm. |
Lester A. Mitscher and Victoria Toews
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 For that reason, some asthmatics are treated with caffeine, and caffeine may help ease bronchial spasms.
Competitive athletes and weekend warriors alike dream of ergogenic aids—substances that improve physical performance. Caffeine is an ergogenic aid with relatively few harmful side effects except for people with cardiovascular disease. The research linking caffeine with enhanced athletic performance stretches back almost a century. The amount of caffeine in just a few cups of tea can increase endurance and intensity during exercise. |
Andreas Moritz
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 In the latter case, the body may become oversensitive to all sorts of allergens, including the potassium in orange juice.
In asthmatics, the exaggerated release of histamine promotes bronchial constriction. Once their dehydrated bodies receive their normal daily amount of water", and existing toxins, including those
To stop the body's histamine response to dehydration, which constricts blood flow and reduce your need for water, all you may need is water. So the next time you have an asthma attack, instead of drugs, try drinking 2 or 3 glasses of water. |
Dr Ron Roberts
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| There are many alternative therapies that do alleviate asthma and there are specific exercises that considerably improve asthmatics' condition. There is also much benefit that can be gained by the asthmatic following a generally healthier way of life.
This book is an attempt to give the reader as much information as possible: about asthma itself, the exercises Ron has found most helpful over decades of working with people with asthma, and natural therapies and treatments for it that are presently available. |
Andreas Moritz
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| Their breathing became much easier and their sleep less disturbed after burning pure beeswax candles in their bedrooms for a few hours before bedtime. Some asthmatics claim that their symptoms vanished completely after burning beeswax candles all day long for several days or weeks.
Apparently, burning beeswax produces negative ions. Negative ions are nature's vacuum cleaners. They clean the air of dust, mold, viruses, bacteria and other pollutants responsible for numerous chemical sensitivities. For candles to have this air-purifying effect, though, they must consist of 100 percent beeswax. |
J. Douglas Bremner
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| Diet and Behavior
Although medications often do have a place for asthmatics, in our usual zeal to reach for the pill first, we have neglected other interventions that may play an equal or even greater role in the treatment and prevention of asthma. Inhalers are not as invasive as many oral asthma medications, and steroids, over the short term, can be helpful during a severe attack.
Drugs are often pushed while lifestyle interventions like exercise (which are equally effective based on scientific studies) are ignored and in some cases discouraged. |
Michael Friedman, ND
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 Subnormal serum levels of DHEA-S are common in asthmatics. DHEA deficiency might result, in part, from corticosteroid-induced adrenal suppression. However, low levels of DHEA-S were also found in 21% of asthmatics who were not taking steroids.28 DHEA deficiency may also result from long-term administration of inhaled corticosteroids. In a study of 36 post-menopausal asthmatic women, those who were receiving at least 1 mg per day of beclometha-sone dipropionate had nearly a 50% reduction in serum DHEA levels, compared with women who were not receiving the drug. |
Ray D. Strand
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| Adult asthmatics can benefit as well. When my wife was suffering from chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia (see Chapter 1), one of the most troublesome problems she had was severe asthma and hay fever. She could not even go into the barn unless she was wearing one of those huge masks that people use when working with hazardous material. My wife loves her horses, and she would do whatever it took to be around them!
Liz was on about five different medications, including allergy shots, in an attempt to control her asthma and allergies. |
Bottom Line Health
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| Many asthmatics stop taking their medicine or skip doses, and those who do take their medication rarely discuss the side effects with a doctor, according to a large international survey.
The problem may be due to poor doctor-patient communication.
SURVEY RESULTS
The findings, from the Global Asthma Physician and Patient (GAPP) survey, involved nearly 3,500 adults in 16 countries. The results point out just how serious the communication gaps between doctor and patient can be. |
| You Don't Have to Suffer from Asthma Anymore
'iere's a huge difference in how well asthmatics believe their symptoms are being controlled and how well they are actually managing their disease, according to experts.
"We have known for a long time that asthma can be controlled better, that it is not being controlled as well as it can be, and that we ought to do something about it," explains Dr. Norman Edelman, a professor of medicine at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and a medical consultant to the American Lung Association. |
| POLL RESULTS
A recent poll taken by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) found that of nearly 600 adult asthmatics reported managing their symptoms well.
However, in that same group, 61% said they have had to catch their breath while running up the stairs, 48% said their asthma symptoms have woken them and 50% have had to stop exercising in the middle of their regimens.
Among 118 respondents whose children have asthma, 89% felt their children's symptoms were being well-controlled, yet half of the children had missed days of school and/or work. |
Andreas Moritz
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| Vatas who feel tense, restless and stressed can quickly return to balance by practicing this PranaYama. asthmatics also benefit from it.
Pitta-PranaYama
A person of Pitta constitution or Pitta imbalance can "cool down" and enhance female energies in the body by performing left nostril breathing. The left nostril corresponds to the cooling system in the body. If it is blocked, the body overheats. For this exercise:
=> Close your right nostril with the thumb of your right hand, and inhale through your left nostril. |
Bottom Line Health
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| Mike Tringale
The American Lung Association introduced a five-question test on its Web site for asthmatics older than age 12. The questions ask how often asthma symptoms keep them awake at night, cause shortness of breath and prevent them from completing work at school or in the office.
"Approximately 100,000 people have taken the test online, and two-thirds of them have found that they don't have their asthma under control," says Edelman.
The test's success has spurred the Association to develop another quiz designed for children under age 12, to be answered by their parents. |
Marshall Editions
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| It is recommended for the elderly, debilitated, immune compromised (people rk who have illnesses that affect their immune systems), asthmatics, and (p chemotherapy patients. Good hand washing is probably the best preventive measure against spreading flu germs.
Herbs: Some herbs with natural viral suppression properties can be taken during the flu season. One that has had some success is larch (found in a Thorne product called Larix®). Elderberry extract can be used in the same way. These herbs can also be used at the onset of flu symptoms. |
Bottom Line Health
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| These findings come from two studies by the Allergy and Asthma Network/Mothers of asthmatics (AANMA).
THE FIRST STUDY
The first study gathered information from 19 Medicaid patients and 24 health-care providers about the medications they use and prescribe. Nancy Sander, lead author of both studies and president and founder of AANMA, and her colleagues conducted two focus groups—one for patients and one for health-care providers—in Atlanta; Birmingham, Alabama; and San Antonio, Texas. |
| The Allergy and Asthma Network/Moth-— ers of asthmatics Web site has more information and pictures of what approved and unapproved medications look like at www.aan ma.org/chasm. Click on "Are There Fakes and Frauds in Your Nebulizer?"
Common Painkillers May Trigger Asthma
Aspirin and some related painkillers may trigger asthma attacks in as many as 20% of people who have the condition, reports a new study. |
Marshall Editions
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| Tamiflu®: Upon exposure to flu, high-risk patients (the elderly, debilitated, immune compromised, asthmatics, and chemotherapy patients) are encouraged to take the drug Tamiflu® within the first 72 hours. It can sometimes lessen the severity and duration of symptoms if taken on the day of exposure.
Rest and fluids: Treating an active case of flu involves taking rest, plenty of fluids, and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for aches and pains are advisable.
When should I see a doctor? |
Alan R. Gaby, M.D., Jonathan V. Wright, M.D., Forrest Batz, Pharm.D. Rick Chester, RPh., N.D., DipLAc. George Constantine, R.Ph., Ph.D. Linnea D. Thompson, Pharm.D., N.D.
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 Dietary changes that may be helpful
A vegan (pure vegetarian) diet given for one year in conjunction with many specific dietary changes (such as avoidance of caffeine, sugar, salt, and chlorinated tap water) and combined with a variety of herbs and supplements led to significant improvement in one group of asthmatics.8 Although 16 out of 24 people who continued the intervention for the full year were much better and one person was actually cured, it remains unclear how much of the action was purely a result of the dietary changes compared with the many other therapies employed. |
Gary Null, Ph.D.
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 This study examined 41 asthmatics in remission in which half were administered 1 g of ascorbic acid daily and the other half a placebo. asthmatics taking ascorbic acid experienced less severe and fewer asthma attacks when assessed after 14 weeks of treatment. When those in the experimental group stopped taking ascorbic acid, attack rates increased.
—CO. Anah, et al., "High Dose Ascorbic Acid in Nigerian asthmatics," Trop Geogr Med,
32(2), June 1980, p. 132-137.
124 patients with bronchial asthma were studied, 96.8% of which were found to be deficient in ascorbic acid. |
Alan R. Gaby, M.D., Jonathan V. Wright, M.D., Forrest Batz, Pharm.D. Rick Chester, RPh., N.D., DipLAc. George Constantine, R.Ph., Ph.D. Linnea D. Thompson, Pharm.D., N.D.
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| A buffered form of vitamin C (such as sodium ascorbate or calcium ascorbate) may work better for some asthmatics than regular vitamin C (ascorbic acid).46
People with low levels of selenium (page 584) have a high risk of asthma.47,48, 49,50,51 Asthma involves free-radical (page 467) damage52 that selenium might protect against. In a small double-blind trial, supplementation with 100 meg of sodium selenite (a form of selenium) per day for 14 weeks resulted in clinical improvement in six of eleven patients, compared with only one of ten in the placebo group. |
Gary Null, Ph.D.
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| This study examined 41 asthmatics in remission in which half were administered 1 g of ascorbic acid daily and the other half a placebo. asthmatics taking ascorbic acid experienced less severe and fewer asthma attacks when assessed after 14 weeks of treatment. When those in the experimental group stopped taking ascorbic acid, attack rates increased.
—CO. Anah, et al., "High Dose Ascorbic Acid in Nigerian asthmatics," Trop Geogr Med,
32(2), June 1980, p. 132-137.
124 patients with bronchial asthma were studied, 96.8% of which were found to be deficient in ascorbic acid. |
KC Craichy
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 Food and Drug Administration, fragrances cause 30 percent of all allergic reactions, and 72 percent of asthmatics experience respiratory symptoms when exposed to fragrances.20 It only takes one person entering a building wearing a scented product to affect the air quality. This is because scented products can drift thtoughout an entire area wherever the ait takes them. Workers in the perfume industry are among those with the highest rates of asthma.21 An epidemiological study of children living near perfume factories found a higher rate of asthma than the normal population. |
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