Exercise Induced Asthma: Causes And Treatment
Asthma is a chronic condition that affects the lungs and a person’s ability to breathe. This can be a very serious condition, and one that is very scary. There are several different types of asthma, including exercise induced asthma and chronic asthma. Exercise induced asthma can be a long term health issue and learning the causes and treatments can assist in a patients care.
What Causes Exercise Induced Asthma
Asthma itself is caused when the bronchial passages become inflamed, resulting in the air passage becoming constricted. The patient will feel as though their chest is tight and this can leave a patient gasping for air. The main cause of asthma is this inflammation that is triggered by external sources.
It is unknown why some people have asthma. There is some thought that this condition can run in families, so may be an inherited gene that causes asthma. Although the underlying source of asthma may not be fully understood, it is apparent that everyone that has asthma has their own set of triggers that cause the disease to occur.
Exercise induced asthma is one of the most common forms of asthma. Exercise induced asthma, is as its name suggests, caused by the bodies reaction to the changes that occur when a person is exercising. This may include the fact that when people are exercising, they are breathing through their mouths. This causes cold air to be delivered directly to the lungs. It is a theory that in exercise induced asthma, a patient is more sensitive to changes in temperature.
Once a person with exercise induced asthma begins to experience the initial stages of an asthma attack, the body responds to this by secreting mucus. This mucus is part of the problem in people with asthma. First, the airways begin to swell and then this mucus is produced clogging up the airways even more and preventing air from being able to flow.
Treatment Of Exercise Induced Asthma
When a person has a pattern of difficulty breathing during exercise, a visit with a physician is needed. During this visit a physician will evaluate the person’s health and the patient will be given a complete exam. Once exercise induced asthma has been diagnosed, a treatment plan will be put into place.
Patients with exercise induced asthma can still participate fully in any sport or activity. They need to be aware of their condition, and follow their physician’s guidelines. Usually, patients with exercise induced asthma are put on a plan that involves taking some type of medication before participating in any physical activity. These medications help control the body’s response to the trigger, exercise, and allow the patient to be able to breathe during activity.
Patients with exercise induced asthma are able to be involved in physical activity, but need to be aware of their condition.
