Asthma
What is asthma? Asthma is a disease that affects your lungs. It is a chronic condition involving the respiratory system in which the airway occasionally constricts, becomes inflamed, and is lined with excessive amounts of mucus, often in response to one or more triggers. These episodes may be triggered by such things as exposure to an environmental stimulant (or allergen) such as cold air, warm air, moist air, exercise or exertion, or emotional stress.
In children, the most common triggers of asthma are viral illnesses such as those that cause the common cold. This airway narrowing causes symptoms such as wheezing, shortness of breath, chest tightness, and coughing. The airway constriction responds to bronchodilators. Between episodes, most patients feel well but can have mild symptoms and they may remain short of breath after exercise for longer periods of time than the unaffected individual. Asthma symptoms, which can range from mild to life threatening, can usually be controlled with a combination of drugs and environmental changes.
Asthma is the most common long-term disease of children, but adults have asthma, too. Asthma causes repeated episodes of wheezing, breathlessness, chest tightness, and nighttime or early morning coughing. If you have asthma, you have it all the time, but you will have asthma attacks only when something bothers your lungs.
We know that if someone in your family has asthma, you are also more likely to have it. In most cases, we don’t know what causes asthma, and we don’t know how to cure it. You can control your asthma by knowing the warning signs of an attack, staying away from things that trigger an attack, following the advice of your health-care provider and getting asthma treatment.
When you control your asthma, you won’t have symptoms like wheezing or coughing, you’ll sleep better, you won’t miss work or school, you can take part in all physical activities, and you won’t have to go to the hospital.
Read more about asthma symptoms and asthma treatment…
Health Tips
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