5 Tips to Keep Your Asthma Under Control

Asthma is a condition in which your airways narrow and swell and may produce extra mucus. Symptoms include difficulty in breathing, coughing, a whistling sound (wheezing) when you breathe out, and shortness of breath. While asthma can’t be cured, its symptoms can be controlled. Here are tips to keep your asthma under control:

Learn and avoid your asthma triggers. An asthma trigger is anything that triggers coughing, wheezing, trouble breathing, and other symptoms in a person with asthma. Some common triggers include colds, smoke, cold air, exercise, and dust mites or pollen.

Exercise regularly. A recent study found that people with asthma who exercised for 30 minutes a day were two and a half times more likely to have control over their symptoms, compared with asthmatics who didn’t exercise at all.

Treat other health issues. Asthma can feel worse and be more dangerous if you have other health conditions, particularly colds, flu, acid reflux disease and sleep apnea. Talk to your doctor about treating your other health conditions.

Keep your home clean. Every house has dust mites, but regular cleaning can keep their numbers down and minimize the risk of these tiny bugs triggering your asthma. Wash pillows, pillow cases, bedsheets, blankets and stuffed toys weekly. Remove carpet from the bedroom. Vacuum regularly.

Take your asthma medication as prescribed by your doctor. Asthma is a chronic (long-term) disease requiring maintenance medications that you need to take every day. Ask your doctor to show you how to use your inhaler properly.

Talk to your doctor for more information on the optimal management of asthma. Shop at Watsons for essential healthcare products for asthma patients.

References:

1. https://www.webmd.com/asthma/control-your-asthma. Accessed 12 June 2020
2. https://kidshealth.org/en/teens/triggers.html#:~:text=An%20asthma%20trigger%20is%20anything,as%20dust%20mites%20or%20pollen. Accessed 12 June 2020
3. https://www.lung.ca/news/latest-news/7-tips-keep-your-asthma-under-control. Accessed 12 June 2020