Knowing what you can do and what you can avoid to keep your asthma in check, can give you a new lease on life and reduce the constant fear of when the next attack will be. The tips below will give you that information you need to live more peacefully.
Make sure you breathe fresh air as much as possible. This means you should open the windows of your house everyday. Perfumes, incenses or strong smells can trigger asthma: do not lit any candles or wear too much perfume. Stay out of your house if you need to let smelly paint dry.
Do you know what sub-type of asthma you’re plagued with? Before you can develop a self-care plan for your asthma symptoms, you need to know the specific cause of your symptoms. People suffering from asthma that is exercise-induced, for example, had best be prepared for asthma attacks at the gym! Learn what activities trigger your symptoms, and prepare accordingly so that you’re never caught without your inhaler during an asthma attack.
You should use the AC as much as possible so that you can breathe fresh air. But make sure you clean up your AC unit regularly. If you are going to use a humidifier, clean it too. An unclean AC system could make your life absolutely miserable if you have asthma.
To keep your asthma under control, you should only use non-aspirin pain relievers. Both Aspirin and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen and aleve can irritate the lungs and worsen the effects of your asthma over time. Tylenol has no negative effects on asthma users, and can be taken regularly without issue.
If you’re using your inhaler more than twice a week, you should talk to your doctor about additional asthma treatments. An inhaler is meant only for emergency relief and if you’re periodically relying on it, then your current asthma treatment isn’t effective enough. Overuse of an inhaler can be harmful and you should avoid potential problems, right away.
If you are asthmatic, you absolutely must not subject yourself to any form of cigarette smoke. Smoking is unhealthy for everyone, however it is especially bad for asthmatics. Your lungs are already compromised from the asthma and adding smoke to that will cut off the vital oxygen supply your lungs need to breathe.
If you have asthma, make sure to cover all your mattresses and your pillows with plastic covers. This will prevent any dust that may be on your fabrics from getting into your lungs. You should also wash all of your bedding in hot water at least once a week. Yes, this is a lot of work, but you will reap the benefits if you make the time to do it.
Having asthma doesn’t have to mean that you live in constant worry or fear of the next attack. It means that you have to be smart about what you do and avoid. The information here should help you to stay breathing easy for a long, long time.