How To Stop Allergy Induced Asthma

Invest In A Peak Air Flow Meter

A peak air flow meter can tell you how well youre able to breath out. Knowing the quality of your breath can help you predict when there is an impending asthma attack. This information can give you more time to initiate your asthma plan, control your symptoms, avoid the need for further medication, and potentially stop the attack before it starts.

How To Reduce Exposure To Mold

If you or another family member suffers from a mold allergy, youll want to do what you can to avoid mold and asthma dangers. Here are some tips for doing just that:

• Consider using faux plants instead of real plants, as they have a higher likelihood of developing mold.
• If you must have real plants in the home, water them only when the soil gets mostly dry. Overwatering could cause mold to develop.
• Keep basements and bathrooms uncarpeted, as mold is more likely to grow in the rugs.
• If you spot mold in any carpets or upholstery, dont try to clean them yourself. Have them professionally serviced or replace them to ensure mold is fully eliminated.
• For other surfaces that have been exposed to mold, use water and bleach, with one part bleach to 10 parts water. If mold gets too deep into the drywall, cleaning it may not be enough. You may need to get new drywall.
• Prioritize the maintenance of ventilation in your home, especially exhaust fans in rooms that get humid.
• Remember to check your humidity so it never exceeds 50 percent.
• Items like humidifiers and vaporizers can produce too much moisture and humidity. Its recommended you try to limit your vaporizer use or even discontinue operating yours.

Mold requires moisture to grow.  Therefore, common places to find indoor mold are bathrooms, kitchens, and basements.  Areas that have been exposed to leaks, floods, or poor ventilation are more susceptible to mold growth.

Enhancing Healthcare Team Outcomes

In 2013, 1.6 million emergency department visits were due to uncontrolled asthma. Many studies have shown that asthma education is essential to help promote patient self-management and adherence. A retrospective study was done in the South Bronx asthma clinic to show that combining pharmacy expertise with asthma education also improves medication adherence and asthma control, as well as decreasing hospital utilization. The role of the asthma educator is to teach patients about asthma medications, their proper use, and to provide better understanding of the disease. Chart reviews were performed to identify improvement of asthma control after education based on the asthma control test scores. Conclusions from this study show that the addition of a pharmacist lead asthma education program was associated with improved medication adherence, decreased hospital utilization, and increased asthma control. 

How To Manage Exercise

There are many steps you can take to manage exercise-induced asthma. Be sure to consult your doctor and discuss treatment options before you make any adjustments to your exercise regimen. According to the AAFA, one way to manage exercise-induced asthma is to do a proper warmup for six to 10 minutes before engaging in exercise or physical activity that will require considerable exertion. You should also do a cooldown after your exercise to help your lungs get acclimated to the air.

Another way to manage exercise-induced asthma is to avoid working out in cold weather. If you are unable to avoid working out in cold weather, you can cover your nose and mouth with a mask or scarf to avoid breathing in cold air. During exercise, try to breathe through your nose, as this will help warm the air that goes into your lungs. If you have asthma and use an inhaler or medication to manage it, be sure to use that before you work out.

Although people with asthma often avoid exercise because it can trigger EIB, research from the American Lung Association has shown that exercise can actually improve lung function and reduce asthma symptoms over time. This is because exercise increases blood flow to the lungs and promotes blood flow to the heart, which then pumps oxygen throughout the body, decreasing the likelihood of an asthma incident.

Medical City Healthcare provides comprehensive emergency services across North Texas.

When To Go To The Er For Asthma

If you or someone you know are experiencing a severe asthma attack, seek medical attention immediately. Ideally, you should have already talked with your doctor to develop an asthma action plan in the case of an emergency. Otherwise, here are some common signs that indicate you should seek medical help:

• Minimal/no improvement with quick-relief inhaler use
• Abnormal shortness of breath during minimal physical exertion
• Rapid decline in breathing or wheezing
• Blue lips or fingernails

Visit A Complete Care Er Immediately If You Are Experiencing A Severe Asthma Attack

Despite having a better understanding of how to prevent an asthma attack, its not always possible to avoid triggers. If youre experiencing a severe asthma attack dont wait to seek medical attention. Visit one of our 24 hr emergency walk-in clinics equipped with hospital-grade technology and friendly medical staff. 

We have convenient ER locations in both Texas and Colorado. Head into one of our facilities or give us a call today!

More Helpful Articles by Complete Care:

How To Prevent Asthma Attacks At Night

The causes of nocturnal asthma are not fully understood. Although its hypothesized that it is a result of increased allergen exposure, increased mucus, hormonal secretion, lying in a horizontal position, and/or GERD.

Follow these tips to prevent nighttime asthma.

Stay Inside When The Pollen Is High

One of the most common triggers of allergic asthma attacks is the ambient presence of pollen in the air. This microscopic plant matter travels through the air to keep plant life growing anew, and its an indispensable aspect of the ecosystem. Unfortunately, our immune system does not always recognize pollen with such due deference. Instead, it misrecognizes it as a pathogen due to a similarity in proteins, which leads to Immunoglobulin E antibody production and the attendant symptoms of respiratory inflammation. If youve determined that pollens trigger your allergic asthma attacks, its best to stay indoors on days where the pollen count is high. While you can always rely on your local news to give you the five-day forecast, determining a forecast for pollen prevalence can be a little harder. The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology has established the National Allergy Bureau, a network of reporting stations that delivers pollen counts for many parts of the United States, with one at least station near Houston and others throughout Texas. Look for your nearest reporting station to determine whether its best to stay in for the day.

How To Take And Store

Most antihistamines can be taken with or without food.

Second-generation antihistamines are typically taken in the morning. If your doctor prescribes both an antihistamine and a leukotriene modifier for allergic asthma, it’s common to take the antihistamine in the morning and the leukotriene modifier in the evening.

Storage recommendations vary by drug:

• Both Zyrtec and Xyzal should be stored at room temperature that’s ideally 68 to 77 degrees F, with excursions in temperatures ranging from 59 to 86 degrees F.
• Claritin should be stored in a cool, dry place that’s ideally between 36 and 77 degrees F. Clarinex should be kept at 77 degrees F, with excursions that can range from from 59 to 86 degrees and should be protected from excessive heat or light.
• Benadryl should be stored at room temperature that’s ideally 68 to 77 degrees F.

What To Do When This Isnt Enough

In some instances, these tips for dealing with allergy-induced asthma and other preemptive measures against pesky allergens are an insufficient bulwark against painful and frightening asthma attacks. If youre a sufferer of environmental allergies, Allergy & ENT Associates offers the services of asthma treatment specialists around the Houston area who will take additional steps to alleviate the role that allergic asthma attacks play in your life. An asthma specialist may be able to clarify what your triggers are, such as which specific plants are problematic for you, and what you can do to avoid them. If cleaning agents do more harm than good in treating allergies, your specialist may be able to help you eliminate these products. Contact us today if youre seeking clarity for your allergic asthma.

Avoid Known Allergens And Triggers

Exposing yourself to triggers, including known allergens, smoke, candles, and fires, can cause inflammation, narrowing your airways and making the chances of an asthma attack more likely. The best way to prevent allergy-induced asthma is to avoid all triggers when possible. Pay attention to when youre having signs of allergies and do what you can to allergy-proof your home.

Keep in mind that severe allergic reactions can lead to anaphylaxis and may be life-threatening if not immediately treated. Its important to make sure that those around you know what to do when someone is in anaphylactic shock and are aware of your asthma care plan.

Tips To Reduce The Risk Of Airway Infections

Colds and viruses like  are a very common cause of asthma symptoms. After an airway infection, people with asthma are more likely to develop complications, such as pneumonia or bronchitis.

To reduce the risk of an airway infection, such as colds or flu:

• get tested for COVID-19 according to local health advice.

COVID-19 protocols have shown us how beneficial these measures can be to avoid respiratory infections.

What Sports Commonly Cause Asthma Symptoms

If you have sports-induced asthma, you may want to choose certain activities over others. Endurance sports and activities that take place in colder temperatures are more likely to trigger symptoms. Thats because cold, dry air can constrict the airways and trigger symptoms of asthma.

Sports that are most likely to trigger symptoms of asthma:

• Require constant physical exertion: Long-distance running, soccer, basketball and other endurance sports require you to breathe heavily and constantly with little rest.
• Take place in colder weather: Skiing, ice hockey, ice skating and snowboarding commonly cause symptoms due to colder air temperatures.

How Halza Can Help With Your Allergies

Staying on top of your health problems is easier than ever with the Halza mobile app. Simply go to your profile and add the details of any allergies you might have, then enable viewing access for your medical professionals to ensure they receive up-to-date information from you. Upload your records and share the information with any physician you visit to receive a more conclusive diagnosis.

You can also set reminders on the app for any upcoming appointments with specialists or just use the function to take your medicine regularly. The chat and feed features of the app also allow you to check on family members and keep tabs on their health updates.

Is There An Effective Cure For Allergic Asthma

Dr. Chacko Featured on the Cover ofAtlanta’s Top Doctor Magazine

Allergic asthma is a common form of asthma that is particularly prevalent during allergy seasons. As with other allergies, the immune system will have a negative reaction to certain types of allergens.

Before experiencing breathing problems, allergic asthma sufferers will inhale an allergen, and then the airways become inflamed. There is the potential for severe reactions to such an event, making it a priority for Atlanta residents to get thorough testing if they have concerns.

Controlling Your Asthma During Allergy Season

Youve got enough on your plate dealing withasthma, so when allergies flare up, the extra respiratory distress is unwelcome. Yet, sometimes it seems that an asthma attack follows closely after you suffer an allergic response. Its not an unhappy coincidence, its a condition called allergy-induced asthma, which affects about60% of people with asthma.

Dr. Betsy Horton and the team atAlpha Internal Medicine areasthma specialists, so when you have trouble with the combination of allergies and asthma, its a good time to plan a visit to explore your treatment options. Since many substances that create allergic responses can also serve as asthma triggers, understanding each reaction is helpful.

What You Can Do To Keep Safe

• During spring and early summer, use a corticosteroid nasal spray . Start at the beginning of September and continue to the end of December.
• Keep taking your preventer medication as prescribed. If you don’t normally use a preventer all year, you should use it during September-December if you are going to be in an area where there is ryegrass pollen.
• Follow the pollen counts and weather forecasts during spring and summer so you know if a storm is coming.
• Make sure your written asthma action plan is up to date and includes thunderstorm advice – talk to your GP
• Avoid being outdoors just before and during thunderstorms, especially in cold wind gusts that come before the rain. Get inside a building or car with the windows shut and the air conditioner switched to recirculate/recycled.

Identify Your Asthma Triggers And Follow Steps To Avoid Them:

For asthma attack prevention, it is imperative for you to first identify the causes of it. Definite triggers can set off a flow of asthma symptoms coughing, wheezing, difficulty breathing so its important you recognize the triggers. That way, you can take steps to elude an asthma attack.

The most common triggers include air pollution, the flu virus, cold air, allergies, fragrances, sinusitis and smoke.

If you dont already see whats causing your asthma attacks, start keeping track of your asthma symptoms in a diary.

Monitor for a number of weeks and recall to include all the environmental and emotive factors that are related to your asthma. When you experience an asthma attack, return to your diary to see which factors might have added to it. Some common asthma triggers are not continuously obvious.

Once youve recognized your asthma triggers, it will be calmer to look into ways you can evade them.

Tips To Reduce Exposure To Outdoor Pollution And Weather

Avoiding outdoor pollution or weather conditions can be difficult, but tips for reducing your exposure include:

• Check media for daily outdoor air quality reports.
• Stay indoors with windows closed on high-pollution days use an air conditioner on recirculate to filter the air.
• Stay indoors with windows closed and vents blocked if hazard-reduction burns or bushfire smoke is in your area.
• Avoid physical activity on high-pollution days or if smoke is in the air.
• Avoid cold air in winter wear a scarf over your nose and mouth, and exercise indoors.

Im Pregnant Can I Take Allergic Rhinitis Medicines

If your allergic rhinitis is troublesome, or if effective treatment for your allergic rhinitis helps control your asthma symptoms, your doctor might recommend that you take medicine while you are pregnant.

If you discover that you are pregnant while using medicines for allergic rhinitis, tell your doctor straight away.

Some corticosteroid nasal sprays have a good safety rating during pregnancy. Most allergic rhinitis medicines have no particular safety concerns for pregnant or breastfeeding women. Talk to your pharmacist or doctor before taking any medicines when you are pregnant.

Can Asthma Be Cured What Are The Latest Treatments

• May 3, 1999

• Print

Javeed Akhter, M.D., Section Head of Pediatric Pulmonology at Hope Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn, Ill., offers the following answer:

Asthma is an eminently controllable illness. Indeed, for most sufferers, control is so effective that it amounts to a virtual cure. But asthma is not curable in the same way as, say, a bacterial pneumonia; it never entirely goes away. Also, no one cure would ever suffice. It is becoming increasingly clear that there many types of asthma–and they differ greatly in their presentation and genesis. For example, asthma that presents as a chronic cough, the “cough variant of asthma,” appears to be very different from the life-threatening variety, which results in extreme respiratory failure and sometimes death.

Another effective strategy for preventing inflammation is the use of certain medications either daily during a season , during multiple seasons or year-round. One class of these medications stabilizes the mast cell, , which line the respiratory tract and play a central role in allergy-induced asthma. These mast cell-stabilizing inhalants include Cromolyn and Nedocromyl. Cromolyn is of particular interest as it is derived from the plant Ammi Visnaga, long used by American Indians as an herbal remedy for colic.

Preventing Summer Allergy And Asthma Symptoms

Here are some ways to help prevent your allergy and asthma symptoms from flaring:

• Pay attention to pollen counts for your area. You can watch your local weather forecasts or check at Pollen.com or the National Allergy Bureau to get your daily pollen counts.
• When pollen counts are high, stay indoors as much as you can. Pollen counts tend to be highest on warm, windy days and lowest on rainy days. If you must go outdoors during times when pollen counts are high, try to do it later in the day, as counts are usually highest early morning to midday.
• When you’re indoors or in the car, keep the windows closed and the air conditioning on. Even if it’s not hot out, turning on the A/C will keep pollen from blowing into your home or car through the window, especially if the air conditioning unit is equipped with a HEPA filter.
• Vacuum and dust your house’s flat surfaces frequently. Dust collects on flat surfaces and pollen often collects in dust so cleaning will keep the levels down indoors too. It may help to wear a mask while you clean.
• Don’t hang drying clothes outdoors. Clothes hanging outside to dry can collect pollen. Use a clothes dryer when pollen levels are high.
• If you must go outside during high pollen counts, wash the pollen off when you get back inside. Wash your hair to get rid of pollen and change your clothes. This might seem like overkill, but it can make a big difference in your symptoms.

How To Tell If You Have Allergy Induced Asthma

If you start to show symptoms of asthma after coming in contact with allergens present in the environment and they cause you difficulty in carrying your day to day activities, it is time to consult an experienced pulmonologist. It is not easy for a common individual to say with certainty that his asthma symptoms are induced by allergens until he has been diagnosed by a qualified pulmonologist. If you experience coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, and tightness in chest after exposure to allergens present in the environment, you can say that you are suffering from allergy induced asthma.

Why Its Important To Know Now

You may think that you have your allergic asthma under control, but it’s important to investigate the causes of your symptoms. Many people are so used to living with their symptoms that they never consider asking for help, but how do you know if the symptoms you have are caused by allergy or not?

If you think you or a loved one has an allergy, don’t try to manage the problem on your own. Be sure to consult with your healthcare professional about a simple blood test that may be able to help. 

What Can I Do To Prevent And How To Manage An Allergy Induced Asthma Attack

The best way to control symptoms of allergy induced asthma is to pay attention to allergens that trigger these symptoms and limit ones exposure to them. You can easily prevent bouts of allergy induced asthma by controlling exposure to allergens triggering symptoms of asthma. Also, you are helped in your endeavour through intake of medications recommended by your doctor.

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Adjust The Dry Air Indoors

During the cold weather season when the air becomes dry, you may find that your lips chap and your skin gets rough and raw. Dry air can also irritate your sinuses, making it harder to breathe, especially if you have allergic asthma. A humidifier can ease the discomfort, but there’s just one problem: Dust mites like humidity as much as you do, according to the AAAAI. If youre going to use a humidifier, keep the moisture in your house between 30 and 45 percent, no higher. Use a hygrometer, an instrument that measures moisture, to monitor the level. Mold, another common allergic asthma trigger, thrives in humidifiers. Be sure to clean your unit thoroughly and regularly as directed in the manufacturers maintenance booklet.

How Asthma Is Treated

While there is no cure for asthma, it can be managed and kept under control so that you can live a normal life.

Asthma is treated by two different types of medications: quick-relief and long-term. Your healthcare provider may prescribe one or both of these types of medications to help control your asthma. Quick-relief medications such as albuterol should only be used as needed for emergencies. Those with frequent asthma symptoms are treated with long-term controller medications, which are taken on a daily basis to help with airway inflammation and other symptoms.

Note: It is important to use an inhaler properly for the medicine to reach your airways. Make sure your healthcare provider shows you exactly how to use your inhaler, and also watches you use it to make sure you are doing so correctly.

The Truth About Cats And Dogs

Many people with allergic asthma are triggered by the dander from cats and dogs, according to the CDC All breeds  even those without fur or hair  can trigger an attack, Rizzo says. Although not everyone with allergies or asthma is affected by pets, you shouldnt have them in your home if they trigger your allergic asthma symptoms. Typically, locking pets out of your bedroom won’t be enough. The protein in the pet dander, saliva, or urine that triggers allergic asthma can get on your clothes and go where you go. It can also spread through the air. If you cant bear to part with your pet, at least reduce the number of places where your animals allergens can hide. Use blinds rather than drapes, and furnishings not covered in fabric for easier and more thorough cleaning. Also, vacuum regularly using a HEPA filter.

Risks And Side Effects

While most of the supplements and tips described above can provide natural allergy relief safely, there are some precautions to keep in mind.

When allergies are mild or moderate, they are usually not very threatening and go away with time. However, severe allergic reactions can be dangerous and require medical attention.

Anaphylaxis is the term for a severe allergic reaction, which can happen due to contact with food allergens, drugs/medications or insect stings. Symptoms usually affect the lungs, blood vessels or heart and can include:

• trouble breathing
• rash
• vomiting

If you or your child experience these symptoms, head to your doctor or the emergency room right away to prevent complications.

What can you do for severe allergies? Your doctor may need to prescribe allergy shots or prescription asthma medications, such as bronchodilators and inhaled corticosteroids.

Discuss these options with your health care provider, and consider trying the natural allergy relief remedies described above in addition to using medications.

See Carolina Asthma & Allergy Center For Mold Allergies And Asthma Care

Mold can be a health risk even for adults and children, but its particularly problematic for people with known mold allergies and asthma. Along with the tasks you can do to manage mold yourself, Carolina Asthma & Allergy can help you manage allergies and asthma with effective treatment plans.

The Carolina Asthma & Allergy Center was founded in 1952. Today, the center has expanded to 13 offices in the area Charlotte for your convenience. Each office has one of 16 board-certified allergists providing patient care. Contact us for more information on how we can help with your mold allergy or asthma problems, or to schedule an appointment.