Archive

Archive for the ‘Asthma’ Category

Nov
03

Has the Doubter put in an appearance yet, claiming that Undoing the past can’t possibly relieve asthma symptoms? Has he insisted that you be logical, use good common sense, and look at this from a scientific point of view? Wonderful! According to a recent study on the effects that writing about stressful experiences has on the symptoms of asthma, he hasn’t a leg to stand on. This study used writing instead of imagery, yet the results are similar — including the statistics. Writing heals asthma

Researchers asked patients to draw on their inner beliefs, thoughts, and feelings about a past event and to experience them within a creative context. According to this controlled clinical trial, thirty-nine asthma patients completed an experiment in which they wrote about the most stressful event of their lives. They did this for twenty minutes on three consecutive days a week for one week and were evaluated at two weeks, two months, and four months after treatment. Starting at two weeks, 47 percent of the patients who were treated showed clinically relevant changes in lung function, as compared with changes of 24 percent in the control group.

This rigorous study, conducted at the State University of New York, Stony Brook, School of Medicine by Dr. Joshua M. Smyth, is the first to prove that writing about stressful life experiences improves physician ratings of disease severity and objective physiological markers. While participating patients wrote about their most stressful experience, control group patients wrote about their daily activities. All were asked to write continuously, without regard for spelling, style, or other artistic or editorial concerns, and were signaled to stop after twenty minutes. They could write about one topic for three sessions or could move from one topic to another. None of the work was discussed with staff or with other participants in the study. Most often, they wrote about deaths of loved ones, serious relationship problems, disturbing events of childhood, or occasionally of seeing or being involved in a major disaster.

Those who decide to use this technique must be willing to go the course: this means to write for the full twenty minutes, for three days, about something that matters, something really distressing, not just the events of the day. As Dr. Smyth observed, and as the Awfulizer will surely point out, this can be painful. Yet its value is enormous. By writing about the stress or trauma, you bring to the surface emotions and memories that may have been stuck inside you for years, and you expel them. This of itself is a kind of exorcism.

Jun
21

The bronchial asthma refers to the reversible airway obstruction which is caused by an inflammation of the airways. In susceptible individuals this inflammation causes recurrent episodes of wheezing, breathlessness, chest tightness and coughing, particularly at night and early morning.

Acute bronchial asthma in adults
The application of the guidelines on the treatment of acute bronchial asthma assumes you have been diagnosed with asthma after excluding other differential diagnosis in pathological situations such as:

1. COPD exacerbation;
2. congestive heart failure;
3. pulmonary embolism;
4. mechanical obstruction of the airways;
5. laryngeal dysfunction.

The asthma exacerbations (acute asthma) are a marked, often progressive worsening of asthma symptoms and bronchial obstruction, which appear in the space of hours or even days and can last up to weeks. The goals of treatment of asthma attack are:

1. The answer to the bronchial asthma as soon as possible.
2. Plan for preventing future recurrences.

The severe asthma attack is a potentially fatal situation. Therefore, once diagnosed, treatment should be started as soon as possible. The therapy differs depending on the severity of the crisis and therefore it is necessary to advance a rapid assessment of severity, which is essential for detecting a range of symptoms and signs, and some objective parameters of respiratory function and oxygenation status of the patient. The assessment of respiratory function by measuring the PEF (peak expiratory flow) is easy to perform and can be made by the patient at home. The management of asthma attack should include:

1. Early intervention: It is important that the patient be educated to recognize the severity of asthma in early action at home and seek medical attention when necessary.

2. Appropriate drug treatment: The cornerstone of treatment of asthma attack are as follows:-

  • Repeated administration of rapid acting beta2-agonists
  • Early introduction of systemic corticosteroids
  • Correction of hypoxemia

3. Monitoring the patient’s condition and response to treatment. Monitoring must be done through assessment of symptoms and objective parameters (repeated measurement of lung function).

Home treatment of asthma attack
The home treatment is possible for the less severe asthma attacks, defined by level of symptoms and possibly as a reduction of PEF below 20%, presence of nocturnal awakenings, and increased use of beta2-agonist bronchodilators in the short duration of action.

Action Plan
Each patient must have a written action plan based on symptoms and possibly also on the measurement of PEF, which determines how to recognize signs of deterioration and to assess the severity of the crisis, when to modify or improve the treatment and require specialist care when appropriate. This allows you to initiate appropriate treatment for early signs of deterioration with a greater chance of success.

Pharmacotherapy
The first use of drugs are fast acting beta2-agonists: salbutamol spray 2-4 puffs (200-400 mcg) every 20 minutes for the first time with a spacer (or salbutamol 100/150 micrograms / kg max 5 mg in 2 – 3 ml of saline via nebulizer). At constant dose, the use of a pressurized aerosol with spacer (if the patient is able to use it) is able to achieve the same improvement as with the nebulizer.

After the first hour, the dose of rapid-acting beta2-agonist depends on the severity of the crisis: 2-4 puffs every 3-4 hours for one or two days in severe asthma and in the most serious crises it can take 6-10 puffs every 1-2 hours.

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If the patient improves rapidly and if the PEF values increased to above 80% predicted or personal best and improvement persists for at least 3-4 hours, no other therapy is needed. Otherwise, you may want to add oral corticosteroids for 4 to 5 days to expedite the resolution of the crisis. It is a careful patient monitoring and prompt delivery to the hospital in case of no response.

Directions for immediate hospitalization
The patient should be hospitalized if:

1. Patient is at high risk for fatal asthma.
2. The exacerbation is severe (the patient has significant symptoms, does not improve after the first dose of medication, PEF is below 60% predicted or personal best after treatment with beta2-agonists).
3. The response to beta2-agonists is not quick or sustained for at least 3 hours.
4. There is no improvement after 6 hours of treatment with systemic corticosteroids.
5. There is further deterioration.

Jun
09

If your pet seems to be triggering asthma flare ups, don’t throw in the towel just yet. The most likely trigger is the protein in the dander that is invisible to the human eye, but that attaches to air and other airborne particles.

One the most effective and non-invasive ways to minimize the effects of the dander is to continually filter it from the air. Here are the 5 best features to have in a cleaner that will yield the best results.

1. Match the Filter to The Problem—One of the most important things to do is to check the type of filters that a cleaner has. You definitely want it to include one for particles because they are often most responsible for pet-related asthma flare ups.

2. Size Does Matter—Air cleaners work by cleaning the air closest to them, returning it to the room to displace more air that it then pulls in to clean. It will continue to do this to all air that is available to it. So if you put a cleaner that is designed to filter a space than it is able, you will experience results that are less than satisfactory.

Measure your area and look at the technical specifications to make sure the cleaner is designed to clean your square footage or greater. Make sure the unit is designed to clean the area you have. Over sizing the unit by a few feet is preferable to under sizing it for reasons stated in the previous paragraph.

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3. Has Multiple Types of Filters—Whereas particulate irritants are important to be able to remove, the fact is that gases, odors, and chemicals can also play havoc with asthmatics. Choosing a cleaner that can also remove gaseous pollutants is saves you money-one air purifier can do it all rather than multiple cleaners.

Carbon cloth is well known for its ability to remove gaseous pollutants; and because it is a cloth it is also able to eliminate particles efficiently as well.

4. Can Go Where You Go—A portable air cleaner gives you the most control over the air you breathe. A filter that is easily lifted and that can be rolled from one location in your space to another means that you can always be assured of clean air whether you’re at home, visiting friend or relatives, or on vacation. Portability means that clean air is always as close as the nearest outlet.

5. Uses HEPA Filtration—In order for this type of filter to deemed a high efficiency particle arresting (HEPA) filter, it must proved that it can eliminate 99,997 out every 10,000 airborne particulates that are.3 microns in size or greater. A micron is defined as one millionth on a meter.

This type of filter is so useful to asthmatics because often it is a combination of triggers that cause flare ups. Many of the typical triggers are particulates such as household dust, dust mites, seasonal pollen, as well as mold and mildew spores.

By allowing this type of filtration to work continually in your space, you will greatly reduce the number of irritants in the air, and lessen the flare ups that are related to them.

Apr
20

There are a lot of health problems that people encounter nowadays which includes asthma attacks. This can actually occur at any age bracket and can be due to various environmental factors as well as ones particular lifestyle. If you are one of those who are suffering from this kind of health issue, you will definitely want to know how to deal with this properly. Here are a few pointers for you to look into.

  • The first thing that you will have to keep in mind is that you should be able to detect the symptoms of asthma before doing anything else. These attacks may happen for a certain time when you are caught off guard, but if you know what the symptoms are, you may as well be able to prevent an attack from coming and at the same time deal with it properly.
  • The symptoms may include having to deal with difficulty in breathing, having that heavy feeling on the chest, breathing with a whistling sound as well as coughing. Such symptoms may be triggered by a lot of things mostly related to environmental factors including chemicals present within the area, pets, microorganisms as well as food and climate can aggravate and cause asthma.

Now that you know the symptoms and the causes that may trigger such asthma attacks, there are a few things that you can do to make sure that you are not caught unaware of any particular emergency situation. If you are with a person is prone to such attacks, you should take note of certain precautionary measures that will help you prevent any asthma attacks to happen again. Keeping the air clean in the environment where the patient is and works all the time is a must. Making use of an air humidifier will help lessen such attack issues.

However let us say that this is the first time that you do see the symptoms occurring to the person for the first time and you don’t know if this could be asthma or what. During emergency cases, you will have to determine if the patient is currently having that much difficulty in breathing ad if this is the case the patient will need enough ventilation and air. Usually an adult asthma patient will already know what to do, but if it is a child you will have to act quickly to help the child regain normal breathing pattern. It is as well important that during emergency cases, you act as quickly as you can to be able to bring the patient to the hospital to go through the proper procedure in dealing with this medical emergency.

Lastly, you will have to make sure that the patient takes the proper medical treatment to know what options are available when it comes to dealing with asthma attacks. You do not just easily opt for instant relief but you must aim for total prevention. We all know that these attacks may or may not be fatal for the patient. But as soon as you know how to deal with it properly, you do not have to worry yourself all the time.

Mar
30

Asthma is very common among children, teens and adults. It is a disease that causes the lungs to tighten. An asthma attack is when your lungs are not getting enough air to breathe. The symptoms include: trouble breathing, wheezing, coughing, chest pain and chest tightness.

First of all, drugs alone will never affect a cure and the condition will become more firmly established over the years although drug is needed in some cases to relieve the symptoms. There is evidence to suggest that chronic allergic asthma in a young person which responds easily to inhaled steroids will gradually becomes irreversible chronic bronchitis for which steroid are little use.

The following can be done as part of a holistic plan:

(a) Identify the culprits

All allergens and irritants can be reduced to some extent but you need to know what you are allergic to and how to avoid them properly. Dust mites, pollen, animal hair and danders, waste, moulds and fungi are all going to be problematic. If you are not sure what causes your allergies, a skin prick test, blood test (RAST) and IgE antibodies test may help you to some extent.

(b) Clean your house properly

Dust mites excrete tiny particles into the air each day. It’s the protein in it that irritates people, causing allergic rhinitis. Dust mites can be gotten rid of and you need a very powerful vacuum cleaner (vacuum slowly and patiently for about five minutes one square foot) or by exposing them to extreme temperature, such as a 60 degrees washing machine cycle or around 12 hours in the freezer. A superficially clean house is not necessarily allergen free as the mites are usually inside cushions, sofas, pillows, mattresses and other bedding and puff out when you lay or sit on it.

You should swap carpets for wooden floors, remove pets from your house, invest in a good dehumidifier and vacuum cleaner; swap curtains for blinds, meticulously vacuum or steam clean your carpet and soft furnishings, hot wash and change your bedding and mattress covers; wipe all surfaces in the kitchen and bathroom with a chemical free cleaner (or simple mix water with lemon juice and vinegar) to wash away moulds and bacteria deposits. Note that dust mites flourish in a moist environment and that is why a dusty home which is dry may contain very few dust mites or dust mite allergens whereas a superficially clean home engaged in frequent dry-dusting can boost levels of dust mite allergens in the air.

Mar
02

Don’t get rid of your corticosteroid inhaler. It may be the only thing to work with a severe attack, but natural healthcare does offer an asthma attack remedy which can reduce the severity and decrease or totally get rid of the dependence upon medicine like corticosteroids and bronchodilators. It is possible that the use of an inhaler will become less and less.

Inhalers have side effects which are unpleasant,t such as headaches, throat irritation, frequent infections, tremors, or heart palpitations. Use of inhalers over a long period of time can reduce the body’s ability to absorb calcium effectively and cause osteoporosis because the needed calcium is being taken from the bones.

Natural healthcare can provide significant benefits to respiratory functioning and an asthma attack remedy when used along with a broader lifestyle management changes, such as recognizing and avoiding triggers such as dust and pollen and a redo of the diet incorporating the following:

  • Eat at least four different-colored fruits, veggies, and beans daily to get a full spectrum of antioxidants.
  • Cut out dairy and soy products, and replace with milk and cheese made from rice
  • Eat more salmon and oily fish but less meat.
  • Each day, supplement with 4,000 mg fish oil, 1,000 mg calcium, 1,000 mg quercetin, 600 mg magnesium, 300 mg grape-seed extract, and 200 mg pycnogenol.
  • Coffee has been shown to work as a potent bronchodilator. Drink a cup or two of strong, unsweetened black coffee when you feel an attack coming on

 

While most of us take easy breathing for granted, those who struggle to breathe come to realize the value of a healthy respiratory system and a strong immune system. The strength and capacity of the lungs becomes all important.

Keeping the immune system in top form is essential for good health period. In addition, for those who tend to have chest and breathing problems, it is important to support the strength and capacity of the lungs by means of regular exercise and by avoiding any known allergens.

What are tissue salts and how can they be helpful as an asthma attack remedy? There are twelve tissue salts in the human body which help to keep it in a natural healthy state, able to heal itself by correcting imbalances at the cell level. When theses salts are in the correct concentration we are healthy, but when an imbalance occurs normal cell function is disturbed and illness results.

Specially prepared doses of biochemic tissue salts can provide a natural asthma attack remedy.

These three biochemic, cell supporting tissue salts combined together can provide such a remedy:

1. Kali phos (6X) is often called ‘nature’s pacifier’. It has a relaxing effect on the nerves and throughout the body and helps to support healthy breathing.
2. Mag phos (6X) has a variety of uses, amongst these is the ability to prevent spasms and tightness in the chest
3. Nat sulph (6X) is classically used as a natural bronchial tonic and helps to soothe the respiratory tract

This homeopathic formula of tissue salts may be taken internally at the first signs of wheezing, chest constriction, closed airways or abnormal breathing for effective help as an asthma attack remedy. It supports lung and bronchiole functioning, maintains the respiratory tract and immune system health and doesn’t have the side effects of corticosteroids and bronchodilators.

Feb
19

Has someone told you that asthma is incurable? If so they are leading you away from one of the most amazing discoveries you could ever make! All you have to do is understand what the cause of asthma truly is and that cause is environmental pollution. Why do we believe environmental pollution is the cause of this life stealing disease? Because we have done some trials on a few people who were diagnosed with asthma and all we did was use a method that did one thing and one thing only, removed all those environmental pollutants from the body. The body does what it does best, it healed itself.

My son was part of this trial and I have to say it was the best thing I ever did for him. He was diagnosed at 4 years old, he had been having some severe health issues with coughs and harsh breathing since he was 3 but it was never identified as asthma till he was 4. He is now 6 and completely off his asthma medications, we now let his nebulizer and his prescription drugs and inhaler sit on a shelf collecting dust. A side effect from this discovery that we used is he has not been sick in these 2 years, we have now forgotten what it is like to sit in the doctor’s office all the time waiting to be seen, what a blessing!


Another amazing story was a woman named Phyllis who lives in California and has been suffering from asthma for many years. The first time I talked with her I could barely understand what she was saying because she was forced to speak in a whisper. She tried this amazing method and after the first week her voice started to return. Her voice had been gone for a few years and she was also was able to stop using those prescription drugs and inhalers that only managed her asthma and never really helped her overcome it, but she is now asthma free and living her life to the fullest!

We don’t tell you these stories to impress you, we tell you these stories to impress upon you that there is hope for asthma sufferers. You don’t have to rely on medications and inhalers to manage your illness. It is possible to leave it all behind and start a new life with proper working lungs. It is nice to have the ability to enjoy things that you had to avoid before. Don’t let yourself be controlled by prescription drugs, inhalers and horrible nebulizer treatments. They will only add to your already huge toxic burden. Environmental pollutions are in everything and are everywhere. The sooner you remove them and do it on a daily basis, the sooner you can free yourself.

Freedom from asthma is possible; don’t believe those that say it is incurable. After these stories I have shared with you, you now can see that it is very possible to overcome asthma. In fact beat it and stay asthma free for life. So, drop the skepticism and find your path to this newly discovered method. It’s here now right in front of you and learning more about it is only clicks away. Don’t wait till tomorrow. Choose to free yourself today!

Feb
18

An electronic nebulizer is like any other nebulizer used to convert the medicine into mist form so that it directly reaches the lungs for quick recovery. They are not only used by humans but it comes handy to treat animals from influenza and other kinds of respiratory issues. These nebulizers depend on membrane vibration to produce aerosol. Since the machine depends on vibration, air compressors are not required, thereby making the nebulizers compact and affordable. Electronic nebulizers are available in all leading medical supply stores. Online stores offer better deals when compared to offline stores. Browse elaborately to catch the best deals.

Ultrasonic nebulizer is also a kind of electronic nebulizer as they use sound waves to convert liquid medication into mist for easy inhaling. A crystal is placed inside the machine that generates sound and the conversion process takes place. A valve is also present in some models to control the flow of the mist. Ultrasonic nebulizer is not capable of handling all types of medicines. Another major application of ultrasonic nebulizer is that it is used in humidifier apparatus that helps to spray water particles to dampen dry buildings. Ultrasonic nebulizer is more popular because of its various applications. It is simple to use and easy to clean.
Electronic nebulizer was invented in the year 1930 and it was initially called a Pneumostat. This machine converted liquid medicine into aerosol using an electrical compressor. When these electronic nebulizers were new to the market they were priced high and hence it was used only by selected few while most of the users preferred hand driven nebulizer called the Park-Davis Glaseptic. It was only in the year 1964 Ultrasonic wave nebulizers were introduced. They were far more efficient and user friendly that most of them turned towards Ultrasonic nebulizers. With the passage of time more advanced electronic nebulizers have replaced the traditional models.

Electronic Vibrating Mesh Technology or VMT is the latest in the nebulizer world. They produce dense medicated aerosol by moving through a metal alloy mesh. VMT is lightweight and compact and is absolutely portable. In this wonder machine around 98 percent of the medication is delivered. This means there is very minimal wastage of the medicines. The adapters are compatible with any masks and T-piece. The head of the unit can be removed easily for cleaning purposes. Electronic Nebulizer with VMT comes with a main power unit, medication cup, mesh cap, mask adapter, mouth piece, instructional video and a carry case. This nebulizer weighs just 6oz. The product comes with a two years limited warranty.

Feb
11

Asthma is defined as a chronic disease that can affect the airways and make breathing difficult at times. The airways can become inflamed, and limit the amount of oxygen that reaches your lungs. Living with this condition can be extremely difficult, but with treatment, your quality of life can be improved, as long as you understand what causes it and take steps to eliminate triggers from your life.

Characteristics of Asthma

There are three major phases that make up this condition, and being able to treat all three can be difficult at times.

  1. The first is known as airway irritability and causes extreme sensitivity to environmental triggers.
  2. Anything can set off this sensitivity, and will cause the patient to immediately transition into the next phase, airway inflammation
  3. Then into full on airway obstruction, the last phase of this disease.

Environmental triggers that can bring on an attack include pollen, pet dander, dust, secondhand smoke or pollutants in the air that the body cannot tolerate like certain perfumes, air fresheners or paint fumes.

Once triggered, inflammation begins to build in the airways, causing the bronchial tubes to become red and swollen. A lot of the standard treatments for asthma will fail to treat the inflammation itself, and concentrate on easing the airway blockage instead, allowing long-term damage to the lungs to occur. Patients should work with their doctors to keep this damage in check, if possible. The final phase of this condition is airway blockage, caused by the muscles around the airways contracting and tightening in response to the environmental triggers. This causes shortness of breath and wheezing.

Risk Factors for Asthma

Anyone whose family history includes allergies and other breathing disorders, or who is a smoker or has been exposed to secondhand smoke may be at risk for developing this disease. Very often, asthma and allergies will develop together, making an accurate diagnosis difficult. A lot of times all the doctor has to work with are the symptoms themselves, and effective treatment may be delayed because of it.

Asthma Triggers

An attack can be triggered by anything that irritates your airways in the environment around you.

  • The first thing to eliminate from your life is smoking, whether it is yourself or someone else who remains in constant contact.
  • Other triggers include dust, mold, pet dander, irritating fumes and pollen.

Taking every step you can to make the world around you more allergen friendly will help keep your attacks to a minimum.

Asthma Treatment

The most common treatment for asthma is the use of bronchodilators, like albuterol, medications geared towards reducing the airway constriction and obstruction experienced during the final phase of an attack. The medicine causes the bands of muscles that surround the airways to relax, loosening their hold over the airways, so that more oxygen can pass into the lungs. It should be used whenever you feel an attack coming on, and if it ever seems to not be working as well as it should, tell your doctor immediately.

Jan
26

An ultrasonic nebulizer has many advantages over any other type of nebulizer. The function of this nebulizer is similar to any other nebulizer and that is treating patients suffering from asthma, or cystic fibrosis.

The Omron ultrasonic nebulizer is the best way to administer medications for breathing disorders and to provide relief to those showing asthma symptoms. The basic point is to understand what exactly does it do and how.

In this article, we will give you an in-depth knowledge on ultrasonic nebulizers.

These nebulizers are used to give medicine in mist form to patients who face problems while using an inhaler. Usually children and infants are unable to use an inhaler properly and that is when an ultrasonic nebulizer is used. Sometimes adults have difficulties using an inhaler, due to lack of hand strength and co-ordination problems. This may be caused due to some disease or due to age. Improper handling of an inhaler will impede the intake of adequate dosage of the medicine. This is when an ultrasonic nebulizer is used for giving inhaled medications.

The basic area of difference between an ultrasonic nebulizer and other traditional nebulizers is that the former turns the liquid medicine into a fog, that can be easily inhaled.

The standard nebulizers force air into the hand held portion with a piston-style compressor. This air pressure helps in spraying the medicine in mist form, which the patient inhales through a mask or a device inserted in his mouth.

The ultrasonic nebulizers, on the other hand, uses high-frequency vibrations to turn the liquid medicine into a mist.

Some nebulizers use water to carry these vibrations to the medicine cup, but there are some brands, which make models that do not require a water source. In fact, the devices that do not need water are more convenient to use for people who intend carrying this nebulizer whenever they are traveling.

The best advantage of using an ultrasonic nebulizer is that the mist formed in this device is consistent, uniform and have smaller particle size compared to the jet nebulizer. The particle size depends on the strength of air pressure produced by the compressor which may vary in traditional models, but is usually stable in these nebulizers.

The smaller the particle size, more easily it penetrates the lungs, and hence, is more effective.

The ultrasonic asthma nebulizers complete the treatment in lesser time than the ones with compressor technology. They are also silent-medication administering devices, and can be taken without disrupting conversations, or disturbing others in a public place.

Medical research has proved that ultrasonic ones are far more effective in treating cystic fibrosis, than other traditional models. Many patients with asthma have shared their views and said that they feel better when using this type of a nebulizer.