Nighttime Cough? These tips can help you

Regular coughing during the night can be annoying and despondent. The remedy, one can find though is to soothe his/her infected throat before going to sleep. However, here are some valuable tips you can follow to provide relief to problematic throat..

Herbal Tea rich with honey: Warm liquid helps in breaking up of mucus and clearing the airways. Make it a habit of sipping at least a glass of herbal tea with honey in it. Honey has the tendency to bring immediate relief to coughing throat.

Sleep with an angle: If you are suffering from nighttime cough, gravity is your biggest adversary. At night, all your day’s consumed postnasal drainage and mucus irritates your throat. In order to ensure it does not causes you constant coughing during sleep, prop yourself up on some pillows.

Steam: Dry airways can worsen your condition. A steamy bath just before going to bed may bring relief to your symptoms. In the words of Norman H. Edelman, MD, chief medical officer of the American Lung Association, “You should be cautious against steam particularly if you have asthma, as it can actually make a cough worse.”

Keep an eye on humidity levels: Watch out for the humidity levels in your room. Dust mites and mold, which causes allergies, thrive in damp air. A regular hygrometer can be used to measure humidity levels in your room. Edelman suggests humidity levels should be kept at 40% to 50%. Humidifiers can also help if the air is dry.

Clean your bed: Silly it may sound, but your bed has a role to play in your cough and allergy. Dust mites- a common allergy trigger, can be found lurking in the bed. To get rid of them, wash your pillow covers and bed sheet at least once in a week. Moreover, you can also wrap your mattresses and pillows in plastic as that can keep dust mites from invading.

It’s time for the physician to take over: If your coughing during the night lasts more than seven days, head immediately for a doctor. By examining your situation carefully, he will prescribe you medication far better than over the counter medicines. 

Your Symptoms Showing Asthma? These Ideas May Come In Handy

Asthmatic condition often brings confusion among people throughout the world. Call it the lack of means, but most asthma individuals do not have sufficient amount of information to address their issue correctly. To set the record straight, go through maximum amount of facts as possible about asthma. Determine what elements can provoke it and what treatment options works beneficial in an emergency asthma assault. Going by this will boost your chances of living through an incursion.

When you suffer an asthma attack, the first you should do is quit smoking. Smoking is rather harmful and can worsen your condition. There are numerous methods available to stop smoking. However, even then if you find it difficult, confer with your physician.

Keeping in touch with your physician can be progressive, if you struggle with bronchial asthma. In case the medications you are taking are not as effective as they usually were, rush to your doctor immediately. Your doctor may improve your medication or advise a greater prescribed medication to get relief from your symptoms.

Consume onions as much as you can. Onions are rich in diphenyl-thiosulfate, which has shown contra –inflammation and contra–asthmatic results. Making onions a part of your dietary plan can actually reduce your craving for prescribed medication. Plus, onions take care of asthma sings by upping your body’s normal ability to reduce inflammation with your lung area.

It is critical to understand what triggers your asthma attack and methods to prevent them. Causes may vary from person to person and it might take some time to figure out what are yours. Once you have full knowledge of your causes, make a note of them, and restrict your exposure. Scientists have found that Vitamin C is quite beneficial in airways functioning. Symptoms associated with air passage conditions such as bronchial asthma can be avoided with low levels of ascorbic acid.

These ideas will help you understand your asthma better. Talk freely with your doctor, Take his advice seriously and you will see there is lots that can be done to tolerate asthma.

Types of Asthma

Asthma is commonly referred to as a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways categorized by wheezing, coughing, shortness of breath and chest tightness. Nevertheless, recent developments in understanding of asthma have helped professionals define specific types of asthma. Having a good knowledge of different types of asthma will help you seek the most effective treatment.

ALLERGIES AND ASTHMA                                                                                  

Allergies and asthma are often regarded as “sisters from the same mother.” Rhinitis (called hay fever) is swelling of the nose’ inside line and widely considered as the most common chronic allergic disease. The symptoms include runny nose, ongoing sneezing, swollen nasal passages, excess mucus, weepy eyes, and a scratchy throat. Many times allergic rhinitis causes asthma. Prescribed medication from your doctor can control the cough and other asthma symptoms.

ASTHMA DUE TO EXERCISE

This type of asthma is triggered by exercise or physical exertion. Many people experience asthmatic symptoms during exercise, which includes world-class athletes. After 5-20 min of strenuous exercise, patients feel difficult to catch their breath. You may have warning signs of an asthma attack while wheezing and coughing. Your doctor can prescribe you an asthma inhaler before exercise to prevent these uncomfortable asthma symptoms.

COUGH-VARIANT ASTHMA

Severe coughing is the predominant cause for cough-variant asthma. Other symptoms include postnasal drip, chronic rhinitis, sinusitis, or gastroesophageal reflux disease. This type of asthma is often goes under diagnosed and undertreated. For persistent cough, contact an experienced doctor. Your doctor might well go in for some extra tests like lung function test before starting an asthma diagnosis.

OCCUPATIONAL ASTHMA

It is a rare type of asthma and usually triggers from workplace. The effect would be difficulty in breathing and asthma symptoms on job days. The symptoms include runny nose, congestion, eye irritation and cough. The typical asthma wheezing is absent. People associated with farming, animal breeding, hairdressing, nursing, woodworking may suffer from occupational asthma.

NOCTURNAL ASTHMA

Nighttime asthma is the most common of all asthma types. Your asthma symptoms of wheezing, cough, and trouble breathing are dangerous in the night as this type of asthma is powerfully influenced by the sleep-wake cycle. Studies show most deaths related to asthma occur in the night. This happens mainly because of an increased exposure to allergens. The best way to treat nocturnal asthma is to closely monitor the symptoms and consult the doctor as soon as possible.

How to Fight Out Fall Allergies

As the winter approaches and the weather starts to cool off, it’s time for mold spores, ragweed, and other weed pollens to sneak in. Yes, I am referring to the fall allergy season. This is a torrid time for some people, as they suffer from various allergies that last up to 7-10 days. However, some simple and practical allergy tips can help you immensely fight fall allergies.

Sometimes patients get confused over the symptoms, whether they have an allergy or a cold infection. In general, cold symptoms develop all of a sudden, while allergies happen with continuous exposure to dust, pets or leaves. The main component present with allergies is ‘itchiness.’ It’s important to understand your symptoms. If you find it difficult, visit a doctor.

Watch out for what you eat. It’s not just the pollens that give you sleepless nights. Take care of what comprises your diet, especially fresh foods like watermelon, cucumber, banana, chamomile tea, and zucchini. People suffering from ragweed allergy can actually worsen their symptoms with these foods. Echinacea may be used to fight colds and viruses, but its side effect can aggravate your seasonal allergies.

Keeping indoors during the fall season might actually worsen your allergies. Exposure to indoor allergens like pets, mold spores, and dust mites can ratchet up your condition. Individuals, especially those who are allergic to pets may develop respiratory issues in the fall season. Plan if your symptoms are prompted by mildew and mold conditions like having a HEPA type vacuum, room air purification or possibly a dehumidifier.

It’s quintessential to wash fall or winter clothing that has been in storage where pollens and dust mites may have accrued. Take utmost care of washing them before you decide to wear. Counter indoor allergens entry by keeping off-season pillows, bed sheets, blankets in an enclosed container.  

Follow these simple tips and soon enough you will realize allergies were a thing of past.

Asthma in Children

Asthma is the most worrying of the respiratory disease, especially in infants and children. A child suffering from asthma has issues with breathing in rather than breathing out because of small bronchi. Asthma is the prominent cause of chronic illness in children in the United States. Studies show, about 20 million people have asthma and nearly 9 million of them are children. For reasons widely unknown, the number is steadily increasing. On an average, asthma symptoms can be seen as early by the age of five.

Asthma symptoms vary from child to child. In fact, warning signs cay be different from episode to episode in the same child. However, a list of common signs and symptoms of asthma in children is given below:

• Constant coughing during night, playing or laughing.
• Persistent cough.
• Rapid breathing.
• Fatigue.
• Wheezing- a whistling sound while inhaling and exhaling.
• Chest congestion.
• Retraction in the chest from labored breathing.
• Feelings of weakness and tiredness.

However, there are certain causes or risk factors for developing asthma in children. These comprise:

• Allergens- mold, pollen, animals, nasal allergies etc.
• A family history of asthma.
• Frequent respiratory infections.
• Underweight at the time of birth.
• Exposure to tobacco smoke before or after birth.
• Being raised in a low-income environment.

Your child’s doctor is the best position to treat asthma. He might be interested in knowing the medical history of your family for any kind of allergy or lung disease. It’s quintessential on your part to describe all the symptoms like cough, wheezing, shortness of breath, chest pain and so on. Based on the symptoms, your child’s doctor may go for a physical exam wherein he checks your child’s heart and lungs and look for signs of an allergic nose or eyes.

 

Your child’s doctor will draft out an Asthma Action Plan according to the seriousness of asthma. The plan will describe when and how to take the medication, what to do when asthma gets worse or in the case of an emergency. Avoiding triggers, using medications, and keeping an eye on daily asthma symptoms are the ways with which asthma in children is controlled. In addition, keep the child away from smoke along with giving proper medication.