The human body is very fragile. Even a tiny external stimulus induced by minor things can lead to devastating results. Therefore, we need to take care of our health, body, and mind to live life to the fullest.
However, some diseases like Asthma can make even the simplest automated acts like breathing difficult. This disease has affected millions of people worldwide and still has no medicine to cure it instantly. Read this article to find out more about this disease.
What Is Asthma?
Asthma is a type of disease that inflames the inner linings of the lungs, making it difficult to breathe. If you have this disease, the airways in your lungs get inflamed and narrower, leading to the creation of extra mucus. This makes it difficult for you to breathe and makes you cough more.
This can be a hereditary disease. Therefore, it can pass from parent to child. However, this disease is not a nuisance for many people since its symptoms may arise from time to time. This happens under certain circumstances due to specific triggers. The symptoms may persist throughout, making life harder and miserable for others.
What Causes Asthma?
The root causes of this disease are difficult to pinpoint because everyone has different reasons. Many have this disease lingering permanently, while others have it because specific triggers induce it. Therefore, it can be due to several reasons like:
1. Airborne Allergens
People are born allergic to certain particles like pollen, pet hair, dandruff, dust, smoke, etc. These things can induce Asthma in a person if they get exposed to it for more extended periods.
2. Lung Infections
Doctors have often seen patients who suffer from this disease due to various lung infections, ranging from severe causes like bronchitis to even the simplest illnesses like the common cold.
3. Pollutants And Irritant
Like allergic people, many pollutants and irritants like dust, smoke, ash, industrial residue, and other similar pollutants can act as triggers. Prolonged exposure to these can lead to deadlier effects.
4. Strenuous Physical Activity
Many people have weak lungs and hearts, which can get tired quickly after some form of physical exercise. Any form of strenuous physical activity can act as a trigger for these people.
5. Stress
Stress can often trigger asthma symptoms, especially those suffering from depression and anxiety issues. In addition, the sudden increase in heartbeat rate can act as a potential trigger due to faster blood flow.
6. GERD
GERD stands for (Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease) is a type of digestive disease that sends stomach acids back to your throat. This can lead to heartburn in many patients, triggering an asthma attack.
Asthma Symptoms
The symptoms commonly associated with this disease are:
1. Coughing
If you constantly cough while making a loud wheezing noise, chances are you might either have tuberculosis or Asthma. This wheezing sound happens because of the build-up of phlegm and mucus in your respiratory tracts.
2. Breathlessness
If you have problems breathing and experience symptoms like breathlessness and shortness of breath for prolonged periods, it’s best to go to a doctor immediately. Chances are you have Asthma.
3. Fatigue
In many cases, patients experience constant low levels of energy and tiredness. This can be a warning sign that you have this disease.
4. Chest Pain
Chest pains and heartburns are common signs of Asthma. This chest tightness happens due to inflammation of respiratory tracts, along with less oxygen reaching your lungs due to breathing problems.
5. Sleeping Problems
Due to difficulty in breathing, you can suffer from sleeping problems. Get yourself checked whether you have this disease or not.
Types of Asthma
There are several types of Asthma, namely:
1. Allergic
As the name suggests, this happens due to reacting to allergens like pollen, dust, smoke, and other aerobic particles. So, therefore, it happens due to allergen triggers.
2. Non-Allergic
This happens for a prolonged time and occurs due to respiratory infections and other causes.
3. Cough-Variant
This disease has only one symptom – persistent dry cough. However, it can be deadly if left untreated for a long time since it can lead to an asthma attack if the symptoms persist.
4. Nocturnal
This is caused only during the nighttime. Therefore, symptoms appear only at night, especially heartburns, breathlessness, and sleeping problems.
5. Occupational
This disease can happen because of the place of your occupation. For example, suppose your workplace is dusty and moldy with less fresh air circulation. In that case, it can degrade respiratory tracts, inducing Asthma.
Asthma Treatment
This disease has no magic medicine that can cure it immediately. If you contract it once, there is a high chance you will live with it your entire life. The only option is to control the symptoms based on their severity as much as possible. This can be done by:
1. Quick Relief Medication
This refers to taking pills and, more commonly, inhalers to reduce the symptoms of this disease as quickly as possible. This is advisable for younger patients and people with allergic Asthma since they face symptoms due to specific triggers.
2. Long Term Medication
Suppose you have had prolonged Asthma for years. In that case, you may be given certain medicines like anti-inflammatories and anticholinergics to control the symptoms.
3. Biological Treatment
This treatment gets recommended only for older patients with severe prolonged symptoms. In this case, a respiratory operation is necessary, where doctors conduct bronchial thermoplasty. This heats your respiratory tracts, reducing the inflammation and evaporating the mucus inside.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Ans: The three main types of Asthma are:
• Allergic Asthma
• Non-Allergic Asthma
• Cough-variant Asthma
Ans: Some of the most common causes of Asthma are:
• Smoking
• Air Pollution
• Molds
• Cleaning disinfectants
• Allergies
Ans: This is a challenging question since its effect is different for everyone. Some young patients get cured automatically. Some patients get temporarily cured, only for it to return years later. However, most patients never get cured of it.
Ans: If you wanted to know what does Asthma feel like, then the answer is the feeling of breathlessness. You won’t breathe properly, with lots of coughing and mucus.
Conclusion
Asthma is a severe disease that can happen to people of all ages. The symptoms can happen anytime in your life, from childhood to even old age. This troublesome disease can become fatal if left unchecked. Therefore, we recommend going to a doctor if you face any symptoms mentioned in this article. This disease has no cure. Consequently, you must take timely precautions and medications to prevent complications.
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