No one really knows what causes asthma. What we do know is that asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways. The causes of asthma symptoms can vary from person to person. Still, one thing is consistent with asthma: when airways come into contact with an asthma trigger, the airways become inflamed, narrow, and fill with mucus.
When you have an asthma attack, spasms of the muscles around the airways, inflammation and swelling of the mucosal membrane lining the airways, and excessive amounts of mucus contribute to airway narrowing. This makes airway resistance increase and the work of breathing more difficult, causing shortness of breath, cough, and wheezing. You may have coughing with asthma because of the irritation inside the airway and the body’s attempt to clean out the accumulations of thick mucus. More info: http://factsaboutgoodhealth.blogspot.com
So why do you have asthma and your friend doesn’t? No one really knows for sure. We do know that allergies play a role in many people with asthma but not in all. As with allergy, you can blame your family history, as there is a strong genetic component for asthma.
If you or a loved one has asthma, it’s important to understand the many asthma triggers. Once you identify and reduce exposure to the specific triggers or causes of asthma, you can take an active role in controlling your asthma and reducing the frequency of asthma attacks. For example, if you find that allergies are the cause of your asthma, you may have allergic asthma. Being aware of environmental, food, and inhaled allergens and avoiding them can significantly help in asthma prevention by reducing the frequency or severity of asthma attacks. If environmental pollution seems to cause your asthma, it’s important to stay indoors during periods of heavy air pollution. Try to find the specific triggers or causes of your asthma, and then plan to avoid these triggers and have better asthma control. You may also like this – https://thehealthforums.wordpress.com
Source: webmd.com/asthma/guide/asthma-triggers#1
What Causes Asthma
Since asthma has a genetic origin and is a disease you are born with, passed down from generation to generation, the question isn’t really “what causes asthma,” but rather “what causes asthma symptoms to appear?” People with asthma have inflamed airways which are super-sensitive to things which do not bother other people. These things are called “triggers.”
Although asthma triggers vary from person to person based on if you have allergic asthma or non-allergic asthma, some of the most common include:
• Substances that cause allergies (allergens) such as dust mites, pollens, molds, pet dander, and even cockroach droppings. In many people with asthma, the same substances that cause allergy symptoms can also trigger an asthma episode. These allergens may be things that you inhale, such as pollen or dust, or things that you eat, such as shellfish. It is best to avoid or limit your exposure to known allergens in order to prevent asthma symptoms.
• Irritants in the air, including smoke from cigarettes, wood fires, or charcoal grills. Also, strong fumes or odors like household sprays, paint, gasoline, perfumes, and scented soaps. Although people are not actually allergic to these particles, they can aggravate inflamed, sensitive airways. Today most people are aware that smoking can lead to cancer and heart disease. What you may not be aware of, though, is that smoking is also a risk factor for asthma in children, and a common trigger of asthma symptoms for all ages. It may seem obvious that people with asthma should not smoke, but they should also avoid the smoke from others’ cigarettes. This “secondhand” smoke, or “passive smoking,” can trigger asthma symptoms in people with the disease. Studies have shown a clear link between secondhand smoke and asthma, especially in young people. Passive smoking worsens asthma in children and teens and may cause up to 26,000 new cases of asthma each year. Check this website – https://healthguidelinesforyou.wordpress.com
• Respiratory infections such as colds, flu, sore throats, and sinus infections. These are the number one asthma trigger in children.
• Exercise and other activities that make you breathe harder. Exercise—especially in cold air—is a frequent asthma trigger. A form of asthma called exercise-induced asthma is triggered by physical activity. Symptoms of this kind of asthma may not appear until after several minutes of sustained exercise. (When symptoms appear sooner than this, it usually means that the person needs to adjust his or her treatment.) The kind of physical activities that can bring on asthma symptoms include not only exercise, but also laughing, crying, holding one’s breath, and hyperventilating (rapid, shallow breathing). The symptoms of exercise-induced asthma usually go away within a few hours. With proper treatment, a child with exercise-induced asthma does not need to limit his or her overall physical activity.
Source: aafa.org/display.cfm?id=8&cont=6
