Caring for a Child with Asthma

Each year in the USA, more than 80 000 children are sent to the emergency room due to asthma. This disease which is difficult to diagnose, often arouses the concern of parents. If you are parents, there are some useful tips which can help you take care of your children with asthma:

1 - Be aware of the real symptoms of asthma.

Some parents might ask themselves 'How can we be sure that it's not just a cough?'

In fact, coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and tightness in the chest are the classic symptoms of asthma. However, it happens that some children with asthma do not cough. If some of the above symptoms last for two or three weeks, you should realize that your children might be suffering asthma. Coughing at night or coughing during exercise is also associated with the disease.

Sometimes it's difficult to diagnose asthma, especially among toddlers, because its symptoms resemble other diseases, including bronchiolitis. In most cases, unless a child has experienced two or three crises, doctors won't diagnose asthma.

2. - Be aware that asthma can be hereditary.

There is a familial predisposition to asthma. Children born to parents suffering asthma intend more easily to be attacked by asthma. They predispose to bronchial hyper-reactivity which is an overreaction to various environmental stimuli, resulting in bronchial obstruction and the development of allergies.

3. - Be aware of that asthma can't be psychosomatic.

Asthma is not a psychosomatic illness. However, when a child suffers asthma, her or his emotions or stress can trigger or exacerbate symptoms of the disease. In order to help a child with strong emotions, you should make her or him do some breathing exercises which can effectively relax your child. Furthermore, it's also important to encourage your child to express his or her feelings.

4 - Be aware of that use of bronchodilators can cause side effects.

The bronchodilators are used to dilate the airway by relaxing the muscles that surround, in order to relieve breathing difficulty rapidly. They can cause side effects such as increasing heart rate, slight hand tremors, nervousness, insomnia or headache. These side effects may indispose the child, but do not represent a danger to her or his health.

Furthermore, to treat asthma, doctors usually prescribe anti-inflammatory which can treat inflammation of bronchi, the source of asthma. Anti-inflammatory may be prescribed by doctor for a child at low doses for a long period, from several weeks to several months. However, it can also cause some side effects, such as voice alteration, thrush or sleep disorder. Therefore, when you see your children suffer the side effect, you should explain to your children and consult a doctor for further help.

5 - Apart from the use of drugs, abdominal breathing can help your child.

The practice of abdominal breathing can help a child with breathing difficulties. Unlike the chest breathing, abdominal breathing allows them to expel easily the air trapped in the lung. Most of people believe that asthmatic patients are lacking air. In fact, the inflammation of bronchi causes bronchial obstruction that keeps air out of lungs. Breathing exercises help increase respiratory capacity.