From the Book of Breathing.

Asthma - Introduction

Airborne Asthma

Food Allergy & Asthma

Asthma Attacks

Chronic Asthma

Asthma Rescue

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Anaphylaxis

Drug Treatments

Asthma in Children

Asthma is increasing world-wide and higher numbers of deaths from asthma in affluent countries worry authorities. The Center for Disease Control in Canada reported a threefold increase of asthmatic deaths over 20 years, mostly in teenagers and young adults. In the US, according to the National Institutes of Health 12.4 million people suffer from asthma; 6.2 billion dollars is spent per year on health care costs.

Here are the basic ideas about asthma causes and treatment:

1. Asthma is allergy until proven otherwise.
2. Allergy comes from airborne and food sources.
3. Solve asthma by improving air quality and doing diet revision.
   

In the past, medical textbooks divided asthma into inside and outside forms.

Extrinsic (outside) asthma tended to occur in sudden attacks triggered by exposure to airborne materials. Intrinsic (inside) asthma tended to occur continuously or in prolonged episodes for no apparent reason.

This distinction is rather old-fashioned but it points to  the existence of   different patterns of asthma and hints that there are different causes. As asthma becomes a chronic disease, it blends into or is confused with other lung conditions and diagnosis and treatment becomes more difficult.

The three basic treatment  choices are:

1. Remove the Cause of Asthma
2. Treat the symptoms
3. Alter the host to be more tolerate of the causes

Asthma Rescue