What is Asthma? Asthma attacks are not all the same—some are worse than others. In a severe asthma attack, the airways can close so much that not enough oxygen gets to vital organs. This condition is a Medicine emergency. People can die from severe asthma attacks.

Asthma is a chronic disease that affects your airways. The airways are the tubes that carry air in and out of your lungs. If you have asthma, the inside walls of your airways are inflamed. The inflammation makes the airways very sensitive, and they tend to react strongly to things that you are allergic to or find irritating. When the airways react, they get narrower, and less air flows through to your lung tissue.

Asthma can occur at any age but is most likely in children between infancy and age five, and in adults before the age 40. But asthma can occur at any time in life. One in ten new asthma cases is diagnosed in people over age 65. Most people with asthma can control it so that they have few and infrequent symptoms and can live active lives.

Symptoms of Asthma Children

Asthma is the most common chronic disease of childhood. It can begin as early as infancy, though it is difficult to diagnose at that age. With a child not yet old enough to speak, diagnosis depends on parents and caregivers noticing any of the following symptoms:

• a softer, shorter cry
• Difficulty feeding
• Rapid, noisy breathing
• Chest congestion, tightness
• Wheezing during a respiratory illness
• Coughing after running or crying, especially at night
• Sucked-in looking chest (between ribs and at front of neck)
• Frequent respiratory infections such as bronchitis and pneumonia
• Shortness of breath

Causes of Asthma

Inheriting Asthma

Inherit asthma tendency from your parents, although people with asthma should not worry about their future children on this score.

Children whose parents smoke are twice as likely to develop asthma as children of non-smoking parents. Also, children whose mothers smoked during pregnancy tend to be born with smaller airways, which greatly increases their chances of developing the disease.

Environment

The environment and lifestyle in developed countries has a lot to do with the chances of whether a person will develop asthma or not. Many people believe air pollution has something to do with asthma

Allergies

Causes of asthma include allergies to house dust mites, cats, dogs, and moulds.

Childhood infections and exposure to substances from bacteria in a dirty environment seem to protect against allergies, and this seems to be the main reason why richer populations have more allergic disease.

Asthma Influence Of You Live

Asthma is a condition you live with every day of your life. You can have an attack any time you are exposed to one of your triggers.

When your asthma symptoms become worse than usual, it is called an asthma episode or attack. During an asthma attack, muscles around the airways tighten up, making the airways narrower so less air flows through. Inflammation increases, and the airways become more swollen and even narrower. Cells in the airways may also make more mucus than usual. This extra mucus also narrows the airways. These changes make it harder to breathe.

"Taking care of your asthma is an important part of your life."

Asthma attacks are not all the same—some are worse than others. In a severe asthma attack, the airways can close so much that not enough oxygen gets to vital organs. This condition is a Medicine emergency. People can die from severe asthma attacks.

By controlling your asthma every day, you can prevent serious symptoms and take part in all activities.